On Friday, an estimated 300,000 Australians swarmed the streets of city centres to protest the government’s inaction on climate change. Over the past 24 hours, millions around the world, in over 120 countries, joined them.
Organisers are demanding the government and businesses commit to a target of net zero carbon emissions by 2030 and campaigning for a transition to 100 per cent renewable energy.
The strike is the latest in a worldwide movement started in August 2018 by 16-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, who began protesting outside Sweden’s parliament on school days.
As they marched, many demonstrators held up signs and banners – some funny, all fierce.
Here are the best signs from the Climate Strike in Australia and around the world.
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Top Comments
All those nations, but China was not one of them. No climate change protests allowed in that country and people are smart enough to know what happens when you protest there without the governments permission.
Since China produces 1/3 of all CO2 emissions, more than the US and Europe combined, I’m surprised none of the signs were in Chinese or none of the protesters were marching on Chinese companies or embassies.
Great to see kids being used so effectively as political pawns. The protests in New York for instance; all the kids were excused from school to protest. So it’s not a protest really when endorsed and encouraged, it’s a political rally. Over 80 schools in NYC are failing by the States own standards and 14% of black primary school students are meeting literacy standards. But the best use of time is to get them out at a political rally where at least 1 in 7 students can confidently read the protest sign they’re given.
So we just had an election remember? And Labor was advocating a much higher renewable energy target. And they lost the election, which seems to indicate that the majority of Australians have a lot more to worry about than something that might somehow happen some time in the possible future.
Majority of voting older Australians who won't be alive to be affected.
Hence, younger Australians who will be affected are advocating for change. They only have a voice for now, but they will eventually have their vote too.
All the recent polls have the majority of Australian's agreeing climate change is man made and of concern and that the Governement should do more about it, that is across party lines. Although it is higher among Labor voters. Still a majority for LNP voters as well.
I guess it all depends on how the polls are worded. I believe that if the majority of Australians were that concerned about climate change, then they would have elected Labor, and The Greens would have gotten a lot more votes.
At the end of the day, climate change is an existential 'threat', which pales in comparison to the average Australian's need to survive in our modern life, provide for their families and put a little bit of money aside to look after us in our old age.
There was a poll yesterday on the chanel 9 facebook page asking if Scott Morrison should have attended the climate summit, 71% said yes. That is a fairly conservative bunch over there. So, as I said, this is a bipartisan issue.