Many took to social media to share their frustration at the royal figure’s sentiment, with some connecting the statement to “eco-fascism” – a theory that argues humans are overburdening the planet and that some populations are more responsible than others. //

Heather Alberro, a lecturer in global sustainable development at Nottingham Trent University, told Al Jazeera that equating population growth with climate change, or conservation, is a complex issue.

“Focusing only on human numbers functions as a red herring,” she said. “What research increasingly shows is that extreme poverty, socioeconomic inequality and capitalist systems predicated on endless growth for maximising shareholder value are greater predictors of ecological decline.

“Is it any wonder [then], that a poacher, driven by poverty and the lucrative price tag associated with ivory, would be compelled to kill an elephant?”

Alberro explained that the narrative on blame needed to shift. Instead, she argued, the focus should be on how global inequities are at the heart of the climate crisis.

“Reckoning with the ongoing, violent legacies of colonial capitalism, which continue to drive the exploitation of people, places, resources, other species, is an important first step towards truly transformative change,” she said.

“The irony is that recent research has found that Indigenous peoples are often the best stewards of ecosystems.” //

Josina’s collective focuses on building relationships with the land, particularly for people from Black and Brown communities, that “exist beyond the dynamics of extraction”.

“‘Conservation’ comes from a very colonial time. It treats people who are living there as feckless and worthy of being kicked off the land,” Josina added.

“Some of the most dangerous narratives come from upper-class environmentalists. It’s not just Prince William; it’s not just his father, it’s also David Attenborough, it’s also Jane Goodall,” they said, referring to the British broadcaster and natural historian, and English primatologist.

“All these people promote this idea that it’s other people irresponsibility, that it’s poor people’s responsibility.”