We were recently asked: what does Princess Laurentien actually do for the royal family? Does she really add value? As far as we’re concerned, yes, just watch and judge for yourself.
Being able to read well, that is what Laurentien stands for
First of all, as most of us know, Princess Laurentien fights against illiteracy. Not only is she the founder of the Reading & Writing Foundation, she was also Special Envoy for Literacy for UNESCO from 2009-2020. She committed herself to the problem of low literacy worldwide. In 2011 she became chair of the High Level Group of experts on Literacy (HLG). This is based on the European Commission, which published its final report in 2012.
Unlimited Reading Association
Laurentien was not only the founder of Lezen & Schrijven, she also became honorary chairman. She resigned from this position in 2017. However, she remains committed to low literacy, nationally and internationally. Princess Laurentien is still patron of the Association for Unlimited Reading (this used to be the Association of Reading Disabled People).
Our Language Society
Princess Laurentien is also patron of the Society of Our Language. As patroness, an official position from the Royal House, she is often present at the annual conference. The Society Our Language association was founded in 1931 for language enthusiasts. Information about Dutch is provided through conferences, congresses, newsletters, books, social media and websites. The monthly magazine Onze Taal is published 12 times a year. Onze Taal answers questions about the Dutch language through the Language Advice Service.
Laurentien and Japan
Laurentien moved to Japan when she was 16 and lived there for a while. There she obtained her baccalauréat A at the Lycée Français in Tokyo. In 2009, she attended the opening of the exhibition From Here to Tokyo, 400 years of trade with Japan, in the Royal Library in The Hague, together with Prince Constantijn and Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko of Japan. Princess Laurentien told Vorsten during an interview that she has a special bond with Princess Kiko. Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko were present at the wedding of Constantijn and Laurentien. After that they kept in regular contact.
Because of her ties with Japan, she went to Japan for the royal family in November 2017. At that point, it had been about 20 years since she was last in Japan. She was present there, on behalf of the Dutch government, at the opening of the new Omotemonbashi bridge of Dejima in Nagasaki on November 24. The Dutch trading post was located on the island of Dejima from 1641 to 1859. The Omotemonbashi Bridge was the bridge that connected Dejima Island to the mainland of Nagasaki. Due to Japan’s national isolation, this bridge was also the only connection between Japan and the Western world from the 17th to the 19th century. In the year 2017, the cultural cooperation program Holland-Kyushu 2017 was held, which was implemented by the Dutch embassy in Tokyo and the DutchCulture – center for international cooperation, in collaboration with local stakeholders in Kyushu, including Nagasaki.
On November 23, Princess Laurentien visited the Fukuoka-2 monument in Nagasaki, erected in September 2015 in memory of the victims of POW camp Fukuoka-2, which also included 41 Dutch prisoners of war. She also visited the Dutch Cemetery at the Goshinji Temple, where deceased staff members of the trading post on Dejima were buried from 1654 onwards. In the Nagasaki Hypocenter Park, Laurentien laid flowers at the monument marking the hypocenter of the atomic bomb explosion in Nagasaki. She then visited the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum. In the evening she attended a concert by the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Brick Hall, Nagasaki. This concert was organized to mark the completion of Dejima’s Omotemonbashi Bridge. Princess Laurentien was accompanied for most of this visit by Princess Kiko, with whom she has a good relationship.
Last year, the Children’s Peace Prize was awarded to Tawakkol Karman Kawasaki for her involvement in Japanese politics. You can probably guess who presented the prize.
Fun fact: this spring, Princess Laurentien showed her eldest daughter Eloise the country where she spent part of her childhood. Eloise shared a photo on Instagram where she is in Japan with her mother.
There is much more to tell about Princess Laurentien’s activities. To keep things clear, we will continue with this in a next blog.
