Business Fit Magazine November 2019 Issue 2 | Page 50

Environment
Climate Change:
The Young
Advocates
Climate change is a very emotive subject at
the present time, with Swedish activist Greta
Thunberg taking a very public stance for the
future generations. Here, Business Fit editor
Claire Morley, takes a look at some of the other
young people also fighting the environmental
battle for their future.
The subject of Climate Change is never far
from the news these days. In part due to David
Attenborough’s documentaries exploring
the devastating effects of humans on the
environment and the actions of young Swedish
activist Greta Thunberg.
Conspiracy theories, online abuse, insults
about her looks, her mental health, her
appearance have appeared all over the
media. Even if climate change weren’t a thing,
what she’s suggesting still makes sense. We
should be taking better care of our planet,
our rainforests, the other living creatures
which share our world, each other. We fill the
air we breathe full of pollution; we have been
aware of the thinning ozone layer due to CFCs
since the 1970s; more and more species are
becoming extinct due to our actions and our
oceans are full of microplastics. We needed a
wake-up call, it appears not everyone likes it to
come from a teenager.
One post circulating Facebook complains
about how the current teenage generation are
the first to demand aircon in every classroom;
be driven to school in 4x4s; eat unhealthy fast
food and use too many electronic devices –
who do they think gave those children those
things? Children didn’t demand their parents
buy the gas-guzzling cars; parents could
have encouraged conversation rather
than supplying devices and who was
buying the fast food rather than
outside Swedish Parliament calling for
action on global warming. A year later, she is
recognised worldwide as the teenage face
of climate change. Her impassioned speech
at the UN Climate Action Summit sparked a
worldwide response – not all of it supportive.
Indeed it seems quite extraordinary that a
young woman, asking world leaders to start
taking measures against the pollution we are
bringing on our planet, should be subjected to
such hatred.
Greta first came to public notice in 2018
at the age of 15, when she started sitting
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