Greta Thunberg is arguably one of the most famous climate activists in modern history. After directly addressing some old, archaic politicians who don't seem to give AF about the future of our planet at the U.N. Climate Action Summit in 2019, she has been immortalised as one of the most formidable teenagers to grace the planet. She's not in the business of letting us forget the fact, either, and has recently teamed up with The Guardian to remind us of exactly that.
In a short video released by The Guardian, Thunberg addresses the public with an alarming but powerful warning, pointing out that little action has been taken since the Paris Agreement five years ago. The video was published December 11, one day ahead of the Climate Ambition Summit - a follow up gathering five years on from the Paris Agreement, where world leaders will review progress, and look at ways to pivot and improve their strategy.
Thunberg begins her statement by basically noting that she's watching said politicians and world leaders like a hawk, and she's not exactly impressed by the lack of action taken towards their initial commitments, which vowed to keep the global temperature rise below 2 degrees celsius, and aim for 1.5 degrees, which is significantly safer for the planet we inhabit. “Since then, a lot has happened,” Thunberg notes in the video. “But the action needed is still nowhere in sight. The gap between what we need to do and what is actually being done is widening by the minute. We are still speeding in the wrong direction.”
She makes a point of noting that we've had the hottest last five years on record, a statement proven by the ongoing California wildfires and the Australian Bushfire crisis last year, not to mention the countless floods, natural disasters and of course, COVID-19, all of which can be linked to the climate crisis.
"At the current emission rate, our remaining CO2 budgets for 1.5 degrees Celcius will be completely gone within seven years, long before we will even have a chance to deliver on our 2030 or 2050 targets," Thunberg warns. A stressful reality for those of us who still have decades left on this planet, unlike those who seem to hold the power to incite systemic change.
Despite Thunberg's nerve-wracking words, she ends on a note of hope, "There is hope,” she says. “We are the hope. We, the people", while flashes of climate protestors around the world accompany her powerful words. Keep fighting the good fight, Greta. We're right behind you!
Watch the full video, below.
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Image: @gretathunberg
