Meghan Markle offers words of encouragement to the next generation of leaders in first UK speech in two years: 'Your time is now'
- The Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle spoke at a summit for young leaders in the UK on Monday.
- Markle offered them words of encouragement and urged them to do the "important work" now.
In her first speech delivered in the UK in two years, the Duchess of Sussex offered words of encouragement to the next generation of leaders.
Meghan Markle's remarks were part of an opening speech at the One Young World four-day summit in Manchester, which connects more than 2,000 young leaders to foster change-making skills.
"It is very nice to be back in the UK," Markle said, wearing a red pantsuit. "And it is very nice to be back with you at One Young World."
The 41-year-old Duchess said that she's been a counselor for the summit since 2014 when she was "probably a lot like each of you."
She was "young, ambitious, advocating for the things I deeply and profoundly believed in," she added.
Markle went on to talk about being nervous and unsure of herself when she first became involved with One Young World.
"Have any of you today so far had that feeling that pinch-me moment where you just go, 'How am I here?' " she asked the audience. She said, at one point, she was just known as "the girl from 'Suits'" as the audience laughed.
But she went on to reassure the members of the audience, who encompass titles such as "activists, humanitarians, world-leaders, business-leaders, thought-leaders, entrepreneurs, politicians and innovators," according to the One Young World website.
"Oftentimes, we speak to young adults about the years ahead about what you'll do, what you'll have to adopt to fix from previous generations, and also what legacy you will leave," Markle said. "But too often in that, we neglect the point that you're doing it now."
At the end of her speech, the Duchess told the crowd: "We often hear people say the time is now, but I'm going to double down on that by saying that your time is now. The important work can't wait for tomorrow."
Prince Harry and Markle live in a home in California with their two children — Archie and Lilibet — and withdrew from royal life in 2020. It's unclear whether they will meet with the royal family.
The couple was last in the UK for the Queen's Jubilee in June.
The pair is "delighted to visit with several charities close to their hearts in early September," a spokesperson for the couple told People magazine.