Last Friday, March 15, six St John’s Year 12 students missed school to join the second #Youthstrike4Climate in London. More than fifteen thousand students gathered in Parliament Square and marched via Downing Street to Buckingham Palace.
They chanted: “What do we want? Change. When do we want it? Now.” The students want the government to declare a state of climate emergency and to educate the British public about the seriousness of global warming.
Edie Bound told marlborough.news: “We have eleven years and then, it’s a scientific fact, it’s too late. By the time we have the chance to vote it will already be too late. Greta Thunberg, the Swedish girl, made a speech that summed it all up. It’s amazing that she is our age and has done so much. She said, ‘I don’t want your hope. I want you to panic.’ ”
The St John’s students also commented on the extreme weather many parts of the world have been experiencing including the unseasonal warm weather in the UK in February and last summer’s heatwave. They agreed that other worrying factors included President Trump pulling out of climate agreements. “This should transcend politics.”
When asked why they thought the youth movement had formed they said they believed the older generation was too comfortable and complacent. “We use social media more and it’s all over social media. So we just see more about climate change.”
The students acknowledged the importance of education in making them climate aware: “It all started when we learned, at St. Michael’s Primary School, Aldbourne, about rainforests. Now three of us are studying A-level Biology and the Biodiversity topic just highlighted the climate crisis further.”
The march last Friday was only the beginning for the students. Holly McKay hopes to raise the awareness of other students with an installation of a huge whale and a fishing net full of plastic that she is creating for the atrium at St. John’s. Plastic misuse is also the topic of her Extended Project Qualification. In the future she hopes to study Marine Biology at university.
Several of the students have joined Marlborough Youth Council and will be involved in the Marlborough Spring Clean next weekend.
“We’ve raised awareness and we hope the movement just grows and grows. There’s lots of things we can do but the people who make the most difference are big industries and governments. Brexit should not have priority over this!”.
‘Wish me luck as you wave me goodbye’… baby trout released into the Kennet
