Prince Harry marked a milestone for his environmental tourism initiative Travalyst after making the “devastating” decision to resign from his beloved Sentebale charity amid dispute reports within the organization.
On Tuesday, April 1, Travalyst — which Harry helped launch in 2019 — released its five-year milestone report, which includes new research as well as some of the organization’s many achievements, such as “scaling flight emissions estimates across 130 billion searches” and therefore “empowering travelers to make more informed choices,” per the website.
Harry said in a new video released along with the report, “It’s quite clear we’re not progressing as quickly as needed, and the economic impacts are only growing. These realities leave us with a choice: find practical solutions to climate change. Or accept the massive financial and human losses that it’s causing. I think we all agree that the latter isn’t the answer.”
“Travel can do a tremendous amount of good. It connects us to the destinations we love and to the communities that call these places home,” he added in the clip.
Prince Harry.
Scott Dudelson/Getty
“It drives economic growth, creates jobs, and when done well, can protect the people, wildlife and environment that we all share,” the Duke of Sussex continued. “When we started Travalyst six years ago, the goal was simple, I wanted to harness travel’s power and potential to help create a more resilient world.”
“I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished,” Harry said, stating they’ve been “the first and only independent organization to mobilize competing tech and travel companies who see the business sense in sustainability,” among other achievements. The charity is aiming to reduce the planet’s “carbon emissions to net zero by 2030,” per a previous post on the site.
“Together, we’re bringing sustainable solutions to the mainstream, providing travelers with clear information that helps them make better and more informed choices, which is what we know consumers want,” the Duke of Sussex said in Tuesday’s update, urging travelers to join them “on this journey” by looking at the report and seeing how they can help.
Prince Harry’s comments come after he and his Sentebale cofounder, Prince Seeiso of Lesotho, announced their unexpected departure as patrons of the charity on March 26. They founded the organization in 2006 to honor their late mothers.
Sentebale chair Dr. Sophie Chandauka, who took on the role in July 2023, has since said in a March 29 interview with the Financial Times that Harry and Prince Seeiso wanted “to force a failure and then come to the rescue” amid fallout claims.
Prince Harry and Dr. Sophie Chandauka.
Jason Koerner/Getty
A source close to the patrons and trustees told PEOPLE that the pair’s decision to exit the charity was based on Chandauka’s handling of the charity’s finances. In response, her rep told PEOPLE that “a lot of information being shared is untrue and defamatory in nature.”
Amid the alleged dispute, a photo of an awkward on-stage exchange between Chandauka and Meghan Markle in April 2024 at the Royal Salute Polo Challenge in Florida resurfaced, which Chandauka claimed led to negative media coverage.
She said in her Financial Times interview that the photo moment with Meghan sparked tensions with Harry, which later escalated. According to her, the Duke of Sussex urged her to publicly address the incident, but she refused.
“I said no, we’re not setting a precedent by which we become an extension of the Sussex PR machine,” Chandauka told the outlet.
Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and Sophie Chandauka at the Royal Salute Polo Challenge in Florida on April 12, 2024.
Yaroslav Sabitov/PA Images via Getty
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A source close to Sentebale patrons and trustees told PEOPLE that the dispute is rooted in governance concerns, not personal grievances. Regarding the specific instance Chandauka referenced, the source said they cannot comment on the details but stresses that they “only ever want the truth to be shared.”
“It is devastating that the relationship between the charity’s trustees and the chair of the board broke down beyond repair, creating an untenable situation,” Harry and Prince Seeiso said in a previous statement while talking about their decision to step down from the charity, which focuses on lifting up young people caught in the HIV/AIDS crisis in Lesotho and further afield in southern Africa.