Prince William Follows in Princess Diana's Footsteps on Homelessness

Diana, Princess of Wales and Prince William enjoy some refreshments at Windsor Great Park on June 01, 1991in Windsor, England .

(Image credit: Photo by Anwar Hussein / Getty)

Ahead of his 40th birthday, Prince William lent his time to a worthy cause: the fight against homelessness.

He headed out onto the streets of London to sell magazine The Big Issue to passersby, a publication which is typically sold by those working to overcome homelessness, by providing them with work experience that can then be transferred onto other jobs.

This is an especially poignant cause for the Duke of Cambridge, whose mother Princess Diana was extremely invested in the fight to end homelessness.

"The @bigissueuk’s impact goes far beyond the thousands of vendors whose lives it supports," the duke wrote on Instagram, alongside a video of his efforts.

"I was eleven when I first visited @passagecharity with my mother and since then, homelessness has stuck with me as an issue I want to fight for.

"I have always believed in using my platform to help bring attention and action to those who are struggling and I commit to doing what I can to shine a spotlight on this solvable issue not just today, but in the months and years to come."

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Both Diana and William have been active patrons of homeless charity Centrepoint over the years, for example. William has hosted a fundraising event for it, and both he and his mom have visited the charity's projects several times.

For the late princess' eldest son, continuing her fight for causes she cared about deeply must surely be a way to keep her memory alive. It's unsuprising that his mother would be at the forefront of his mind as he turns 40, an age that she tragically never reached, as she died at just 36 years old.

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Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.