Prince William and Princess Kate Visit Boston Harbor to Show How the Earthshot Prize Is Already Making a Difference

A spacious office park in a Boston suburb is the last place you would expect to find a palace guard. But when William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, visited Greentown Labs in Somerville Thursday, they met eight-year-old Henry Dynov-Teixeira, who was wearing a costume that would have looked right at home at Buckingham Palace’s Changing of the Guard ceremony. After taking in a Celtics game and turning City Hall green, William and Kate’s second day in Boston was a low-key affair, but they were still met by crowds of royal fans—and a few screams of “We Love You, William!”

The centerpiece of the day was a trip to East Boston with Wu to explore Piers Park and learn more about the climate resilience solutions being developed to protect Boston Harbor. They were also joined by Reverend Mariama White-Hammond, the City of Boston’s Chief of Environment, Energy, and Open Space. It was also a reunion for William and one 2021 Earthshot Prize finalist. Living Seawalls, an Australian project that installs panels that mimic natural marine habitats to promote biodiversity, is joining with the Boston-based Stone Living Lab to build sea walls at two sites in the harbor. William and Kate heard about the project and also spoke to environmental justice activists about strategies to protect the low-lying, multiracial neighborhood from rising sea levels. 

At Greentown Labs, which is North America’s largest climate start-up incubator, William and Kate met with entrepreneurs developing technology addressing various aspects of climate change. As William entered the building, he joked, “Anything interesting?” They spoke to Megan O’Connor, CEO of Nth Cycle, a company working to decarbonize the mineral supply chain, and Yet-Ming Chaing, the founder of Sublime Systems, which is developing low-carbon cement. They also reunited with Sam Teicher of Coral Vita, one of the winners of the 2021 Earthshot Prizes. The couple last saw Teicher in March on a tour of the Caribbean for the late queen’s Platinum Jubilee, where they planted coral at the organization’s site in the Bahamas. 

On Thursday, Will checked in about how that coral is faring. Kate expressed some concern. “Even the ones I put in?” she asked with a laugh. “There’s definitely a technique to that.” Teicher confirmed that the corals are still thriving.

Later, they visited Roca Inc., a project to engage individuals between 16 and 24 who are at high-risk to be involved in violence, in Chelsea. The organization also works with police officers, and William and Kate listened to a presentation from Chelsea Police Captain Dave Batchelor about his training program’s roots in neuroscience. After Batchelor explained how they use the tools of Cognitive Behavior Therapy during their outreach efforts, Kate discussed how useful the skills can be. “These are tools that all of us need,” she said. “Not only at work, but also [in] their private lives probably, too.” At the end of the event, William and Kate went on a brief walkabout in the neighborhood around Roca’s headquarters.