It is encouraging to see the Royal Family using their vast resources to call attention to the fight against climate change. Between Prince William's Earthshot Award, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Net Zero Carbon Pledge, and Prince Charles' long history of outspoken environmental activism, using their platform for such an important cause is a hopeful sign. Nevertheless, they are following in the well-known footsteps of Prince Philip, a well-known nature lover.

The Duke of Edinburgh, who passed away last April at the age of 99, was a longtime environmentalist, calling attention to nature conservation and biodiversity long before they became constant news. And now, as that activist, he seems to have taken on the responsibility of saving an entire species.

The Australian rodent known as the Gilbert's potoroo is one of the world's rarest marsupials, an animal that looks like a mix between a rat and a kangaroo (but cute!). ), but its story is fascinating: it disappeared in the 1870s and was once thought to be extinct after not being seen for years. But according to the Telegraph, in the 1960s, when Prince Philip lobbied to save the birds from a remote Australian bush area called Two Peoples Bay, which was threatened with destruction due to new housing developments, the potoroos inadvertently They were saved.

In 1994, nearly 30 years after the property was designated for protection, a scientist discovered that the disappearing potoroo was actually surviving in the area. Prince Philip's successful fight to protect the habitat has increased the potoroo population to its current number of nearly 100, and researchers are grateful for the Duke's passionate conservation advocacy. Gilbert Potreux was undiscovered until he was rediscovered in 1994 and survived despite being thought to be extinct, thanks to Prince Philip's contributions to the protection of Two Peoples Bay," said Gilbert Potreux Action Group Conservation Biologist Dr. Jackie Courtenay, a conservation biologist with the Gilbert Potreux Action Group, told the Telegraph.

This story reminds us that protecting the environment can have far reaching benefits beyond the obvious, and that advocacy can really make a difference.