Prince William speaks at Blue Economy and Finance Forum

[My2cents1975]

The ocean is a vital resource which suffers from rampant overexploitation. The management of this key resource benefits us all. Prince William attended the Forum in Monaco and I have included a link to his brief speech.

The Earthshot "Revive the Ocean" pillar provides support for entrepreneurs who are building businesses which use ocean resources responsibly and restore ocean health. A win for all of us!

Excellent. Such a great cause, I'm glad this is being highlighted. I've just bought David Attenborough's book "Ocean". It's critical we protect our seas for the sake of the future.

This is so encouraging to see and it looks like this event also had several other world leaders like Emmanuel Macron, Prince Albert of Monaco, President da Silva and Chaves Robles involved too, so hopefully it will attract big investors and have a significant impact for the cause.

I think this is article is good at explaining William’s soft power and how it works for projects like these.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5ygzd1xwwqo.amp

‘The Prince William factor has been a huge benefit to CoralVita as it works to scale up its business.
“He helps getting in front of people who would normally not think it was investible or that it mattered," says Mr Teicher.
"We need to expand out to bankers, government leaders, tech specialists. He gets more people around the table."
And ultimately this is an event where money matters”’

and

‘He will also hold a closed, private session with experts and the investor community.

It's a pragmatic approach to using his royal soft power to draw in people who have the resources to help generate change’

Yes, @PrettyFlyforaMaiTai , I think that "soft power" is an interesting concept, and can be incredibly effective. I'm glad William was there and I'm glad he made a speech. He's not a celebrity and he's not trying to get elected, so it has sincerity.

I'm really pleased he's championing this.

Just watched coverage on the news. Good to see Coralvita, an Earthshot finalist, has obtained funding for their work regenerating coral reefs.

Brilliant. That's one of the most pressing issues..

Earthshot's website details the Revive our Oceans initiative.

There are several finalists profiled in under the Winners and Finalists section of the Earthshot website. The Great Bubble Barrier prevents plastic from reaching the ocean using a technology invented by oil companies to contain spills. Coast4C is seaweed farming which gives coastal communities an alternative to fishing to earn a living thereby reducing pressure on fish stocks. And plenty more.

It is so hard for entrepreneurs to get funding and expert support, so kudos to Prince William for using his convening power to help these innovators meet people with the resources to grow their businesses.

The Earthshot Prize - Revive Our Oceans

Good for him. Hopefully he doesn't eat fish, we wouldn't accept Greta T munching on a steak while telling us to go vegan.

Don't think I heard William telling anyone not to eat fish. Could have missed it, so a link would be useful.

We decimate the sea by over fishing. It's the best place to start, along the pollution and tins of rubbish dumped in to the sea.

This seems like a great initiative bringing together people who know what is needed and those with private money to invest.

Happy to see William getting involved to promote this. Once he becomes King, he won’t be as free to do this stuff. I expect he really wants to make a difference and rightly feels like it’s an urgent cause to promote.

I hope more and more collaborations can happen like this, to speed up finding the solutions.

I mean considering he mentioned that oceans “provide food for more than three billion people” I don’t think he objects to people eating fish. More likely he wants to make sure it’s done in a sustainable way and wants to ensure the ocean is kept healthy in general 🤷🏼‍♀️

I have to say, seeing seabed trawling from a camera, it was horrifying. Anyone who can make a difference to this is to be applauded.

We are really going to miss David Attenborough when he's gone, I would like to think there was someone waiting in the background to take up- his mantle