Young protesters in New York demand climate action
Frustrated, anxious but also a tad hopeful, young activists staged a coordinated “global climate strike” Friday to highlight the effects of global warming and demand more aid for poor countries hit by wild weather.
Frustrated, anxious but also a tad hopeful, young activists staged a coordinated “global climate strike” Friday to highlight the effects of global warming and demand more aid for poor countries hit by wild weather.
In New York, as leaders of developing disaster-struck nations pleaded their cases at the United Nations, more than a thousand protesters, many of them skipping school, marched through the streets to tell their leaders they were sick of inaction on climate.
“The oceans are rising and so are we,” they chanted. Protesters also took to the streets in Jakarta, Tokyo, Rome, Berlin and Montreal carrying banners and posters with slogans such as, “It’s not too late.”
The protests follow warnings from scientists that countries aren’t doing enough to meet the 2015 Paris climate accord’s top-line target of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) this century compared to preindustrial times.
Michael Taft, a 27-year-old graduate student in New York, said “a lot of kids here are scared about what the next 20 years are going to look like for them.”
But Taft said he still has hope. He looks around at those listening to the speakers and said they aren’t like past generations. They aren’t looking to become finance majors and make lots of money.
RECOMMEND STORIES
- Remembering Ratan Tata: A Visionary Leader and Compassionate Humanitarian
- National College Colors Day – September 2, 2024: history
- Bison-ten Yell Day – September 2, 2024: history, FAQs
- National Lazy Mom’s Day – September 6, 2024
- World Coconut Day – September 2, 2024: A Nutty Celebration!
They’re all here because they’re motivated to make change,” Taft said. “And probably one of the people here or in another climate rally in a different country is going to be the person that has a massive role in change and fixing this.”
The demonstrations were organized by the Fridays for Future movement that took its cue from activist Greta Thunberg, who began protesting alone outside the Swedish parliament in 2018.
