Prince Harry calls mom Princess Diana his 'ideal role model'

Prince Harry said on Tuesday that his late mother, Princess Diana, was his "ideal role model." (Reuters)

Prince Harry paid tribute to Princess Diana on Tuesday and revealed his late mother is his ideal role model.

Harry attended the inaugural Obama Foundation Summit in Chicago and spoke with Mellody Hobson, the president of Ariel Investments, LLC, about the impact his mother had and why she was called the “People’s Princess.”

FILE PHOTO - Britain's Princess Diana holds Prince Harry during a morning picture session at Marivent Palace, where the Prince and Princess of Wales are holidaying as guests of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia, in Mallorca, Spain August 9, 1988. REUTERS/Hugh Peralta/File Photo - LR1ED150UUTKB (Reuters)

"I think she had a lot in common with everybody but also she certainly listened in a very, very short space of time," the 33-year-old prince said. "In society we suffer from this illusion or this reality where some problems get so big that nobody wants to get involved. She was the one that changed that."

He added: “I will always look up to her as being my ideal role model.”

Diana was known to take on several causes, including HIV/AIDS awareness and mental health. She was linked to more than 100 organizations, many of which Prince William and Harry have also been involved in.

Harry also said the “younger generation” inspires him to most.

"The younger generation of the world has turned me into an optimist... They have the solutions to some of the world's biggest problems,” he said. "We have to listen to the younger generation because they are the cure to some of the world's biggest problems—they are the cure of many communities as well."

The summit was organized by former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama. It was a two-day event that featured 500 speakers that included Common, Jose Andres and Lin-Manuel Miranda.