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By: Mariam Darb
By: Mariam Darb
"This is all wrong. I shouldn't be up here. I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean. Yet you all come to us young people for hope. How dare you!
"You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words. And yet I'm one of the lucky ones. People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of mass extinction, and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth. How dare you!
"For more than 30 years, the science has been crystal clear. How dare you continue to look away and come here saying that you're doing enough, when the politics and solutions needed are still nowhere in sight.
"You say you hear us and that you understand the urgency. But no matter how sad and angry I am, I do not want to believe that. Because if you really understood the situation and still kept on failing to act, then you would be evil. And that I refuse to believe.
"The popular idea of cutting our emissions in half in 10 years only gives us a 50% chance of staying below 1.5 degrees [Celsius], and the risk of setting off irreversible chain reactions beyond human control.
"Fifty percent may be acceptable to you. But those numbers do not include tipping points, most feedback loops, additional warming hidden by toxic air pollution or the aspects of equity and climate justice. They also rely on my generation sucking hundreds of billions of tons of your CO2 out of the air with technologies that barely exist.
"So a 50% risk is simply not acceptable to us — we who have to live with the consequences.
"To have a 67% chance of staying below a 1.5 degrees global temperature rise – the best odds given by the [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] – the world had 420 gigatons of CO2 left to emit back on Jan. 1st, 2018. Today that figure is already down to less than 350 gigatons.
"How dare you pretend that this can be solved with just 'business as usual' and some technical solutions? With today's emissions levels, that remaining CO2 budget will be entirely gone within less than 8 1/2 years.
"There will not be any solutions or plans presented in line with these figures here today, because these numbers are too uncomfortable. And you are still not mature enough to tell it like it is.
"You are failing us. But the young people are starting to understand your betrayal. The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us, I say: We will never forgive you.
"We will not let you get away with this. Right here, right now is where we draw the line. The world is waking up. And change is coming, whether you like it or not.
"Thank you."
That was the famous speech that now 18-year-old Greta Thunberg gave at the U.N. conference in 2019. Known for her fight against climate change, Greta was born on January 3, 2003, in Sweden. Her mother Malena is an opera singer and her father Svante was an actor (playing in the movie I am Greta).
At age eight she was introduced to the topic of climate change and soon after became vegan. She also refused to travel by airplane as a way of transportation. She was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome which is now seen as ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). When she was 11 years old she became depressed by the problems that the earth is facing by global warming.
What is Climate Change?
Climate Change or global warming's main cause is due to fossil fuels (such as coal and oil) being burned. After the fuel is burned, carbon dioxide is let into the air, which causes our planet to boil up. Different causes of climate change, are destroying rainforests or stock raising. If we continue to let this happen, our planet will be destroyed.
Greta wanted to make an impact on how people view climate change, most in particular lawmakers. She began to skip classes as an election in Sweden was nearing in 2018. She held up a sign that read, Skolstrejk för Klimatet meaning School Strike for Climate. At first, she was alone, but soon people saw the message she was trying to convey. People even joined her as she sat outside parliament, holding up her sign and demanding change. When the election was over Greta returned to school, but every Friday skipped classes and protested against climate change, risking her own education. It was soon known as Friday for Futures.
Thunberg’s actions on making an impact were soon known by people across the globe. From people in the United States to Japan, they soon helped Greta accomplish the change that was needed. Greta was invited by many to address audiences and lawmakers about how big of a problem global warming is.
As much recognition Thunberg was receiving, many people disregarded her. The president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro referred to Greta as a “brat” in 2019. Former US President Donald Trump tweeted about the teen activist stating: “So ridiculous. Greta must work on her Anger Management problem, then go to a good old-fashioned movie with a friend! Chill Greta, Chill!” Greta then responded by updating her Twitter bio that said: “A teenager working on her anger management problem. Currently chilling and watching a good old-fashioned movie with a friend.” Joe Biden also responded to the tweet, saying “What kind of president bullies a teenager? @realDonaldTrump, you could learn a few things from Greta on what it means to be a leader,”
Climate change is a consequential problem the world is facing today. Greta Thunberg made an impact on how we view global warming and what we can do to solve it.
Links Used:
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Greta-Thunberg
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