By joining the first major global protest against climate change in six months the youth activists hope to make governments feel bad about things.
Greta Thunberg and other activists say they plan to hold protests Friday in cities across the world, not weeks before leaders meet for a U.N. summit in Glasgow.
Recent scientific reports paint a grim picture of international efforts to control greenhouse gas emissions, with the UN warning this week that more must be done to stay ahead of the goals set by the 2015 Paris climate agreement.
Vanessa Nakate, a Ugandan activist, said Friday’s protest will focus on climate justice, highlighting how countries that have historically made the lowest contribution to global warming are facing some of the most brutal consequences, from droughts to floods and famines.
She called on leaders who have pledged to drastically cut greenhouse gas emissions not to build new fossil fuel infrastructure, such as coal plants or oil pipelines.
Germany is awaiting some of the largest protests in two days prior to elections to the new parliament.
Many German voters mentioned climate change as an important issue in their elections.
“The real scandal of this election is that in the year 2021, in the midst of the escalating climate crisis, no single party dares to speak up about what needs to be done,”Luisa Neubauer
“The real scandal of this election is that in the year 2021, in the midst of the escalating climate crisis, no single party dares to speak up about what needs to be done,” said German candidate Luisa Neubauer.