Greta Thunberg

Swedish climate activist Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg ( ; born 3 January 2003) is a Swedish environmental activist who has gained international recognition for promoting the view that humanity is facing an existential crisis arising from climate change . Thunberg is known for her youth and her straightforward speaking manner, both in public and to political leaders and assemblies, in which she criticises world leaders for their failure to take sufficient action to address the climate crisis . Thunberg's activism started after convincing her parents to adopt several lifestyle choices to reduce their own carbon footprint . In August 2018, at age 15, she started spending her school days outside the Swedish parliament to call for stronger action on climate change by holding up a sign reading Skolstrejk för klimatet ( School strike for climate ). Soon, other students engaged in similar protests in their own communities. Together, they organised a school climate strike movement under the name Fridays for Future . After Thunberg addressed the 2018 United Nations Climate Change Conference , student strikes took place every week somewhere in the world. In 2019, there were multiple coordinated multi-city protests involving over a million students each. To avoid flying, Thunberg sailed to North America where she attended the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit . Her speech there, in which she exclaimed "how dare you", was widely taken up by the press and incorporated into music. Her sudden rise to world fame has made her both a leader and a target for critics. Her influence on the world stage has been described by The Guardian and other newspapers as the "Greta effect". She has received numerous honours and awards including: honorary Fellowship of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society ; Time magazine's 100 most influential people and the youngest Time Person of the Year ; inclusion in the Forbes list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women (2019) and two consecutive nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize (2019 and 2020). Sie kämpft für den Klimaschutz und für eine bessere Zukunft" [Greta Thunberg is a Swedish environmental activist. She is fighting for climate protection and a better future.]. Listen to scientists' BBC 23 April 2019 " 'Is my English OK?': Greta Thunberg's blunt speech to UK MPs" .

Swedish environmental activist (born 2003) Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg ( ; born 3 January 2003) is a Swedish environmental activist who is known for challenging world leaders to take immediate action for climate change mitigation . Thunberg's climate activism began when she persuaded her parents to adopt lifestyle choices that reduced her family's carbon footprint . At age 15, Thunberg began skipping school on 20 August 2018, vowing to remain out of school until after the national Swedish election in an 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. After the election, Thunberg spoke in front of her supporters, telling them to use their phones to film her. She then said that she would continuing school striking for the climate every Friday until Sweden was in compliance with the 2015 Paris climate agreement . Thunberg's youth and blunt speaking manner fueled her meteoric rise to global icon status. Shortly after Thunberg's first school strike for the climate protest, other students engaged in similar protests in their communities. They then united and organized the school strike for climate movement under the banner of Fridays for Future . After Thunberg addressed the 2018 United Nations Climate Change Conference , weekly student climate strike protests took place on Fridays around the world. In 2019, multiple coordinated multi-city protests involved over a million students each. To avoid carbon-intensive flying, Thunberg sailed on a carbon-free yacht from Plymouth , England , to New York City where she attended and addressed the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit . 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. Thunberg's sudden rise to world fame made her a leader in the climate activist community. She was also heavily criticized, much of it mocking her as a naïve teenager. Thunberg's influence on the world stage has been described by The Guardian and other media outlets as the "Greta effect". She has received numerous honours and awards , including an honorary Fellowship of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society , inclusion in Time 's 100 most influential people , being the youngest Time Person of the Year , inclusion in the Forbes list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women (2019), and multiple nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize . In June 2023 Thunberg graduated high school. As an young adult, Thunberg's tactics have escalated, leading to her being arrested and convicted. She continues protesting and criticizing politicians, corporations, and organizations for what she considers their failure to take sufficient action to address the climate crisis . "Before Greta Thunberg was a global icon, she was a tormented child who refused to eat or speak" . The New York Times . "Greta Thunberg to world leaders: 'How dare you – you have stolen my dreams and my childhood' - video" . the Guardian . 23 September 2019. " 'How dare you': Greta Thunberg gives powerful, emotional speech to the UN - National | Globalnews.ca" . "Greta Thunberg defiant after Swedish court fines her for disobeying police during climate protest" .