What Greta Thunberg is doing in the UK this week
Teen climate crisis activist to lead march through Bristol
Greta Thunberg is urging fellow young climate activists to join her at a last-minute “school strike” in Bristol this week.
The 17-year-old climate crisis activist will be taking part in a Bristol Youth Strike 4 Climate (BYS4C) march starting in the city’s College Green on Friday morning.
Thunberg contacted local campaigners because she “wanted to strike with us”, the BYS4C group’s Izzy Smitheman told the BBC.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
“We didn’t have a strike planned, so it’s a lot of last-minute organisation,” said Smitheman, also 17. “The whole Bristol community has come together to make it happen. We think Greta’s presence will make it very big and bring a lot of energy to the strike.”
The Times reports that thousands of children are expected to flock to the event to protest alongside Thunberg, who is taking a gap year that has already seen her meeting with world leaders and sailing across the Atlantic.
She is expected to travel to the city by train and is due to make a speech before joining the march.
Announcing her visit, the Time Person of the Year for 2019 wrote on Twitter:
Bristol City Council Green Party Councillor Carla Denyer told the Bristol Live website: “Greta Thunberg and the millions of climate strikers she inspired have played such a crucial role in forcing climate change up the agenda and ensuring that politicians and other leaders cannot be seen to be ignoring the issue.”
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––For a round-up of the most important stories from around the world - and a concise, refreshing and balanced take on the week’s news agenda - try The Week magazine. Start your trial subscription today –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Thunberg’s appearance in Bristol comes as her mother outlines the difficulties that the teenager, who has Asperger’s syndrome, experienced growing up.
In an extract published in the The Observer from the Thunbergs’ upcoming book, Our House is on Fire: Scenes of a Family and a Planet in Crisis, Malena Ernman, 49, said that her daughter developed an eating disorder and was “slowly disappearing into some kind of darkness” before she started protesting.
Ernman writes: “Greta was 11 and was not doing well. She cried on her way to school. She cried in her classes and during her breaks, and the teachers called home almost every day.”
However, since beginning her activism, “Greta’s energy is exploding”, Ernman continues. “There doesn’t seem to be any outer limit, and even if we try to hold her back she just keeps going. By herself.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Geoff Capes obituary: shot-putter who became the World’s Strongest Man
In the Spotlight The 'mighty figure' was a two-time Commonwealth Champion and world-record holder
By The Week UK Published
-
Israel attacks Iran: a 'limited' retaliation
Talking Point Iran's humiliated leaders must decide how to respond to Netanyahu's measured strike
By The Week UK Published
-
Crossword: November 2, 2024
The Week's daily crossword puzzle
By The Week Staff Published
-
At least 95 dead in Spain flash floods
Speed Read Torrential rainfall caused the country's worst flooding since 1996
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Earth's carbon sinks are collapsing
Under the Radar Forests and soil are not operating as usual
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Why the Earth's water cycle is under threat
Under The Radar Disturbances in the system that moves water around the world place more than half of global food production at risk
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Climate safe havens may be a thing of the past
Under the radar Safe spaces are few and far between
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
What does marine life do during a hurricane?
The Explainer The underwater ecosystem also faces deadly consequences
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Wildlife populations drop a 'catastrophic' 73%
Speed Read The decline occurred between 1970 and 2020
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
An iconic ship is being turned into the world's largest artificial reef
Under the Radar The SS United States will be sunk off the coast of Florida if all goes to plan
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
It's not just ice quantity that climate change affects. It's also quality.
Under the Radar Ice is getting thinner and frailer
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published