Queen Mary of Denmark is in Turkey this week for COP31, the United Nations climate conference. The three-day visit, which began Sunday evening in the coastal city of Antalya, is meant to highlight Denmark’s support for international climate cooperation. Samira Nawa, Denmark’s minister for climate, energy, and utilities, is accompanying her.
Queen Mary gives a speech at the Danish pavilion at COP31.
On Monday, Queen Mary joined a sailing trip on the Mediterranean with the conservation organization IUCN, which briefed her on how rising sea temperatures are affecting the region’s ecosystems and residents. She then visited Perge, an ancient city east of Antalya, where an archaeologist from Istanbul University guided her through ongoing excavations led by the Antalya Museum. Per the Royal House of Denmark, the two countries have collaborated on archaeological work, with a focus on on Greco-Roman antiquity, for decades. Last year, the partnership led Copenhagen’s Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek museum to return a bronze sculpture of the Roman emperor Septimius Severus, nearly 2,000 years old, to the Antalya Museum.
Queen Mary is seen visiting the expo hall at COP31.
This year’s conference is extra poignant for Queen Mary: While Turkey is chairing the summit, her native country of Australia is leading the negotiations. Dressed in a dark green power suit, perhaps in a subtle nod to the theme of the event, Queen Mary met Chris Bowen, Australia’s minister for climate change and energy, at the Australian pavilion to discuss the strategic partnership between Denmark and Australia.
“The shared Danish-Australian priorities and values within climate, sustainability and indigenous peoples are underpinned by the strategic partnership between Denmark and Australia, which was most recently reaffirmed during the state visit to Australia in March 2026,” the royal house said in a statement. Queen Mary also opened the Danish Pavilion at the expo, where Danish companies are presenting climate change-related solutions.
Queen Mary and Danish minister Samira Nawa (left) meeting with Australian minister for climate change, Chris Bowen (right).
Tomorrow, the Danish queen is scheduled to attend an event on renewable energy in the Pacific, a region she visited in 2023 when she traveled to Vanuatu and Fiji. She will end the trip at an event hosted by the Global Offshore Wind Alliance, a Danish-led group that promotes offshore wind power around the world.
Rachel King (she/her) is a news writer at Town & Country. Before joining T&C, she spent nearly a decade as an editor at Fortune. Her work covering travel and lifestyle has appeared in Forbes, Observer, Robb Report, Cruise Critic, and Cool Hunting, among others. Originally from San Francisco, she lives in New York with her wife, their daughter, and a precocious labradoodle. Follow her on Instagram at @rk.passport.