Sixteen-year-old Greta Thunberg, the climate strike movement’s founder, is feted across the world as a model of determination, inspiration and positive action.
When she skipped school and sat down outside the Swedish parliament with her hand-painted banner that read skolstrejk för klimatet (school strike for climate)– she inadvertently kicked off a global movement.
Since last fall, children around the world have been walking out of schools on a regular basis every week, and the list of countries where this is taking place has continued to grow. The first global Climate Strike took place on March 15, with an estimated 1.6 million people demonstrating in 123 countries.
Global strike on May 24th.
1263 places in 107 countries.
And counting.
Everyone is welcome.
Everyone is needed.
Find your closest strike or register your own at May 20, 2019
Global Strike for Climate 2
According to Common Dreams, on Tuesday, it was reported that at least 1,351 separate strikes are now scheduled to take place all over the world on Friday.
Two Climate Strikes are planned in Antarctica, according to a map on the #FridaysForFuture website. There are Climate Strikes planned in Afghanistan, Namibia, Pakistan, and Uzbekistan with each planning at least one strike, while hundreds of rallies have been planned across Germany, France, the U.S., Canada, and several other countries.
Greenpeace and 350.org are calling on supporters to stand by these students as they lead the globe in a call to stop the extraction of fossil fuels from the Earth in order to keep global warming under 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The future is all we have to leave for our children
Many of the children joining the movement are the age of my youngest granddaughter. One student writes, “I am 13 and will turn 14 next month. In 2030, climate change will be irreversible if we do not act now. I will only be 25 years old.”
Our children are trying to tell us what we should already know – We are killing our world and everything in it with our uncaring treatment of our soil, water, and air. This lack of concern has bled over to the animals and plants that live on Earth, putting all life in danger.
“Activism works. So act,” Thunberg tweeted this week, sharing a video featuring young people who plan to walk out of their schools on Friday.
May 24th.
Global strike for the climate.
Activism works. So act.
Join us!Find or register your local strike on Fridaysforfuture on Instagram for updates.
Please share this information.fridaysforfuture climatestrike SchoolStrike4Climate TMWcLCmpMs— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) May 18, 2019
