PHOTO CREDIT: SHUTTERSTOCK
The Teen Takeover of the Fight Against Climate Change
In an era where world governments are falling short on enacting the necessary steps to curb global warming trends, the next generation is stepping up. Taking to the streets in droves across the globe, multiple protests led by young people have popped up in Europe, Australia, and beyond.
School Day Protests
Skipping school to tackle an issue of planetary proportions, students are opting to leave the classroom to protest government inaction on the issues that will most assuredly affect their lives for years to come.
Influential Voices
Spearheaded by mostly teen girls, as reported by Buzzfeed News, a few standouts have catapulted the
Legislation to Watch:
Green
New Deal
In February of 2019, Rep. Alexandria OcasioCortez, D-N.Y., and Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass. introduced a Green New Deal, an expansive policy plan to address climate change and the actions needed to curtail it. The goals of the resolution include achieving net-zero greenhouse
strikes to the national stage. Greta Thunberg, the original inspiration, first skipped school to protest Swedish Parliament in August 2018, demanding they pass laws to curb carbon emissions set out by The Paris Agreement. To critics of her school day strikes, Thunberg explains, “Some people say that we should be in school instead, but why should we be studying for a future that soon will be no more? And when noone is doing anything whatsoever to save that future? And what is the point of learning facts within the school system when the most important facts given by the finest science of that same school system clearly means nothing to our politicians and our society?� Thunberg was recently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to fight climate change. Others like Jamie Margolin, founder and executive director of The Zero Hour in the United States, and Anuna De Wever and Kyra Gantois, leaders of the mass student walkouts in Belgium, have also spurred tens of thousands to picket #S c h oo lStr their governing bodies for the sake ike 4Cli ma te of swift climate action. On March 15, 2019 kids from 123 countries around the world skipped school to join forces in the fight for environmental protections.
Follow #SchoolStrike4Climate to learn more and follow along with these young environmental activists.
gas emissions while creating jobs and boosting the economy through a transition to clean energy and sustainable practices across industries. The deal also addresses the needs of the most vulnerable populations being affected by global warming and the responsive economic changes. Highlights of the policy include the creation of a high-speed rail system to replace the bulk of air travel, access for all Americans to highquality health care, investing in sustainable farming practices, and the guarantee of jobs with family-sustaining wages.
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