• Meghan Markle spoke at the Young Leaders Summit in Manchester on Monday.
• It was her first live speech since resigning as a senior working royal more than two years ago.
• The Duchess of Sussex serves as a counsellor for the summit, which brings together 2,000 young leaders.

In her keynote address at Bridgewater Hall in Manchester on Monday, Meghan Markle encouraged young girls about their bright future.

In her speech to the 2,000 young attendees, the Duchess of Sussex said, “‘I want to make that point because often times I speak to young girls about the years ahead. About what you will do, about what you will have to adopt to fix from previous generations and also what legacy you will leave.

“Too often in that, we neglect the point – you are doing it now. You, here, in this present moment, this is where it is all beginning. They saw in me just as I see in you, the present and the future.

“‘You are the ones driving the positive and necessary change across the globe now, in this very moment. And for that I am so grateful to be in your company today.”

Her first live speech in the UK since resigning as a senior working royal during the Megxit controversy more than two years ago, former Suits star Meghan will discuss gender equality.

The summit brings together more than 2,000 young leaders from more than 190 nations, and Meghan serves as a counsellor for the organisation.

Young people have the capacity to make a difference, according to Meghan. “My husband has long campaigned for vital and required effect in the world, focusing a significant portion of his life’s work on the youngsters,” she added.

So for both of us, bearing witness to the authority you hold in your hands and the unrestrained excitement and energy that you have to see things through to completion — it is just an amazing privilege, she said in her speech.

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