Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, haven’t been shy about advocating for a safer digital world for our children. And now, Duchess Sophie is doing her part to spread awareness.
This week, the Duchess of Edinburgh, 60, traveled to Brussels for an important meeting hosted by the European Parliament intergroup on Children’s Rights. The royal gave a powerful keynote speech where she raised awareness about online child abuse and warned about the dangers of artificial intelligence (or “AI”).
Duchess Sophie looked the part in a gorgeous lavender suit, which she paired with a cream-colored patterned blouse. The royal styled her hair in a simple low bun, which only added to the business-y vibes of the outfit.
During her speech, the Duchess of Edinburgh explained how the internet is negatively affecting the next generation. She said, “The last time I addressed policymakers here in Brussels was in 2021 when, sadly, the world was already far behind the curve in generating the tools needed to prevent the explosion in the abuse of children online.”
The royal continued, “Today children everywhere in the world are not only falling victim to adults wishing to groom them but are exposed to an enormous amount of dangerous, harmful and inappropriate content including materials on suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, violence and pornography, all with consequences which can prove devastating, and can even lead to them taking their own lives.”
Duchess Sophie explained that she’s been following this cause for years. (FYI, she’s the royal patron of multiple organizations that combat online child abuse, including NSPCC, Plan International UK and Childline). The royal admitted that she’s seen the negative effects firsthand, especially with the emergence of AI.
“It is a challenge we need to tackle urgently, particularly given the emergence of generative AI.”
Her speech was strikingly similar to the one Prince Harry gave during a video chat honoring 5Rights Foundation. At the time, the Duke of Sussex talked about how he and his wife, Meghan Markle, are worried about their children’s future on the internet.
Well said, Sophie.
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