Prince William claims inaction on climate change "keeps [him] awake at night".
Prince William
The 38-year-old royal has criticised the lack of "political will" to tackle environmental issues and thinks the time has come to tackle such "important issues".
Speaking on the 'Outrage + Optimism' climate change podcast, he said: "Everyone knows this is where we’re headed and these are the important issues we need to tackle.
“I think getting to those in the political world with the will to tackle things is another story.”
He went on to praise the younger generation and the likes of Greta Thunberg for driving a “groundswell of opinion” by voicing their concerns but insisted that should be proof action is needed.
He added: "If younger generations are up in arms about their future then I think the politicians and the political will should be there to listen and to act on what they are saying...
"I get outraged by the inaction. That’s probably a bit of a cliche but that is what I get most troubled about. Especially as I’m in a position of responsibility if you like, or leadership. I feel I can do a lot more if given that ability.
"So therefore I don’t understand why those who have the levers, don’t. That’s what really upsets me and keeps me awake at night."
William insisted the time has come to stop talking and researching and actually "provide the action".
He said: "All the conversations have happened, the science has been out there, the science is irrefutable.
“We have the data. So let’s stop talking about it, collecting data, and let's actually provide the action and I think that’s what's going to be really needed over these next 10 years.”
The prince admitted his outlook has changed over the years as he used to think "tackling things negatively" by highlighting what needed action was the right approach, before realising galvanising people with positivity was more engaging.
He said: "There has been lots of calling out and, quite rightly, saying ‘these are the problems and this is what we’re going to face.'
“But there has been very little, kind of, ‘well actually, we can fix this, we can provide those solutions and we can, as human beings, turn this around.’
“We don’t need to be staring down the barrel of a gun for the rest of our lives until real problems start to appear.”
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