We remember his recent outings on the climate issue. Of its calls to action. And more broadly, for its part ” close to nature “ known to him since the mid-1980s. But on closer inspection, Charles III, the new king of England, does not seem as ” green “ it seems. Worse, he defends ideas without any scientific basis.
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Some 48 hours after the death of Queen Elisabeth II, it was her son, Prince Charles who was officially proclaimed king this Saturday, September 10, 2022. Should we be happy that the one who is publicly known for his sensitivity to the cause environment accesses the british throne? Once again, things, on closer inspection, are not so simple.
Let’s first go back a few years, a few decades even. Because it was in the mid-1980s that the then still Prince Charles converted his Cornish farm into an organic farm. He appears, in the process, as a defender of rare species and the support of many eco-responsible initiatives.
The one who must now be called King Charles III is even among the first to publish his carbon footprint . Accompanied, please, by a reduction target emissions greenhouse gases (GHGs). It was in 2008.
And we remember the outings of the entire royal family ahead of the Conference of the signatory parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on climatic changesheld in November 2021 in Glasgow (Scotland), the COP26. Before the members of the G20 gathered just before in Rome (Italy), Prince Charles had estimated that the “most urgent of problems” to deal with was that of “the health of the planet”. “We must now translate beautiful words into even more beautiful actions”urged the Prince of Wales.
Do what I say…
At first glance, applying this principle to himself should not pose major difficulties for the new King Charles III. However, on closer inspection, it may well be that the newly crowned is not as green as he claims.
Some have been asking for a long time, in vain, that the land properties of the royal family be managed in a more eco-responsible way. This is only 1.4% of UK land. But the question here is above all that of example. Because half of the country’s land belongs to less than 1% of the population. Aristocrats, in particular. On which the positions of the royal family could have an impact.
Another sensitive point: the direct greenhouse gas emissions. Because the family likes to travel helicopter . Often, according to observers. Including for short journeys between two properties. In 2019, the royal family’s global travel-related GHG emissions simply doubled compared to 2018. However, this did not increase the family’s total emissions by 3% — thanks to a significant reduction on heating and lighting items.
A penchant for charlatans
Not exemplary, therefore, the brand new King Charles III and his family. But the worst is perhaps the sovereign’s barely masked penchant for practices that are far-fetched to say the least. Because, not content to support for a very long time thehomeopathy — and his principles which, it should be remembered, have never been scientifically proven — Charles III was also a great admirer of Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925). Remember that the latter is the founder of a movement at the origin of the biodynamicand anthroposophy. Practices, the basis of which, again, has never been scientifically demonstrated.
A few years ago, the Prince of Wales even proudly delivered the keynote speech at the international congress of the biodynamic movement, praising the anthroposophical method of agriculture. A method based on astrology, alchemy and homeopathy. The one who was only Prince of Wales then criticized a “reductionist scientific thinking”. And said he was proud to be “an enemy of Lights»!
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