Princess Eugenie is stepping into a new role as the British-based charity Arts Work has announced Her Royal Highness as a new patron. Arts Work is a “charity committed to empowering young people to lead, be changemakers and actively get involved and work within the arts and creative sector”. They shared the news on Instagram on Friday, October 3, writing on social media: “We are thrilled to announce that Her Royal Highness Princess Eugenie has become our new patron. Her support marks a significant moment in our mission to champion creativity and amplify the voices of children and young people.”
“As a charity dedicated to empowering young lives through creativity, we’re so pleased to have Her Royal Highness join us in advocating for inclusive, creative opportunities that enable young people to make change happen. This partnership reflects a shared commitment to nurturing talent, building confidence, and empowering young people to become the next generation of creative and cultural leaders,” it concluded, alongside a series of pictures of Eugenie meeting volunteers and staff.
Arts Work hopes to give young people across the UK who may not have access to the arts sector a foot in the door, providing work placements and pre-employment training that “could unlock creative careers young people might never have imagined – and much more”. Eugenie is the youngest daughter of the Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York, and is currently eleventh-in-line to the British throne. She is also first cousins with Prince William and Prince Harry, and has two children, sons August and Ernest, with her husband Jack Brooksbank.
She works full-time as a director at art gallery Hauser & Wirth in London, and along with her older sister Princess Beatrice, they have various royal patronages. Her key patronages include co-founding The Anti-Slavery Collective, the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital and Horatio’s Garden (inspired by her own scoliosis surgery), and an ambassadorship for the Blue Marine Foundation.
In September, Eugenie made a stop in New York City to join her co-founders of The Anti-Slavery Collective as they launched a major new campaign aimed at exposing the invisible human cost behind counterfeit clothing and accessories.
According to the collective, half of European consumers aged 15-24 now say they see no issue in buying fakes, and although buying dupes might often be considered harmless, the industry is laden with exploitation from unregulated factory floors to market stalls, with evidence of forced labor, child labor, and human trafficking.
© SuppliedPrincess Eugenie has various patronages
The campaign, Hidden Threads: Fake Fashion – A Human Rights Scandal, aims to highlight the terrifying statistics that reveal an estimated 218 million children aged between five and 17 around the world are working full -time, and that 70 per cent of these children are considered victims of child labor.
© NurPhoto via Getty ImagesEugenie is very close with her sister Beatrice
Princess Eugenie, exclusively told HELLO!: “It’s easy to see fake fashion as a victimless crime, but this is far from the reality. The people making, distributing, and selling these items are too often victims of coercion or exploitation. This campaign is about creating a call to action for consumers. We want people to pause and think about where their fakes come from and how they were made – because only then can we start to change the demand that fuels this exploitation.”