The couple were given flowers by eight-year-old Henry Dynov-Teixeira, 8, who was dressed as a guardsman, as they departed Greentown Labs, which bills itself as the world’s largest climate technology startup incubator, in Somerville, Massachusetts.
It was a moment of light relief in the trip to stage the Prince of Wales’s Earthshot Prize that has been overshadowed by the growing race row engulfing the future King’s godmother, which has left the monarchy accused of being institutionally racist.
This image released by Netflix shows Prince Harry, right, and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, in a scene from the upcoming documentary "Harry & Meghan," directed by Liz Garbus.
The trip was already overshadowed by the resignation of Lady Susan Hussey from her role in the royal household after she repeatedly questioned Ngozi Fulani, a prominent black British-born domestic abuse charity boss, about where she “really came from” during a Buckingham Palace reception.
A Kensington Palace spokesman has reiterated comments made ahead of the trip that they would not be “distracted” by other things this week and their focus was on meeting communities and local people across Boston.
The couple looked relaxed and were greeted by cheers from the crowds as they arrived at Greentown Labs, a tech hub which has been nurturing a community of climate pioneers for more than a decade.
Greentown is believed to be the largest climate technology start-up incubator in North America, having supported more than 500 companies since being founded in 2011, which have created more than 9,000 jobs and raised more than 4 billion dollars in funding.