Protesting Climate Change, Young People Take to Streets in a Global Strike

Somini Sengupta of The New York Times writes:

Anxious about the future and angry about the failure to curb the crisis, thousands joined an urgent call for action against climate change.

They are in open revolt. Anxious about their future on a hotter planet, angry at world leaders for failing to arrest the crisis, thousands of young people began pouring into the streets on Friday for a day of global climate protest. More than 100,000 protested in Melbourne, in what organizers said was the largest climate action in the country’s history. The rally shut down key public transport corridors for hours.

Millions of people from Sydney to Manila, Dhaka to London and New York are marching for urgent action on climate breakdown

New York City is anticipated to see one of the largest climate strikes today. of people are expected at the protest, which is being co-hosted by over two dozen local and national groups. Protesters plan to gather at a park outside New York’s City Hall and march a mile down to Battery Park, where Greta Thunberg is scheduled to speak in the afternoon along with other performers and speakers.

Natural climate solutions could remove huge amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as plants grow. But these methods receive only 2% of the funding spent on cutting emissions, say the climate activists.

Nature-based solutions (NBS) refers to the sustainable management and use of nature for tackling socio-environmental challenges. The challenges include issues such as climate change, water security, water pollution, food security, human health, and disaster risk management. For instance, the restoration or protection of mangroves along coastlines utilizes a nature-based solution to accomplish several things. Mangroves moderate the impact of waves and wind on coastal settlements or cities and sequester CO2. . They also provide safe nurseries for marine life that can be the basis for sustaining populations of fish that local populations may depend on. Additionally, the mangrove forests can help control coastal erosion resulting from sea level rise. Similarly, in cities green roofs or walls are nature-based solutions that can be used to moderate the impact of high temperatures, capture storm water, abate pollution, and act as carbon sinks, while enhancing biodiversity.” Wikipedia

“We know that we only have the possibility of avoiding a looming climate catastrophe if people like us refuse to give up.” – Harrison Ford, Conservation International Vice Chair at the 2018 Global Climate Action Summit