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The Duke of Sussex has shared a beautiful photograph, taken by himself, to the National Geographic’s Instagram to mark the start of his Instagram takeover.
National Geographic announced Prince Harry would guest-curated their Instagram feed, which has a whopping 123 million followers, to help launch their new social campaign #LookingUp, which aims to raise awareness about the vital role trees play in the Earth’s eco-system, as a good reminder to appreciate the beauty of our surroundings.
Sharing an image shows trees with sunlight streaming in, which Harry took from the ground looking up, Harry revealed he was “so happy” work with the publication and guest-curate their Instagram account.
“It’s one of my personal favourites,” Harry shared.
“Today I’m in Liwonde National Park, Malawi an important stop on our official tour of southern Africa, planting trees for the Queens Commonwealth Canopy.
“As part of the takeover, I am inviting you to be a part of our ‘Looking Up’ social campaign. To help launch the campaign, here is a photograph I took today here in Liwonde of Baobab trees.”
A second image in the carousel shows Harry positioned to get the perfect shot, lying on the ground beside the trees, taken by the African Parks Network.
At the time of writing Harry had shared three more images to the account, taken by National Geographic photographers, accompanied by a caption written by Harry, where he revealed what he loved about the images.
Prince Harry lies on the ground to get the perfect shot. (Image: Instagram/@africanparksnetwork)
The Instagram takeover comes after Harry penned an essay for The Telegraph on Sunday, where he spoke about the importance of environmental conservation.
While he admits he is no expert, he reveals he’s had the privilege of learning a great deal about some of the greatest issues facing Africa’s communities and wildlife over his trips to the continent over the last 22 years, listening and learning from friends who include vets, park rangers, scientists and safari guides.
“Conservation fails unless you put people at the heart of the solution and for far too long, that hasn’t been the case,” Harry penned.
“I have no problem in admitting that we are all part of the problem in some way, but a lot of us simply aren’t aware of the damage that is being caused.”
Prince Harry planting tree with school children last week in Botswana. (Image: Getty)
When addressing what will happen if we ignore the environmental crisis Harry says, “Nature teaches us the importance of a circular system, one where nothing goes to waste and everything has a role to play.
“If we interfere with it, rather than work with it, the system breaks down. Conservation used to be a specialist area, driven by science. But now it is fundamental to our survival and we must overcome greed, apathy and selfishness if we are to make real progress.”
Harry also wrote about his personal plan writing, “Based on what I’ve learnt over the years and the experts that I’ve met, one of the greatest opportunities to deliver this balance is eco-tourism, but specifically community-based eco-tourism.
“Tourism allows the communities to be equal financial partners through mentorship, so that they see the investment flow back to families, providing jobs, healthcare and a future.”
Harry helping to plant a Baobab tree in Botswana – the same kind of tree he photographed for National Geographic. (Image: Getty)
Harry has already brought this idea into fruition, last month launching a new global initiative coined Travalyst, in collaboration with big-name partners Booking.com. CTrip, Skyscanner, TripAdvisor and VISA.
Travalyst aims to make travel more sustainable, to help protect destinations and benefit communities long into the future, and to enable consumers to make more environmentally friendly choices while travelling.
The idea of Travalyst, Harry explained at the launch, is not to stop or discourage travel, but to push for a new way to work together, across sectors, borders, cultures and generations, to re-orientate the entire travel industry toward sustainability and equity – for eco-conscious travel to become mainstream rather than niche – and to tackle the problem of over-tourism, which is severely impacted some of the world’s most-loved places.
“Travel has the unparalleled power to open people’s minds to different cultures, new experiences, and to have a profound appreciation for what our world has to offer,” Harry said in a statement.
“As tourism inevitably grows, it is critically important to accelerate the adoption of sustainable practices worldwide and to balance this growth with the needs of the environment and the local population. Bringing companies, consumers, and communities together is our best chance to protect destinations and ecosystems for future generations.”
Today in Malawi on day eight of the royal tour Prince Harry, alongside local park rangers in Liwonde National Park, laid a wreath at the memorial of Guardsman Matthew Talbot who, at just 22, lost his life earlier this year while on an anti-poaching mission with the British Army, the Malawian government and African Parks.
Harry has spent the last few days travelling through Botswana, Angola and Malawi, and tomorrow will return to South Africa to join Duchess Meghan and Archie in Johannesburg to wrap up their 10-day official tour.
