Global Climate Strike – Scenes from Los Angeles
Young people are speaking up! And their message is loud and clear! Each and every one of us needs to make profound change (NOW!) when it comes to the health of our one and only true home – Planet Earth!
This past Friday, September 20, 2019, the Global Climate strike took place, inspired by 16 year old climate activist Greta Thunberg. It was the largest climate strike in history, with millions of children across the globe taking off school to participate in the strike….across the US, Australia, Asia, Africa and Europe. The movement even traveled as far as Antarctica!
Today the UN is hosting the Climate Action Summit, bringing together leaders from government, business and civil society to deliver actionable steps to fight climate change. As carbon pollution, temperatures, and climate destruction continue to rise, and public backlash mounts, the Summit is expected to offer a turning point from inertia into momentum, action, and global impact – if everyone gets on board.
“People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction. And all you can talk about is money and fairytales of eternal economic growth.” ~ Greta Thunberg
Excerpted from Greta Thunberg’s speech at the UN Climate Action Summit
Below are photos I took from the Climate Strike in Los Angeles.
Make Earth Great Again!
“Never Doubt That a Small Group of Thoughtful, Committed Citizens Can Change the World; Indeed, It’s the Only Thing That Ever Has” ~ Margaret Mead
Vegans were at the strike to represent! The truth is that we cannot have a discussion about climate change if we don’t discuss the fact that animal agriculture is a leading cause of greenhouse gas emissions, water and air pollution, ocean dead zones, habitat destruction, species extinction and more. One of the biggest and most effective changes we can all make is to adopt a vegan, plant based diet and lifestyle!
The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported that “to keep the rise in global temperatures below 1.5C this century, emissions of carbon dioxide would have to be cut by 45% by 2030.” “Any temperature rise above 1.5 degrees will lead to major and irreversible damage to the ecosystems that support us,” said United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.
Now it seems we don’t have 11 years….. “There’s a growing consensus that the next 18 months will be critical in dealing with the global heating crisis, among other environmental challenges.” Excerpted from BBC.com.
Yes, we’re running out of time. The situation is dire. If we care about temperatures rising, having clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, viable soil to grow food, and so forth, then we must do everything in our power to make change. We all have more power than we think. But we must act!
Speak up, let your voices be heard, vote for leaders who care about our planet and Go Vegan!
This amazing 9 year old boy spoke at LA’s Climate Strike, and he gave a very fiery and impassioned speech. Below is a small excerpt from his speech that I had posted on my Instagram.
Saving our planet, lifting people out of poverty, advancing economic growth… these are one and the same fight. We must connect the dots between climate change, water scarcity, energy shortages, global health, food security and women’s empowerment. Solutions to one problem must be solutions for all. ~ Ban Ki-moon