Hundreds of youngsters led by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg have stepped into the Italian city of Milan to require rapid climate action, weeks before the UN climate conference (COP26) is to be held in Glasgow.
The demonstrations took place on Friday as a part of the “Fridays for Future” movement, which took students to the streets and cities worldwide two years ago, before the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Hope does not come from the politician blah, blah, blah,” Thunberg said as she led the rally in Milan, accompanied by Ugandan climate rights activist Vanessa Nakate.
“Hope does not come from inactivity and empty promises that everything will be all right, they say, trust us, we do everything we can, that is not hope, hope is this, hope is us, d ‘People, hope is when people gather to make change.’
The 18-year-old climate activist, who is being viewed as a potential Nobel laureate on October 8, was in Milan as part of the official UN meeting for the youth version of COP26, which is expected to have the participation of about 400 people.
The three-day Youth4Climate conference drew criticism from the young delegates who accused the organizers of not being involved in their input for a document sent to this year’s UN Climate Conference.
Thunberg stated that the world leaders pretend to have solutions to the climate crisis and that they are taking enough action, “but we see through their lies.”
“Build back better, blah, blah, blah. Green economy, blah, blah, blah. Net-null until 2050, blah, blah, blah. Climate-neutral, blah, blah, blah. This is all we hear from our so-called leaders. Words, words that are super small but so far have not led to any action, “she said.
Since her speech, “blah, blah, blah” has become a rally for climate rights activists on social media.
Protesters in Milan say they want to see changes at COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, starting on October 31.