Prince William has put his fatherly skills to good use, holding a baby handed to him from a sea of well-wishers on an island in Brazil.
William travelled to the Brazilian island retreat of Paqueta, a 50-minute ferry ride from Rio de Janeiro, to learn about its mangrove habitat and sample the slower pace of life on an island, where there are no private cars and bicycles are the main form of transport.
But as dozens of well-wishers excitedly said hello to the future king, 10-month-old Joaquim Monteiro was handed to him for a hug. Joking with his family, William said, “mustn’t drop him!” before giving the little boy a cuddle.
Holding him with the confidence of a father of three young children, William said: “Bless him” before handing him back to his grandmother Christina. Andre Luis Junior, the baby’s cousin and a teacher, said: “Nobody asked him – he just picked him up. It’s probably because he has three kids. He loves kids.”
He added: “It’s amazing. We are so happy, so happy he chose this very small island. We’re very unique in the heart of Rio. Very quiet. We love that he chose to come here. The kids in school were so excited today.”
The prince helped several young children come to the front of the meet and greet in the main square by the waterfront, bending down to be in photographs with them and taking the occasional selfie.
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The island, which only has around 5,000 residents, had declared the visit The Day Of The Prince, and children were given time off school to see him.
William wanted to meet those involved in protecting the island’s mangrove forests, a crucial ecosystem for preventing flooding, coastal erosion, providing a habitat for wildlife, and supporting the fishing community.
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He travelled on a boat into the Guapimirim mangrove to learn about the restoration work taking place there and helped with a planting activity as part of their reforestation scheme.
The pictures will be particularly important to the prince and his team, emphasising why the world needs to focus minds on the climate crisis, ahead of his appearance at COP 30, the UN’s climate conference in Belem on Thursday.
