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Left to right in foreground: Carmen Zielinski, 16, and Chloe Lederman, 16, shout "shame" as they take part in the Global Climate Strike rally along with thousands of people, including students, at Queen's Park in Toronto on Friday. Photo by Deborah Baic / The Globe and MailDeborah Baic/The Globe and Mail
Like many people, I’ve been watching Greta Thunberg in awe. The Swedish 16-year-old climate activist minced no words in a powerful address at the United Nations Climate Action Summit in New York this week.
"You are failing us. But the young people are starting to understand your betrayal. The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us, I say: We will never forgive you. We will not let you get away with this. Right here, right now is where we draw the line. The world is waking up. And change is coming, whether you like it or not.”
Also calling for change right here in Canada is Autumn Peltier. The 15 year old, who is from Wiikwemkoong First Nation on Manitoulin Island in Northern Ontario, began advocating for clean drinking water in First Nations communities when she was just eight. “There are people living in third-world conditions in our first-world country,” she recently told the Globe. “It’s insane. Canada is wealthy. There shouldn’t be places that can’t drink their water." Last year, she told the UN to “warrior up” and give water the same rights and protections as humans. Today, she returns to the UN to deliver a speech at the Global Landscapes Forum.
I’m Sarah Bugden, the editor of Amplify. I’m nearly twice the age of Thunberg and Peltier, and all I can say is, wow. When I was a teenager, watching hockey games and talking to friends on MSN Messenger filled my spare time. To say I’m impressed by these young women’s priorities, knowledge and passion is an understatement.
Recently, I learned about the efforts of another impressive young woman. I first heard on Facebook about what my colleague Michael Snider’s 15-year-old daughter Chloe was doing. He posted photos of her giving a presentation to her family on how they could reduce their carbon footprint. This was not a school assignment – it was all Chloe’s idea. It took her about two days to put together the slideshow, and, as a result, her family has made a number of changes, especially around cutting back on single-use plastics. Thunberg and Peltier may have the world’s attention. But there are teens like Chloe across the world, making meaningful changes, too.
Yesterday, Chloe missed school to join the thousands of citizens who took part in the Global Climate Strike at Queen’s Park in Toronto.
I talked to Chloe this week about what made her do that presentation, why she thinks people are reluctant to change and what it was like to be part of yesterday’s protest.
Tell me when you realized climate change mattered to you.
I started watching videos on YouTube about what we’re doing to the world. Seeing what we’ve done – the amount of trash in our oceans, the amount of pollution we have. Some people in Asia walk around with masks on because the air pollution is so heavy that they can’t even breathe. Watching these videos really hit something in me.
How do you feel when you think about what we are doing to the planet?
A bunch of different emotions hit me when I think about how we are killing this earth. First, I feel disappointed in our older generations and even in us because we’ve been trained into these ways without knowing any better. I feel sad and I’m angry that nobody is trying to help.
What was the strike like? Describe the mood.
It was really cheerful. It wasn’t a hostile environment like maybe you think it would be because we’re marching against climate change. Crowds of people were chanting. Some of the posters were funny. We decided not to make any because it’s wasting paper.
How did it feel for you personally to be there?
It was so much fun and I felt that it was important to be there. I don’t want to sit back and preach all this stuff and then not show any part in it.
So, you made this presentation for your family. What made you decide that it was time to get them to make changes?
When I spent a week with my friend’s family, who are very environmentally friendly, I realized the amount of plastic my family was using. This family introduced me to beeswax wraps. They told me about how making these lifestyle changes is better for the environment.
How did your parents and your younger sister react?
My parents thought it was really educational. My sister laughed at pretty much everything, but I know she supports the cause because she was complaining about the amount of plastic we used to make dinner the other day. I was proud of her for that.
It sounds like your family is on board. What about your fellow students?
I try to tell them not to waste things. We all have Chromebooks now and some people in my classes decide to use paper instead. They just have this mindset of ‘Well, I want to do what I want to do, no matter who it’s affecting.' There’s a sense of stubbornness.
Why do you think some people are reluctant to make changes when there’s so much at stake?
I think that they just don’t know what to do. I think they’re uneducated and misguided and they don’t know enough about what’s going on.
What would you say to others who want to get involved but don’t know where to start?
If it’s possible, make donations. There’s this foundation called 4ocean. They make bracelets from ocean trash. You can also symbolically adopt an animal from WWF and the donation goes towards saving these animals that are losing their homes because of climate change. Spread awareness, even if it’s just to a friend.
The interview has been edited and condensed.
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