Message to the climate summit
Queen Elizabeth holds a moving salutation – but everyone only looks at one photo
United Kingdom, Glasgow: Buckingham Palace’s undated handout shows a still image of the video message from Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, which was shown to guests during the opening reception of the COP26 climate summit.
© Buckingham Palace / DPA
Queen Elizabeth gave an emotional and surprisingly personal speech at the start of the climate summit in Glasgow. The monarch sent a video message from Windsor – and made an eye-catcher with a framed picture in the background.
It was certainly not easy for her: At the start of the world climate summit in Glasgow, the Queen was scheduled as a spokeswoman, but the doctors advised the 95-year-old against traveling to Scotland for health reasons. So the queen sent a video message to the participants – and found a way to get noticed. A framed photo of her late husband Prince Philip was featured prominently in the picture.
It shows him in the midst of butterflies during a visit to Morocco in 1988, the Royal Family also posted it on Instagram shortly after his death. Matching this, the Queen wore a butterfly brooch with rubies, which she received as a wedding present when she married Philip in 1947. With these symbols at her side, the Queen began a surprisingly personal speech.
“None of us live forever,” says the Queen
“For over 70 years I have been fortunate to meet and know many of the world’s great leaders. And maybe that’s why I understand what makes them special,” she said. What they do for their people in the here and now is politics and governance. “But what they do for the people of tomorrow is called statecraft,” appealed the Queen. Now is the chance to appear in the history books that have yet to be printed. Many observers regard the 26th UN Climate Change Conference as the “summit of the last chance” to mitigate the consequences of climate change for mankind.
“None of us live forever,” said Queen Elizabeth. “We’re not doing this for ourselves, but for our children and our children’s children and those who will follow in our footsteps afterwards.” She also mentioned that her late husband was committed to environmental protection and that her son Prince Charles and his son Prince William have now followed his example. “I couldn’t be more proud of her,” she said unusually emotionally. The climate conference in Glasgow lasts until November 12th, with around 200 countries participating. Prince Charles and Prince William are said to be there all the time.
Sources: Daily Mail, Mirror