News
TRH arrive in Santiago for the start of their overseas tour to Chile, Brazil and Ecuador
8th March 2009
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall began their 10-day tour of South America today with the issue of climate change at the top of their agenda.
Their Royal Highnesses are travelling to Chile, Brazil and Ecuador, at the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, to focus on the Government’s climate change priorities.
The Prince and The Duchess are two of the United Kingdom’s most important ambassadors and travel overseas when requested by The British Government to enhance international relations and further British interests abroad.
The Prince and The Duchess arrived in Chile for the official visit that will also take them to Brazil, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands.
Highlighting the issue of global warming is a major theme of the tour and later this week the Prince will give a dire climate change warning to the world.
The Prince will tell business leaders in Brazil that nations have "less than 100 months to act" before the damage caused by climate change becomes irreversible.
The Prince and The Duchess arrived by plane at Comodoro Arturo Merino Benitez Airport close to Chile’s capital Santiago in bright sunshine.
With the impressive Cordillera de la Costa mountain range in the background The Prince and The Duchess stepped from the aircraft with The Prince carrying a Panama hat and The Duchess wearing large sunglasses and a flowing white coat over a blue and white dress.
They were greeted by dignitaries at the airport and tomorrow will formally meet Chile's President Michelle Bachelet.
The Prince is making his first visit to Chile while The Duchess has not travelled to the region on an official visit before.
First to greet them was Britain's ambassador to Chile Howard Drake and his wife Gill. Chile's ambassador to the UK, Rafael Moreno, was also amongst the welcoming group.
The last visit by a member of the British Royal Family to the Latin American country was by the Princess Royal in January 2007 and the Earl of Wessex visited the republic in March 2005.
During the tour, which starts tomorrow, the environmental theme will play an important part and will see the Prince either attend or host a number of events to encourage various groups, from young people to the business community, to tackle the issue of climate change.
The Prince has given a series of addresses over the past 12 months highlighting his long held concerns about climate change and its threat to the environment.
The world is experiencing an economic slowdown but in his speech in Brazil the Prince will say that in a recession we must not lose sight of the importance of continuing to combat global warming and protect the environment.
The Prince will also talk about the importance of the business community joining the fight against climate change.
The Prince has been a long-term campaigner on the issue and set up his Rainforests Project group in 2007 to help to find a solution to saving the world's threatened rainforests and help reduce global warming.
One of the highlights of the tour will be a visit by The Prince and The Duchess to the famed Galapagos islands, where 19th Century British scientist Charles Darwin studied the wildlife and later used his observations to help develop his theory on the evolution of life.
A Clarence House spokesman said the visit "is timed particularly to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Darwin, 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species and also the 50th anniversary of the Galapagos National Park".
Promoting low-carbon, high-growth economies in South America is a major concern for the Government.
Brazil is also a key partner in Britain's efforts to get an agreement between nations at a major climate-change summit being staged in Copenhagen in December.
During the tour's first full day tomorrow The Prince and The Duchess will hold talks with Chile's President Michelle Bachelet.
The issue of climate change is expected to form part of the discussions before The Prince travels to the Chilean Joint Centre for Peacekeeping Operations, CECOPAC, to meet the country's Chiefs of Staff.
During the day Their Royal Highnesses will visit The Prince of Wales Country Club where Britain's ambassador to Chile will host a reception for dignitaries.
In the evening President Bachelet will host a state dinner.