Teen Swede climate change activist Greta Thunberg joined the Day of Action protest in London on Friday before taking the train to Glasgow, Scotland, where the United Nations COP26 conference opens on Sunday.
The 18-year-old took part in one of the protests going on in 26 countries around the world on Friday to put pressure on banks to stop the financing of fossil fuel projects.
Thunberg briefly joined young eco-warriors from the Youth Strike to Defund Climate Chaos outside the Standard Chartered bank in London, according to Sky News, before the protest made its way to other major financial institutions like Lloyd’s of London, the Bank of England, Barclays, and Macquarie Capital, while chanting: “What do we want? Climate justice. When do we want it? Now.”
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 29: Climate activist Greta Thunberg is escorted to join a protest outside Standard Chartered on October 29, 2021 in London, England. Climate protesters across the world are demanding that the global financial system stops its financing of fossil fuel companies. According to a report by a coalition of NGOs, the world’s biggest banks have paid $3.8 trillion into fossil fuel companies since the 2015 Paris climate agreement. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
The teen climate activist tweeted after her appearance at the event: “School strike week 167. Today we’re outside [Standard Chartered] asking them to stop funding our destruction. Banks still pour fantasy amounts into fossil fuels, destabilising the planet and putting many people’s lives at risk.”
She is set to travel by train to Glasgow, Scotland, where the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is meeting for its 26th annual Conference of the Parties (COP26) from Sunday, to join a “climate strike”.
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 29: Climate activist Greta Thunberg joins a protest outside the headquarters of Standard Chartered on October 29, 2021 in London, England. Climate protesters across the world are demanding that the global financial system stops its financing of fossil fuel companies. According to a report by a coalition of NGOs, the world’s biggest banks have paid $3.8 trillion into fossil fuel companies since the 2015 Paris climate agreement. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)
In a preview of her interview with BBC news veteran journalist Andrew Marr set to be aired on Sunday, Thunberg claimed she didn’t know if she had been officially invited to COP26, claiming that perhaps she had not been because organisers were “scared” of inviting young ‘radicals’ like her.
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 29: Climate activists protest outside the headquarters of Standard Chartered on October 29, 2021, in London, England. Climate protesters across the world are demanding that the global financial system stops its financing of fossil fuel companies. According to a report by a coalition of NGOs, the world’s biggest banks have paid $3.8 trillion into fossil fuel companies since the 2015 Paris climate agreement. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
“I don’t know. It’s very unclear. Not officially [invited]. I think that many people might be scared that if they invite too many radical young people, then that might make them look bad,” she said.
The annual UN climate summit is being held in Glasgow between October 31st and November 12th. Xi Jinping of China — the world’s largest emitter of carbon dioxide — Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro are not expected to be attending.
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 29: Climate activists protest outside the headquarters of Standard Chartered on October 29, 2021 in London, England. Climate protesters across the world are demanding that the global financial system stops its financing of fossil fuel companies. According to a report by a coalition of NGOs, the world’s biggest banks have paid $3.8 trillion into fossil fuel companies since the 2015 Paris climate agreement. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
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