While the Duchess of Cornwall was drinking tea with Dame Judi Dench on the Isle of Wight, Prince Charles decamped to the West Midlands today, to visit a forest that replicates weather conditions of the future. The heir to the throne, a keen environmentalist, looked in jolly spirits following his return from a sun-soaked tour of the West Country last week.
Charles, who celebrates his 70th birthday in November, was visiting the University of Birmingham’s Institute of Forest Research, which looks at how changing C02 levels will affect the nation’s flora and fauna. Wearing a smart silver-grey suit and polished brown brogues, the Prince laughed and joked with researchers as he unveiled a plaque at the site.
Made of planed oak, the prince quipped: ‘You’re not going to put it at the top of the tree, are you?’
Charles was also presented with a gift from the university – an engraved bottle, found in the forest during site construction, which had been filled with air from the forest at its predicted CO2 level in 2050. Read more