Following the recent elections many young people were feeling like their actions were futile as they called for climate change but the school strike 4 climate action today in Byron Bay brought back hope says organiser Mia Thom from Byron Bay High School.
‘We had between five to six hundred students who came together today and it was such an empowering experience. Today we were able to regain our power. There is still so far to go but it is more important than ever.’
There were school children from around the region including Mullumbimby High School, Cape Byron Steiner, Shearwater and Byron High.
‘There are kids who are now making docos, there was slam poetry and a year 9 student from Byron High who played – it was such a beautiful day,’ said Mia.
The kids of Byron marched today for survival of life on this planet.
With the election results proving the ineptitude of enough of the electorate to grasp and vote for the science of Anthropogenic climate change, these kids have an even greater task ahead, in even less time window, to effect a political outcome from anyone who cares, to save the climate from catastrophic tipping-point.
This would be hell on Earth for most species, but in particular, ours, and would last for around 10,000 years before naturally reverting back, maybe, to where it is now.
Our kids desperately need us, much more than ever, to fight for progressive transition to renewable energies and keeping coal IN the ground.
I don’t have children, but marched in support of these amazing young people.
Go the youth! I’m inspired and heartened by the outspoken actions of these young leaders. People power has always been necessary – and effective – in making necessary change.
Wow. Very interesting to see how many of these kids would march on a weekend in their own time? Or, in fact, how many of them actually understand the issues at hand? Perhaps they should spend more time in the class so their actions are perceived a demonstration of fact based concerns rather then ignorance. Afterall, perception is reality.
Any excuse for a day off school. And if you can appear virtuous about your reasons, so much the better.
Always the same response from the naysayers like our Brad Smyth of ‘shoot the messenger and completely ignore the message’. Brad, our school kids are well versed in the issue of Climate Change, they learn all about it.
The Science of Climate Change is well documented and even a fossil fuel champion in Exxon knew all about it way back in the early 1980’s and The IPCC has released a number of reports on the Climate Change and the need for action. The fact of the matter is that if our Leaders had acted on Climate Change, instead of making up excuses for delay or no action, then our school children wouldn’t need to be taking ‘strike action’.
The point of these strikes is that they’re during school, because we need urgent action, and the only way we’re going to be heard. The only way we can stress this and get the governments attention is if we’re doing something that they’d hate. And that’s striking from school to attend these mass protests, that’s the point. Because we learn about climate change in school, but we’re running out of time. We need change now and that’s why it’s so important to demand it, let them know we’re willing to risk our education for the sake of this cause. They’re not going to get mad if we’re just protesting when we have the free time, this gets the public attention and theirs.
Wonderful. Stick to your mission kids. Don’t give up. We need protagonists for climate action more than ever now.
Beats a day in class any day! How many of these ill-informed children would turn up to a weekend rally? Their time would have been far better spent on furthering their education – particularly on the other side’s opinion of climate change so that they had a balanced point of view before blindly conceding to class room indoctrination.
climate collapse is not a matter of opinion, but a scientifically proven reality. these kids are way ahead of the times, responding to greed & ignorance to the facts of our politicians. they are the future – should we ever have one.
Yo Dennis West, I direct you to my comment above in response to Brad Smyth.
What other sides opinion? This impacts everyone on our planet. The only people misinformed are those who’d rather live in blissful ignorance.
Perhaps it would be good to hold a protest on a non-school to help convince the deniers that the science is real.
Keep going kids you are fighting for your future. We stand with you, lots of oldies.
The students are NOT ill-informed – facts are they are
more up-to-date on current trends, misinformation, the
Climate Change lobbied by the naysayers, the science
that happens to be correct & real answers [scientifically
proven] from all around the world plus exactly what
their Government is not doing for this country. I will
continue to rally with them. They are educated &
savvy & know how alternative energy works.
Quite a number of these young people are putting a lot of time in behind the scenes before the strikes takes place, in their own time, after school and weekends. And as for those suggesting theses young people’s knowledge and awareness is limited, or that they are ill-informed, go on and have a debate with them, then we will see. ?
First they tell us that the “Millenials” are self-absorbed narcissists that are completely oblivious to the “real” world that occurs around them.
Then when those ignorant little buggers challenge those notions, they say it is clearly a case of self interest – or that they are deluded.
The fear of those who are really operating from self-interest is palpable, and the dillusion is the idea insulting these educated and aware people will actually make them shy away from sharing their beliefs and ideas.
This generation who have been branded “Millenials” are going to have to carry the weight from the previous gens, and their lack of time or patience for the same old BS is about the only thing I have faith in anymore.
The change of the guard cannot come quick enough, and I can’t wait for the views of my contemporaries to become obsolete. We didn’t fail future generations, we screwed them.