Princess Kate and Prince William will step out together in just days as Kensington Palace has confirmed the couple will return to work after a summer break.
The Prince and Princess of Wales will visit the Natural History Museum’s newly redeveloped gardens later this week to see how children and young people are being encouraged to connect with nature and improve biodiversity in cities.
The Princess of Wales, who is Patron of the Museum, will join the Prince of Wales on September 4 in meeting pupils taking part in learning programmes linked to the National Education Nature Park.
Both the gardens and the Park form part of the Museum’s Urban Nature Movement, which aims to build people’s confidence in protecting the environment and inspire a greener future.
Kate and William to step out together in just days as Kensington Palace confirms return
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Opened in 2024, the gardens serve as a “living laboratory” where visitors and scientists can monitor urban wildlife.
Since their launch, more than five million people have explored the space, with research showing that young visitors in particular feel motivated to spend more time outdoors after experiencing the gardens.
The Nature Discovery Garden has been especially popular, with most visitors reporting greater well-being after time spent there.
During the visit, Kate and William, both 43, will see how technology is being used to advance conservation research.
Kate previously visited the Natural History Museum in 2021
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A network of sensors and environmental DNA analysis is helping scientists build one of the most detailed pictures of urban biodiversity anywhere in the world.
The parents of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis will also join schoolchildren from Lewisham in a pond-dipping session and meet students from Manchester who have been transforming their school grounds into new habitats as part of the Nature Park programme.
So far, more than 7,500 schools, nurseries and colleges have taken part in the scheme, which is supported by the Department for Education and run in partnership with the RHS.
The project is helping young people boost biodiversity, develop green skills and improve wellbeing by turning grey spaces into nature-rich areas.
Kate also visited the museum in 2019 in her role as Patron of the Natural History Museum
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Kate pictured at the museum back in 2017
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The visit follows Kate’s engagement at the Museum in 2021, when she heard about the early plans to create outdoor classrooms and a cutting-edge research centre on the site.
Environmental innovation and youth engagement are causes close to the couple’s hearts.
Prince William champions global solutions to climate challenges through The Earthshot Prize, while Kate is spearheading Mother Nature, a film series exploring Britain’s changing seasons and humanity’s connection to the natural world.
She previously co-designed the Back to Nature garden at the Chelsea Flower Show in 2019 to highlight the role of nature in childhood development, and has long supported the Scouts in their efforts to give young people access to outdoor experiences.