‘Fridays For Future’ global climate strike

Climate-Strike-Banner
Climate-Strike-1-September-2019
Ottawa’s “Fridays for
Future” climate strike in 2019 brought out tens of thousands of people. This year’s strike will take place on Parliament Hill at 1 p.m. on September 15.
Photo by: Rebecca Marchand-Smith

 

By Cecile Wilson

Time to End Fossil Fuels Strike!
September 15, 1 p.m.
Parliament Hill

 On September 15, ordinary folks and climate and social justice groups will come together to participate in the worldwide Global Climate Strike. The strike is being organized by Fridays for Future, the organization inspired by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.

In 2018, Greta began protesting the lack of climate action by those in power by “striking” from school. Fridays For Future now has groups around the world that advocate for effective climate action and social justice in response to the climate and biodiversity emergencies.

Here in Ottawa, we want to make this strike as big as, or even bigger than, the one in 2019, where tens of thousands of people took to the streets. Heaven knows we need to.

A record-breaking summer

This summer has been a climate “everything, everywhere, all at once” event. Record-breaking wildfires, precipitation, heat and floods have led to tragedy. In Nova Scotia, three children died when floods overwhelmed the vehicles in which they were riding after parts of the province received over 300 mm of rain in 24 hours. In B.C, a young boy whose asthma had been under control died from inhaling wildfire smoke. Four courageous firefighters lost their lives trying to save others from wildfires. In Ottawa and beyond, smoke from those wildfires forced people inside to avoid the dangerously poor air quality. Ominously, this could be just the beginning.

In July, heat domes settled over three continents, smashing high temperatures in many locations. Phoenix, Arizona experienced an astounding 31 consecutive days with daytime highs of 43.3°C or above. By the end of July, it had been so hot and dry that even the iconic saguaro cacti were collapsing. Sanbao township in China registered a record high of 52.2°C, and an international airport in Iran recorded the astounding temperature of 66.7°C. These temperatures stress the limit that the human body can endure.

The temperatures weren’t just hot on land. Oceans and rivers reached unusually high temperatures. Corals start to bleach when water temperatures reach 28.8°C or more for several days. Off some areas along the Florida cost, the ocean hit 38.3°C. Warmer water temperatures can also kill fish because warm water doesn’t hold as much oxygen. Along with drought threatening livestock and crops, the effects of climate change pose a danger to food security around the globe.

‘Global boiling’

On July 27, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres declared, “The age of global warming has ended. The era of global boiling has arrived.” Yes, there has always been extreme weather. What’s different about climate change is that the extreme events last longer and occur more frequently. The global average temperature rise sits at 1.2°C, still below the 1.5° target set by the Paris Agreement in 2015. But scientists are worried that the extreme weather experienced in the northern hemisphere this summer is an indication that irreversible tipping points may be approaching more quickly than anticipated.

Time to end fossil fuels

It is time to end the support that fossil fuel corporations are receiving from governments and financiers. It has been well-established that burning fossil fuels – oil, gas and coal – are the primary contributors of the greenhouse gas emissions that are destabilizing the climate worldwide. In fact, it was scientists commissioned by fossil fuel companies like Exxon who were among the first to issue this warning. Unfortunately, rather than using this information to engineer a slow and steady transition to more sustainable energy sources, the fossil fuel companies decided to bury the reports and start a campaign to first deny, then delay, effective climate action. Now we are all enduring the results of their profit-motivated denial.

A better world is possible

We have the means to transition to cleaner sources of energy, and we need to do this by 2035. We have an opportunity to rethink our values and build the kind of world we want to live in and to leave to future generations. The planet may not die, but unless we find the courage and the will to change, it will be a much more disruptive – and expensive – world to live in.

Now is the time to send a message to the politicians, the fossil fuel industry and the bankers: we want a just, liveable, safe and compassionate world. Come march with us on September 15 for all living things!

To register to participate in the strike or to help us organize, go to the FridaysForFutureOttawa Facebook page or to fridaysforfutureottawa.org.

Cecile Wilson has been a Glebe resident for over 20 years and will be marching in the Climate Strike on September 15.

 Ottawa’s “Fridays for Future” climate strike in 2019 brought out tens of thousands of people.

This year’s strike will take place on Parliament Hill at 1 p.m. on September 15.

Photo: Rebecca Marchand-Smith

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