Meghan is among the speakers at Fortune’s Most Powerful Women virtual summit, it has been announced. Speaking later today at 6.15pm (1.15pm EST) the Duchess of Sussex will discuss a topic close to her and Prince Harry: the digital world.
Meghan, who has been listed with her royal title, has been allocated a 15-minute slot at the jam-packed summit, taking place online this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
According to royal author Omid Scobie, Meghan’s speech will focus on the impact online experiences can have on communities offline.
He added: “She will join the summit for a virtual one-one-one on rebuilding the digital world and creating humane tech”.
This topic, the expert continued, is “a big part of Archewell”, Meghan and Harry’s yet-to-be-launched charitable organisation.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced in late March they would be spending a few months working behind the scenes on their new platform.
The name Archewell was confirmed with a joint statement by the Sussexes in April, after trademark applications came to light.
According to the paperwork filed, the Duke and Duchess were planning to create not just their own charity but also volunteering services, workshops and a wide-ranging website coordinating the production and distribution of articles, magazines, books, podcasts and computer software.
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Meghan and Harry said: “Before SussexRoyal, came the idea of ‘Arche’ – the Greek word meaning ‘source of action’.
“We connected to this concept for the charitable organisation we hoped to build one day, and it became the inspiration for our son’s name.
“To do something of meaning, to do something that matters.”
Prince Harry first openly spoke about a need to change the digital world in a comment piece he wrote for Fast Company.
Accusing social media of stoking and creating “the conditions for a crisis of hate, a crisis of health, and a crisis of truth”, the Duke urged investors to use their funds as a leverage and demand change.
Warning “we don’t have the luxury of time”, Harry wrote: “For companies that purchase online ads, it is one thing to unequivocally disavow hate and racism, white nationalism and anti-Semitism, dangerous misinformation, and a well-established online culture that promotes violence and bigotry.
“It is another thing for them to use their leverage, including through their advertising dollars, to demand change from the very places that give a safe haven and vehicle of propagation to hate and division.”
Prince Harry returned on the topic of misinformation and hate online as he appeared in a video filmed for ABC’s TIME 100 special and released last week.
Sitting next to Meghan in the garden at their home in Montecito, Santa Barbara, the Duke spoke about the upcoming US election.
While conceding he can’t vote in the US and hasn’t “been able to vote in the UK” during his whole life, Harry outlined the importance of trusted information.
He said: “As we approach this November, it’s vital that we reject hate speech, misinformation and online negativity.”
In this brief video, Meghan also spoke about online and offline communities and the importance of keeping them engaged and healthy.
She said: “Seeing our world through the lens of community is so important.
“Because we need to redraw the lines of how we engage with each other, both online and off.
“What we’re exposed to online seeps into how we engage with each other offline.
“It can train us to be kind, or it can train us to be cruel.”
