How do we create the collective action needed to mobilise political action on climate change?
15 year old Greta Thunberg did it by sitting by herself in front of the Swedish Parliament instead of going to school with her homemade sign saying Climate Strike. Her statement she wrote after a journalist interviewed her and her photos on social media were the spark that ignited a younger generation of people worried about climate change. Now tens of thousands of students around the world have joined in with a worldwide Climate Strike planned for March 15th 2019.
Greta's example and her powerful speeches made at the UN and Davos meetings and TED Talk have inspired me to have my own Climate Strike every Friday.
While I am a veteran of going to protests I had never done a protest all by myself and I found the idea very daunting. However I told myself that if a 15 year old can do it all by herself for weeks, I as a 52 year old should be perfectly capable of doing it.
Climate change is the existential problem of our time. We are literally looking at a threat to civilisation itself. Already the world my 5 year old granddaughter will grow up in will never be as beautiful and safe as the world I grew up in. However scientists tell us that if we can change things dramatically in the next ten years we have a short time frame to stop things becoming really bad.
So there really isn't any job or any other activity that is more important than trying to galvanise the political and community will to make huge societal changes.
So with this is mind I did my first Climate Strike last week in the middle of Bega on the South Coast of NSW, Australia. I admit I chose to sit in the shade near the Farmers' Market because I knew there would be people who were already concerned about climate change. I packed my hat, a fabric Climate Action Now banner that Miss 5 and I made together , a cardboard sign saying Climate Strike, a drink bottle, some sultanas, a packed lunch, a thermos, coffee plunger, coffee, and milk (forgot to pack a cup or tape for holding my sign up) and settled in for a 6 hour sit in at a picnic bench.
I am an introvert and the thought of doing this action made me really anxious.
I asked a young woman to take my photo and then we got chatting about what I was doing and then another person wandered over and I actually spent all day chatting to about eight people (some of who came back after doing their shopping).
A local journalist came to take photos and chat although at this point no article has appeared in the local paper.
Today for my second week, I decided to sit in front of my Federal members office in the main street. The secretary of the office came out to ask what I was doing and I told her and we had a friendly chat. She assured me of Mike Kelly's personal interest in Climate action and I told her that what Labor was suggesting was insufficient and then we took some photos and I settled in for the next 5 hours. I think one of the things I was most worried about was adverse reactions from people but what I have found its that people who are already concerned about climate change are the ones who will talk to you and everyone else will just ignore you. Hopefully though it will raise the issue in their mind, particularly if I am there every week.
So really the only thing stopping you from doing this at your own MPs office is your own fear. Once I faced my fear of what climate change is doing to the world doing a Climate Strike was relatively minor. Remember take photos and get them out on social media we want this movement to grow until every MP's office has a weekly Climate Strike.
You don't have to commit to six hours. Do what you feel comfortable with, but do it regularly. Fit it in with your weekly shopping trip, but be visible, be persistent and start those conversations about climate change. The world needs you.
EDIT: as of 24/5/19 I have done 15 weekly all day Climate Strikes outside Federal representative's office but will now be moving to outside local Council.
15 year old Greta Thunberg did it by sitting by herself in front of the Swedish Parliament instead of going to school with her homemade sign saying Climate Strike. Her statement she wrote after a journalist interviewed her and her photos on social media were the spark that ignited a younger generation of people worried about climate change. Now tens of thousands of students around the world have joined in with a worldwide Climate Strike planned for March 15th 2019.
Greta's example and her powerful speeches made at the UN and Davos meetings and TED Talk have inspired me to have my own Climate Strike every Friday.
While I am a veteran of going to protests I had never done a protest all by myself and I found the idea very daunting. However I told myself that if a 15 year old can do it all by herself for weeks, I as a 52 year old should be perfectly capable of doing it.
Climate change is the existential problem of our time. We are literally looking at a threat to civilisation itself. Already the world my 5 year old granddaughter will grow up in will never be as beautiful and safe as the world I grew up in. However scientists tell us that if we can change things dramatically in the next ten years we have a short time frame to stop things becoming really bad.
So there really isn't any job or any other activity that is more important than trying to galvanise the political and community will to make huge societal changes.
So with this is mind I did my first Climate Strike last week in the middle of Bega on the South Coast of NSW, Australia. I admit I chose to sit in the shade near the Farmers' Market because I knew there would be people who were already concerned about climate change. I packed my hat, a fabric Climate Action Now banner that Miss 5 and I made together , a cardboard sign saying Climate Strike, a drink bottle, some sultanas, a packed lunch, a thermos, coffee plunger, coffee, and milk (forgot to pack a cup or tape for holding my sign up) and settled in for a 6 hour sit in at a picnic bench.
I am an introvert and the thought of doing this action made me really anxious.
I asked a young woman to take my photo and then we got chatting about what I was doing and then another person wandered over and I actually spent all day chatting to about eight people (some of who came back after doing their shopping).
A local journalist came to take photos and chat although at this point no article has appeared in the local paper.
Today for my second week, I decided to sit in front of my Federal members office in the main street. The secretary of the office came out to ask what I was doing and I told her and we had a friendly chat. She assured me of Mike Kelly's personal interest in Climate action and I told her that what Labor was suggesting was insufficient and then we took some photos and I settled in for the next 5 hours. I think one of the things I was most worried about was adverse reactions from people but what I have found its that people who are already concerned about climate change are the ones who will talk to you and everyone else will just ignore you. Hopefully though it will raise the issue in their mind, particularly if I am there every week.
So really the only thing stopping you from doing this at your own MPs office is your own fear. Once I faced my fear of what climate change is doing to the world doing a Climate Strike was relatively minor. Remember take photos and get them out on social media we want this movement to grow until every MP's office has a weekly Climate Strike.
You don't have to commit to six hours. Do what you feel comfortable with, but do it regularly. Fit it in with your weekly shopping trip, but be visible, be persistent and start those conversations about climate change. The world needs you.
EDIT: as of 24/5/19 I have done 15 weekly all day Climate Strikes outside Federal representative's office but will now be moving to outside local Council.
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