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The climate crisis is arguably the “biggest existential threat” the human race has ever faced, and even though scientists have been warning about it for decades, it seems to be building to a crescendo just as we enter the third decade of the 21st century.
Of course, you knew this, didn’t you?
By now you’ve probably heard all sorts of news about the climate crisis. It’s almost incessant: the constant media coverage, the neverending social media posts, the weekly protests. All these are indicative of an ever-growing political force aptly named, the Youth Climate Justice Movement.
Picture this: millions of young people all over the world connected through the internet and social media. Millions of young people living in countries marred by severe drought, flooding, and loss of biodiversity. Millions of young people are affected by severe storms and extreme temperatures.
As we face the realities of the climate crisis, the effects of which increase daily, the future looks bleak. Youth from all over the world are uncertain, we are scared of what our futures hold. Even scarier is the not-so-ridiculous possibility that we won’t have a future at all. However, the greatest horror is how world leaders have reacted to the climate crisis.
The science is clear and the facts are available in abundance. Their ignorance and apathy is deliberate.
In January 2020, my matric year, I began to boycott school every Friday, demanding that the South African government and the Department of Environmental Affairs declare a climate emergency. I sat outside the school gates, alone on the first day, in a desperate attempt to force them to listen.