Prince Philip, husband of the Queen of the United Kingdom, Elizabeth II on his journey through Brazil, dated March 19, 1992, visited the Brazilian Cerrado, more specifically the city of Pirenópolis, where he was present at the opening of Fazenda Vagafogo for public visitation, At the time, the farm had a partnership with the British embassy, through the non-governmental organization (NGO) Fundação Pró-Natureza (Funatura), to establish itself as the first Private Natural Heritage Reserve (RPPN) in the state of Goiás, financing the construction of your visitor center.  

“He was president of the WWF, the World Wildlife Fund, and would come to Brasília to inaugurate the WWF headquarters in the federal capital. When he saw that he had supported this area of the Cerrado as well, he wanted to know and be a part of it”, says the owner of the reserve, Catarina Schiffer, who, along with her husband, Evandro Ayer, welcomed the prince.  

She claims it was all very fast and intense. “His arrival was anxious, joyful and difficult, because imagine receiving a person who had several titles! It was very interesting and beautiful to be a part of that.” Catarina remembers that, when they found out that the prince was going to Pirenópolis, people gathered on the wooden bridge and started waving little flags when the embassy car with him passed.  

The visit to the farm lasted a few hours, had a reception with members of the embassy, the British Council Institute and the NGO, and included a short tour of the area with a limited number of people, so that Philip could get to know the forest and have a vision of what the Thick. “He was a curious guy, he had researched before, read about and knew which animals roamed around here”, says Catarina.  

She considers that the prince's participation in the opening of the farm is a beautiful, curious fact, which is part of a story that worked, as far as preservation and sustainability are concerned. “We celebrated 30 years open to the public and working with environmental education, doing what was proposed. It's a big business that worked and we didn't deforest to plant rice”, he emphasizes.  

In the visitors' center at Fazenda Vagafogo, there is a picture of Prince Philip's visit, with him alongside Catarina and Evandro, and a letter from the monarch sent by the British embassy. In the document, there is his thanks for what he called an interesting trip to the couple's sanctuary and statements that he enjoyed following the trail to the forest talking about the trees and the conservation of the place. Still, that he was ecstatic with the jellies he won.