Greta Thunberg

Greta Thunberg
FRSGS
Thunberg September 2023, Stockholm, Sweden
Thunberg in 2023
Born
Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg

(2003-01-03) 3 January 2003 (age 21)
Stockholm, Sweden
Occupation
Years active2018–present
MovementSchool Strike for Climate
Parents
RelativesOlof Thunberg (grandfather)
Signature

Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈɡrêːta ˈtʉ̂ːnbærj] ⓘ; born 3 January 2003) is a Swedish environmental activist known for challenging world leaders to take immediate action to mitigate the effects of human-caused climate change.[1]

Thunberg's climate activism began when she persuaded her parents to adopt lifestyle choices that reduced her family's carbon footprint. In August 2018, aged 15, Thunberg began skipping school, vowing to remain out of school until after a Swedish election to attempt to influence the outcome. She protested outside the Swedish parliament where she called for stronger action on climate change by holding up a Skolstrejk för Klimatet (School Strike for Climate) sign and handing out informational flyers.[2] After the election, Thunberg spoke in front of supporters, telling them to use phones to film her. She then said she would continue school striking for the climate every Friday until Sweden was in compliance with the Paris climate agreement.[3] Thunberg's youth and blunt speaking manner fueled her rise to the status of a global icon.[4]

After Thunberg's first school strike for the climate, other students engaged in similar protests. They united and organized the school strike for climate movement. After Thunberg addressed the 2018 United Nations Climate Change Conference, weekly climate strike protests took place on Fridays around the world. In 2019, coordinated multi-city protests involved over a million students each.[5] To avoid carbon-intensive flying, Thunberg sailed on a carbon-free yacht from England to New York where she addressed the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit.[6] In her speech, Thunberg scolded the world's leaders by exclaiming "How dare you" in reference to their perceived indifference and inaction to the climate crisis. Her admonishment made worldwide headlines.[7][8][9] After Thunberg graduated from high school in 2023, her activism continued to gain international attention and her protest tactics have become increasingly assertive.[10] As an adult, her protests have included both peaceful demonstrations and acts of civil disobedience such as defying lawful orders to disperse, which have led to arrests, convictions, and an acquittal.[11][12] Thunberg's activism has evolved to include other causes, taking a pro-Palestinian stance in response to the Israel–Hamas war.[13]

Thunberg's rise to world fame made her an ad hoc leader in the climate activist community.[14] She faced heavy criticism, much of it mocking her as a naïve teenager.[15] Thunberg's influence on the world stage has been described by The Guardian and other media as the "Greta effect".[16] She has received honours and awards, including in Time's 100 most influential people, named the youngest Time Person of the Year in 2019, inclusion in the Forbes list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women (2019),[17] and nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize.[18][19][20]

  1. ^ "It's an existential crisis. Listen to scientists". BBC. 23 April 2019. Archived from the original on 14 August 2019. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  2. ^ Gibson, Caitlin (16 March 2020). "Before Greta Thunberg was a global icon, she was a tormented child who refused to eat or speak". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 17 March 2020. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  3. ^ Watts, Jonathan; @jonathanwatts (11 March 2019). "Greta Thunberg, schoolgirl climate change warrior: 'Some people can let things go. I can't'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 11 March 2019. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  4. ^ Alter, Charlotte; Haynes, Suyin; Worland, Justin (11 December 2019). Arbugaeva, Evgenia (ed.). "Greta Thunberg: Time's Person of the Year 2019". Time. Archived from the original on 11 December 2019. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
  5. ^ Haynes, Suyin (24 May 2019). "Students From 1,600 Cities Just Walked Out of School to Protest Climate Change. It Could Be Greta Thunberg's Biggest Strike Yet". Time. Archived from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Sengupta was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "Video: 'How Dare You': Greta Thunberg at the United Nations". The New York Times. 23 September 2019. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  8. ^ "Greta Thunberg to world leaders: 'How dare you – you have stolen my dreams and my childhood' – video". The Guardian. 23 September 2019. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 16 October 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  9. ^ "'How dare you': Greta Thunberg gives powerful, emotional speech to the UN – National | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Archived from the original on 29 September 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  10. ^ "Climate activist Greta Thunberg graduates from 'school strikes'". BBC News. 9 June 2023. Archived from the original on 9 June 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  11. ^ "Greta Thunberg To Face New Trial In Sweden Over Protest". www.barrons.com. AFP – Agence France Presse. Archived from the original on 29 September 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  12. ^ "U.K. Judge Acquits Climate Activist Greta Thunberg". TIME. 2 February 2024. Archived from the original on 27 February 2024. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference thunberg-etal-2023 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Wallace-Wells, David (17 September 2019). "It's Greta's World". Intelligencer. Archived from the original on 29 September 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  15. ^ "Greta Thunberg Joins Climate March on Her Last Day in Davos". The New York Times. 24 January 2020. Archived from the original on 19 May 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  16. ^ Watts, Jonathan (23 April 2019). "The Greta Thunberg effect: at last, MPs focus on climate change". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 28 August 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  17. ^ "World's Most Powerful Women". Forbes. Archived from the original on 20 September 2017. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  18. ^ Solsvik, Terje (26 February 2020). "Climate activist Thunberg heads growing field of Nobel Peace Prize candidates". Reuters. Archived from the original on 24 March 2020. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  19. ^ Read, Rupert (9 October 2021). "Opinion: This year's Nobel Peace Prize should've gone to Greta Thunberg". The Independent. Archived from the original on 12 July 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  20. ^ "Nobel Peace Prize 2022 nominees include Myanmar's shadow government". South China Morning Post. 1 February 2022. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022.