Kate MiddletonandPrince Williamare stepping out — and stepping up to the stage — on World Mental Health Day.
On Tuesday, The Prince and Princess of Wales, both 41, took part in a forum for young people in Birmingham, alongside BBC Radio 1 and charity The Mix, as they continue their longstanding work to promote mental well-being.
During the event, Kate gave a speech, telling the crowd: “Today, more people feel empowered to talk about their mental health than ever before. This is a major step forward. William and I continue to be inspired to see young people, like you all here today, leading this charge – being particularly brave in having some of those conversations yourselves. As a generation, you value and talk more about your mental health than any before you – something we truly admire and applaud.”
Their outing comes asMeghan MarkleandPrince Harryheld their own initiative for their Archewell Foundation in New York City for World Mental Health Day.
Princess Kate and Prince William chatting to young people in Birmingham.Kirsty Wigglesworth-WPA Pool/Getty Images
Kirsty Wigglesworth-WPA Pool/Getty Images
The forum kicks off a series of outings that the royal couple will take part in this week — including one with university students and emergency responders and another one that will highlight the interaction between mental health and sports.
BBC1Xtra presenter, Nadia Jae, led the forum with contributions from British television doctor, Alex George, BBC Radio 1 presenter, Katie Thistleton and the Founding Director of Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, Marc Brackett.
Soon after arriving at Birmingham’s Factory Works center, the couple sat down to take part in some workshops – Kate laughing along with the young people at the Understanding our Emotions session. In it, Kate and the others took it in turns to describe a feeling from an emotion wheel and the others around the table had to guess what they were explaining.
Sharvari Patil, 21, a volunteer with The Mix, said Kate “was very invested and I thought that she was really listening to us. She got very involved with the games. I felt very well listened to.”
“I think it’s great that they are coming and putting out this strategy of preventative care because I think that is the cultural shift that we need in our language, our narrative about mental health. And it’s great that they are really pioneering that. Because of that unique platform that they have, I think that they are able to start this change in the way we speak about mental health.”
Sharvari added of Kate’s participation: “I was a little bit nervous but because she was very chilled, after she started interacting my nerves left. It was really nice running the workshop and feeling like she was so invested…She really threw herself in and she really embraced it. And she tried to give reflections as well, so when I asked everyone how they found it, I think her reflection was that having better emotional vocabulary would help people talk about their emotions more.”
Then, Princess Kate took to the podium to make her speech, urging that together,”let’s build a brighter, more resilient future.”
She said, “Ultimately, we are working to build a happier, healthier world. We want to shape fairer, safer, kinder, more equal societies - societies that seek the common good and a better future together.”
Princess Kate taking part in one of the workshops.Kirsty Wigglesworth-WPA Pool/Getty Images
With the earth’s health also in mind for many, she added, “For just as we need to restore, protect, and invest in our planet, so we must also restore, protect, and invest in the communities, relationships and people living on it. We believe that starts with you, our young people, but it also means all of us. Because when you think about it, we can each shape the world in which we live.”
“So, we know, like you, that simply talking about mental health is just not enough. Because although many more conversations are now taking place, it is now vital we spend more time focusing on how we talk about our mental health – and crucially; What are we are going to do, to build positive, preventative solutions to one of today’s toughest challenges.”
Prince William and Princess Kate join in the workshops.Kirsty Wigglesworth-WPA Pool/Getty Images
“Today we heard the science and research that backs this up, and how crucial it is, that we develop the skills needed to navigate everything we will face in the future. William and I believe we need to do all we can as a society to help young people develop the emotional and social life skills they need for good mental health, and to thrive in the world around them. Both learning about the world and learning about how to be happy and thrive within it, should go hand-in-hand.”
Prince William taking part in one of the workshops at the mental health forum.Kirsty Wigglesworth-WPA Pool/Getty Images
Princess Kate making her speech.Kirsty Wigglesworth-WPA Pool/Getty Images
Tuesday’s event marks the latest in a series of initiatives from William and Kate and their Royal Foundation as they focus on how to improve mental health, especially in young people, across Britain. In 2016, William, Kate andPrince Harryset up Heads Together to challenge the stigma around mental health and encourage more people to have conversations about their mental health.
On the way to Birmingham, William replied to a boy on X/twitter who had reached out to ask the royals to his school’s World Mental Health Day event. He said, “Tackling mental health challenges and stigmas head on is so important, please keep up this important work.”
Adarsh Ramchurn, 22, who hosted the royal couple at the event, told reporters that the couple were “really invested” in the event and subject and being there showed that they will push mental health forward. “We had a conversation before they left saying that they’re not just doing this for the sake of it, they are really passionate about the change they want to see. So for young people to know that the Prince and Princess are really supportive of pushing forward mental health will I think help push their own mental health forward themselves and also give them the confidence that they need that they’ve got the support.”
He added: “You can tell that this is a passion and that’s what I felt really good about.”
“She said she likes it spicy with coriander, he doesn’t like it spicy.”
The Princess of Wales taking part in the workshop.Kirsty Wigglesworth-WPA Pool/Getty Images
William and Kate’s office at Kensington Palace said, “Through this forum, the Prince and Princess wanted to bring young people together to start a conversation about how they manage their emotions and how they can be supported to build their resilience and protective factors such as healthy relationships which make it easier to navigate bumps in the road as they go through life,” the office continued.
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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s N.Y.C. event is the first in-person event for their Archewell Foundation. The couple is providing a platform for parents navigating mental health challenges in the digital age.
Rolf Vennenbernd/picture alliance via Getty Images
The Archewell Foundation will host ‘The Archewell Foundation Parents’ Summit: Mental Wellness in a Digital Age’to give voice to families who are passionate about building a safer online world for children and teens, PEOPLE exclusively revealed on Thursday. It is part ofProject Healthy MindsWorld Mental Health Day Festival.
source: people.com
