‘A place to balance’: Princess of Wales shares ‘spiritual’ connection to nature

The Princess of Wales said she had found a “very spiritual, very intense” emotional connection to nature, which had brought her peace.

In a video promoting the Scouts in her role as joint president, Princess Catherine spoke of her relationship with nature as she continued her return to work while in remission from cancer, saying the outdoors had been “a place to balance” in “a very busy world”.

Catherine, Princess of Wales, has spoken about her “spiritual” connection to nature on a recent visit with the Scouts.Credit: Getty Images

Last month, she travelled to the Lake District to meet Dwayne Fields, the new Chief Scout, and youngsters on the shores of Lake Windermere.

The event was not listed in the Court Circular, with a Kensington Palace videographer joining the princess to shoot footage, which was edited to share on social media with music and a voiceover.

The footage showed the princess, dressed for the countryside in a baker boy cap, knitted jumper and walking boots, crouching down in the grass to help children read a map, walking through woodland, and taking a photograph with the group on top of a hill.

She said: “I find it a very spiritual and very intense emotional reconnection, I suppose, these environments.

“Not everyone has that same relationship, perhaps, with nature, but it is therefore meaningful for me as a place to balance and find a sort of sense of peace and reconnection in what is otherwise a very busy world.”

The princess has not spoken publicly about her own spirituality or faith. Recently, she was reported to have become “more interested in questions of faith” since her cancer diagnosis.

Kensington Palace said the Lake District event saw the princess discuss how being in the countryside can “help us to deepen connections with ourselves and each other while building our skills of empathy, resilience and our sense of belonging”.

She and Fields spoke of the “impact being in nature can have on young people in building their confidence and skills for later life”, the palace reported.

This photograph of Catherine, Princess of Wales, was released ahead of World Cancer Day this year. The princess has expressed the peace being in nature has brought her.Credit: Prince Louis/Kensington Royal

Princess Catherine also met a group of scouts aged 10 to 15 from groups in Cumbria and Greater Manchester as they studied for their naturalist badge.

“It’s so beautiful because so many of the walks here, you can see Lake Windermere because it’s huge, isn’t it?” the princess told the scouts while pointing to a map. “Look how hilly it is over here. Have you done any of these big mountains?”

She added that “what’s so fantastic about the Scouts is that all those same foundations that have always been there” can still apply in the modern day, saying: “It still resonates for so many young people, and it’s making such a massive difference to them.”

Fields, who became Chief Scout last September following the tenure of Bear Grylls, said: “I think it’s really important for young people to have access to nature because it’s a space where they can push themselves, they can challenge themselves, they learn leadership skills, spend time making friends and those lifelong really great memories that we all hold onto.

“And I think if we can do that, we’ll build up a generation that is passionate about our natural spaces and passionate about protecting them as well.”

He added that having the princess as joint president was “great for the Scout movement”. She shares the presidency with the Duke of Kent, who has been in the role since 1975.

Of the day out, Fields said: “In an increasingly complex world, digital technology has its place, but the few hours we spent in the hills without screens was magical. We are often at our best in the outdoors, and I want more young people to experience outdoor adventures like this for themselves.”

Kensington Palace said the film was intended to showcase “the importance of the natural world and its ability to support our health and well-being”.

The Telegraph UK

Make the most of your health, relationships, fitness and nutrition with our Live Well newsletter. Get it in your inbox every Monday.