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Mady Caywood

Attendees of the Climate Strike made countless posters with witty remarks encouraging action to be taken and to raise awareness for the effects of climate change.

On Sept. 20, 2019, one of the world’s largest strikes for climate occurred all over the world. These strikes all owe ownership to a young 16-year-old girl from Sweden named Greta Thunberg. Thunberg is an incredible advocate for climate justice and has accomplished many things in just the first year of her public fight for the issue. Last year, Thunberg started a stand called Fridays for Future, where she would abstain from going to school every Friday fighting for climate justice and the effect that climate change has distinctly shown on our planet. Rain, snow, wind or sun, Thunberg would be out every Friday protesting for justice and raising awareness. At first, this movement wasn’t a big of a hit as it had come to be in the next year. As the movement became more popular and well known, more and more people joined the fight in trying to end climate change. Thunberg’s dedication to this cause is inspiring and jaw-dropping. The 16-year-old decided to take the next year off from her education to sail around the world to inform people about how urgent this problem is. On Sept. 23, Thunberg gave an eminent speech at the U.N. Climate Summit in New York. Thunberg used phrases such as “You are failing us,”, “You say you hear us and understand the urgency. I do not want to believe that,” and claiming that “our house” is on fire to clearly show her passion and anger, something we all should be showing.

Though Gretta’s efforts and movement has been happening for over a year now, it has only recently become something that many participate in. The Colorado Springs, Colo. strike was one I wish many could’ve seen and been a part of. There were posters left and right making witty puns about our government’s efforts, or lack thereof, to do something about climate change. There were people with T-shirts and costumes trying to shed some light on this horrible catastrophe we are living through every day. There were speakers from schools such as Palmer High School, Fountain Valley School and Colorado College, as well as representatives from various such as Scott Harvey from Green Cities Coalition.

Like Greta stated in her mesmerizing speech at the U.N. Summit, “the young people are starting to understand your betrayal,” and yes, we are. People of all ages, races and beliefs came together to stand up for climate justice and everyone who attended these strikes all over the world are the people that will change this world and reverse these awful problems we have to endure. We still have time to flip the switch and reverse the damage done. The young people in this generation need to become informed about the fate of our future. Everyone, young and old, needs to figure out what they can do to contribute to the rebuilding of a healthy and happy future. Get a reusable cup and/or straw, learn about nonrenewable resources and lastly, and most importantly, learn to care about the world we are living in. There will be no future for the young to grow up in and for the old to reminisce on. These problems are not something we can look away from, they are things we need to own up to and fix. The fate of our being as we know it is up to us, so take a stand and educate yourself so that you can take part in changing the world for the better. We all are a vital piece in saving the Earth and, as scary as it is, this problem of climate change is not going away.