Luisa Neubauer: This is how she experienced Prince William working together

Luise Neubauer
“Prince William really gets into it”

© Mauersberger / imago images

Climate activist Luisa Neubauer speaks exclusively in GALA about her collaboration with the British heir to the throne.

Cate Blanchett, Shakira, Queen Rania of Jordan, the Chinese entrepreneur Jack Ma – Prince William, 39, has appointed numerous global icons to the jury of his “Earthshot Prize”. It will be awarded for the first time on October 17th. Also in the illustrious group is Luisa Neubauer, 25, the German face of “Fridays For Future”, climate activist and author. Her new book “Noch haben wir die Wahl” (Tropen, 240 pages, 20 euros) has just been published.

Luisa Neubauer in a GALA interview

GALA: How did the cooperation with the English prince come about?
Luisa Neubauer: Mutual friends who are involved in global climate protection introduced us. They advise Prince William and his foundation. I met her at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Prince William emphasizes the importance of having you on the team as a young voice. He is 39, you are 25 – what are the differences?
He is as old as my oldest sister. And with her I made the experience that this generation was generally told: Make an effort, work hard, then you can actually become anything in the world. A nice idea. But the problem is: The climate crisis is thwarting our plans. In my generation we may see this even more clearly because we have lived in this illusion less long.

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Luisa Neubauer: “Prince William contributed well”

How can you imagine such a jury meeting via video switch?
I’ve had a lot of Zoom conferences with different people, but that was something special. It was very focused, everyone was prepared and read in. We’re very different, there were lively discussions, and as is the case with almost all Zoom conferences, we didn’t get there over time because we had so much to discuss.

Did you feel that you were valued as equals?
Yes indeed. I was a bit surprised myself. For a young woman this is not something that can be taken for granted. It was a very nice and friendly group, despite the differences in content.

Who particularly impressed you?
Take Cate Blanchett, for example. It was nice to get to know her and talk to her. She looks very nice. Prince William has also contributed well.

She has a special relationship with England

How did he affect you as a climate protector?
It’s hard work to set and implement a price like this. You can see that he and his team really get into their work, really great.

And how do you feel about the monarchy?
To a certain extent, I associate the Royal Family with my strong personal relationship with England. I lived in England for a couple of years, went to school there and also have family in England. I was in the country when Brexit was decided and also when Prince George was born.

Gala