THUNDER BAY – Teenagers are concerned about their futures.
So much so they’re asking city council to declare a climate emergency to highlight what they see as disaster in waiting.
Rachael Brown was one of dozens of students who took to the streets on Friday, continuing a tradition of end-of-week activism started by Swedish teen Greta Thunberg.
The 16-year-old Hammarskjold High School student said she truly believes there’s no time to lose, hence the municipal government call to action.
“Unless we declare a climate emergency, the government cannot make a difference. We need to all acknowledge that this is happening and this is happening right now. This is not something that is years in the future. We need to start acting now.”
The Grade 11 student is trying implore adults to seriously listen to the pleas of the teenage generation, who are concerned they won’t be able to raise their families in the same world as their parents and grandparents.
“They were born in a period when we didn’t have the same levels of pollution, and because there are still people who have a strong influence on the media who say this isn’t real because they don’t want to admit to it,” Brown said.
“I try to stay positive, but I know right now the most important thing I can do is try to make a change and try to create awareness. My biggest fear is I won’t be able to raise my own children on this beautiful planet. I want to have a future not just for me, but for my whole family.”
Walker Lucchese, a 15-year-old home-schooled student, said he’s been following the perils of climate change for a long time.
“When I was really young, I knew something was wrong with the world and I didn’t understand why anyone wasn’t doing anything,” he said. “I thought the only way I could do anything was to try to lead. But I realize now that it’s good enough if everyone does their fair share and it can really influence people.
He’s not sure the local government will heed their call.
“But I think this is worth it anyway to bring people together and inspire people,” Lucchese said. “I’m just fearful things will change. I’ve always been a person of habit and knowing that so many places could just be destroyed due to what’s happening, I feel very frightened.”
In this case, ignorance isn’t bliss, he added.
“I feel like it won’t be for much longer. If people keep trying to deny what’s going on, it will come sooner than we think.”
Franny MacGregor, a Grade 11 students at Hammarskjold High School, said she helped organize Friday’s rally at the Italian Cultural Centre because climate change is something that’s always on her mind.
“When I heard about the movement that Greta Thunberg had started, I really wanted to get involved. There was already a group started here in Thunder Bay, but it was mostly adults and I wanted to get more youth involved,” she said.
The youth must be heard, she added.
“As youth, we’re supposed to trust adults and the government and big corporations, but right now they’re not really doing what needs to be done. So I needed to take a stand and help me have an actual future.”
