On September 23, Prince Harry began his solo trip to New York City with his late mother, Princess Diana, in his heart. The Duke of Sussex joined Diana Prize CEO Tessie Ojo at the Concordia Global Summit for a session titled “The Global Crisis in Youth Mental Health,” praising the next generation for giving him “hope.”

The Diana Award, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, was created to recognize young leaders who embody the spirit of Princess Diana.

“I know my mother is incredibly proud of you,” Prince Harry told the two recipients of the charity's Legacy Award, Christina Williams of Jamaica and Kiara Liyanti Hutapea Chan of Indonesia.

“Your activism and passion, both of which are very true to how my mother lived her life and what she believed in,” he added during the panel discussion.

The two young women, along with the Duke, discussed the biggest issues affecting young people today, citing issues like climate change and “peace and security” as their biggest concerns.

“Scared children cannot dream,” Williams told the Duke of Sussex.

Prince Harry praised the “activist army” that the Diana Prize has worked with over the years and asked the girls if they felt they were being “listened to” by world leaders, wondering why young change agents were not being brought into “decision-making” and “policy-making”

He also praised the energy and commitment of young people to make a difference.

“I said it years ago and I will say it again. The younger generation is ...... I don't mean to put pressure on you guys, but ...... It is you who give me hope,” the duke said, adding, ”It is the courage you have that gives me hope.”

He concluded the session by thanking the Legacy Award winners for giving hope to himself and perhaps many others in the room.

He added, “I am very grateful to all of you, because otherwise your future would be taken away from you, and that is unacceptable.

The Duke of Sussex and his brother Prince William have long supported the Diana Prize, with Prince William speaking at the charity's anniversary event in March and Harry calling from his home in California.

The Duke of Sussex will also honor another organization associated with his late mother on his first day in New York. He will speak at a reception for the Halo Trust, a landmine clearance charity that Princess Diana famously supported shortly before her death in 1997.