Students of all ages from Oxford’s primary and secondary schools will be joining a nationwide strike today in an attempt to put pressure on the government to change its policy regarding climate change.
The group cites an “alarming lack of Government leadership on climate change over previous decades” as the main reason for the strike.
Demonstrators are set to gather in Carfax from 11am on Friday morning.
Layla Moran, MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, has announced she supports the strike action and that she will be joining students in their protest.
The protestors are hoping to publicise their concerns over the need for action on climate change and to encourage others to do the same.
According to the UK Youth Climate Coalition (UKYCC), strikes have already been organized in over 50 UK towns and cities, in locations as diverse as Truro and Fort William.
UKYCC campaigner Jake Woodier explained that: “Youth voices are too often left out of the discussion when it comes to climate change … [It is] no longer a problem to be dealt with in the future.
“The reality is, we’re living through a crisis of humankind’s own doing, and it’s only going to get increasingly worse unless we take radical, rapid action to transition to a low or zerocarbon economy in the immediate future.”
Layla Moran commented: “Climate change is the biggest issue facing our planet, yet it is consistently ignored by Parliament and Government despite pressure from MPs.
“I support the students in their strike, though I feel saddened that they feel they have to do this to raise the profile of this issue and hope the schools see this in the positive light it is meant.
“They have my assurance I will continue to champion their cause.”
Moran, who is Liberal Democrat Education Spokesperson, also commented: “Without a doubt this strike is a pivotal moment for the students involved. We face a global crisis in climate change and I am proud to support our younger generation who have taken up such an important and principled position.
“As a former teacher I absolutely understand the frustrations that teachers and schools may have with these strikes.
“I hope schools colleges and universities see this in the positive light it is meant and equally hope those students act sensibly with making sure adults know where they are and making up the missed work.
“Time and time again we have seen the issue of climate change ignored, whether it be locally due to the ignorance of local councils who plough on with projects that will damage the environment, or the Tories’ shameful national record on climate change.”
This comes after a series of climate change strikes in other European cities, including the Hague, Brussels and Berlin. These protests were primarily made up of students, protesting against government inaction on environmental issues.
Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old Swedish student who made global headlines last summer by protesting outside the Swedish Riksdag every day, missing school on Fridays to do so, has been cited as the main inspiration for these strikes.
She has urged students all over the world to go on strike, saying: “Why should we be studying for a future that may be no more? This is more important than school, I think.”
Cherwell spoke to a secondary school student, 15, who attended a protest last week in the Hague, together with an estimated 10,000 other students. He described the atmosphere as “inspiring”, saying that he and other friends who attended are “hoping that as a result of this protest, the government will take action to improve the future for us and every other child in the Netherlands.” He added that “if [the government] don’t, we’ll be back next week!”
Although greenhouse gas emissions have been in decline in the UK since 2017, the continuation of processes such as fracking has meant that damage is still being done to the environment. Concerns have been raised about the country meeting its targets to reduce emissions by 50% by 2050, something the government pledged to do as part of the 2008 Climate Change Act.
Students all over Oxford, and indeed the rest of the world, will be hoping to remind their governments to prioritise climate change to secure their futures.
It remains to be seen how many students will turn out to strike on Friday, and how the government and local schools will respond.
