Why Good Energy is supporting the Climate Strike
Young people are taking ownership on climate in a way their elders never did. Today we’re giving them ownership of our Twitter account to make their message louder.
20 years ago I set up a company to tackle climate change. But despite two decades of dedication, the advocacy of Greta Thunberg and the wider youth climate strike movements have made it clear that I still have things left to learn. Those of us who are veterans or experts in tackling climate change should not only be taking note, we should be ceding the stage.
Because young people are taking ownership and getting traction where older generations have not. They can have a straightforward approach that is admirable. We should be encouraged by and actively encouraging the strikes. They are necessary. They are exciting.
Their movement is so effective because their message is so clear and the tactic so simple. This is the generation that will be most affected by climate change. Disrupting the status quo of the school day hits that message home.
Student protest has power. American civil rights. Vietnam War. Soweto. Black Lives Matter. Is this the first global movement? It would be fitting — a global reaction to a global problem. Today, 15thMarch 2019, will see protests in 71 countries, across 700 locations.
All from one young woman, determined to do something, a small protest becoming a global cause. Self-aware and candid about her own challenges. She has become a figurehead for a fast-growing movement. If you haven’t read Greta Thunberg’s story, I recommend you do so. Watch her address adult audiences at Davosand the UN’s COP24 too. Her delivery is simple but devastating.
Government says absence outside school holidays should only be granted in exceptional circumstances. Well, these are exceptional circumstances. The planet we live on, their future, is in peril. We should encourage them to take ownership and make a difference. Why study for a future that may not exist?
On Friday when the climate strikes go global, we should take a back seat listen and work out how to act. Which is why we at Good Energy will be handing over our Twitter account with its 38,000 followers to youth climate strikers who are local to us in Bath. We want to give them our platform so they can inform the future.
We’d love you to support them in this action.
Follow Good Energy’s Twitter account today to support, retweet, respond and ask questions for the climate strikers.
