The Spanish branch of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation celebrates its 10th anniversary in Madrid during the visit of TTSSHH Princess Charlene and Prince Albert II of Monaco

Their Serene Highnesses Princess Charlene and Prince Albert II of Monaco visited Spain on 1 and 2 June 2026, as part of an official visit marking the 150th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Principality of Monaco and Spain. The visit also provided an opportunity to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Spanish branch of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation.

On Monday 1 June, TTSSHH Princess Charlene and Prince Albert II took part, at the Real Jardín Botánico in Madrid, in the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the opening of the first diplomatic mission between Spain and Monaco.

On Tuesday 2 June, HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco took part in a programme dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the Spanish branch of His Foundation, which was created in Madrid in 2016 and is chaired by Carol Portabella. Since its creation, the branch has contributed to the international reach of the action led by the Sovereign Prince in support of environmental protection, by developing partnerships with institutional, scientific, academic, economic and cultural stakeholders committed to the ecological transition.

An institutional sequence was held in the afternoon at IE University around the theme “Leading the Future Through Collaboration: Talent, Innovation and Opportunity”. Welcomed by Santiago Íñiguez de Onzoño, President of IE University, and Diego del Alcázar Benjumea, Chief Executive Officer, HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco met the recipients and alumni of the “Prince Albert II of Monaco Scholarship for Sustainability” – Cecilie Vand Pedersen (Denmark), Paloma Petrova (Bulgaria), Valentino Cáceres (Peru), Yelyzaveta Adova (Ukraine) and Margherita Storchin (Italy) – created as part of the partnership between the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and IE Foundation.

Presented by Manuel Muniz Rector of IE Foundation, this session highlighted the impact of the scholarship programme in training future leaders committed to finding solutions to environmental and societal challenges.

HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco addressed the participants:

“Spain has long stood among Europe’s leaders in environmental action, through its renewable energy, its care for ecosystems, and the strength of its science. It was that shared conviction that, ten years ago, gave rise to the Spanish branch of my Foundation.

My conviction is a simple one, after a decade of this work in Spain and twenty years of action worldwide. The environment is not one issue among many, to be left to a handful of specialists. Our relationship with the natural world shapes everything we do: how we produce, how we travel, how we build, and how we live. (…)

For many years, much of the business world treated the environment as a cost, a burden, an obstacle to growth. Today it knows better. It understands that the cost of inaction is far greater than the cost of action. The transition is no longer a constraint. It is an opportunity: for innovation, for growth, for reinvention.”

The sequence at IE University continued with a session dedicated to the entrepreneurial ecosystem, organised with South Summit. Opened by María Benjumea, founder of South Summit, it enabled several finalist startups from the South Summit Global Startup Competition to present solutions addressing major contemporary challenges, particularly in the fields of climate, ocean, energy, health and ecosystem regeneration.

The meeting concluded with a roundtable discussion entitled “The Importance of Collaboration in Driving and Advancing Sustainability”, moderated by IE Foundation. Romain Ciarlet, Vice-Chairman and CEO of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, presented several collaborative initiatives led by the Foundation, including ReOcean and the Blue Economy and Finance Forum. Alongside him, Juan Naya, CEO ISDIN, Carmen Navarro, from Grupo Español de Crecimiento Verde, and Valentín Alfaya, representing Ferrovial, shared their experiences in sustainability, innovation and public-private cooperation.

For the past ten years, the Spanish branch of the Foundation has carried out numerous awareness-raising and cooperation initiatives in Spain. It has notably contributed to the deployment of the Human-Wildlife Initiative across Spain, in partnership with Fundación Entretantos and Observatorio Grupo Campo Grande, as well as to the presentation in Madrid of several exhibitions of the Foundation’s Environmental Photography Award, including at El Retiro Park.

Romain Ciarlet, Vice-Chairman and CEO of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, said: “Ten years after its inauguration, the Spanish branch of the Foundation fully reflects our ambition to build lasting bridges between institutional, economic, academic and philanthropic stakeholders. Thanks to the commitment of Carol Portabella and all the partners mobilised in Spain, we have been able to develop concrete initiatives in support of biodiversity, youth and public awareness. This anniversary visit marks a new step in strengthening our collective action for planetary health.”

Carol Portabella’s words resonated: “Sustainability can only be built through collaboration and shared commitment. We need to create spaces capable of connecting young people, companies, institutions, and civil society in order to turn awareness into action and move toward a more balanced and responsible future model.”

©Michael Alesi Palais Princier
©Julia Robles