School climate strikers tailor demands to local region
From Waiheke Island to Dunedin, students around the country skipped school and gathered in their thousands yesterday to demand climate action from the Government.
Having begun in earnest in 2019, the global school strike movement calls on those in power to take action against climate change, a problem felt most keenly by the young people who will be left picking up the pieces of a climate-ravaged world.
It was off to a rainy start in Wellington, as hundreds filed into Civic Square in the central city. Sorcha Carr, 19, said it was disappointing that, after two marches and a change of Government, they still had to be here.
Nationally, the movement had six key demands, and each location chose those that were most salient to their region.
Wellington, the home of central government, chose investing in a just transition and honouring New Zealand’s relationship to its Pacific neighbours. This meant investing in green infrastructure and vehicles, while ensuring those previously working in unsustainable industries were retrained for greener jobs.
In Auckland, the march moved up Queen St to Aotea Square, with thousands of people filling the breadth of the street.
Signs at the front of the march shared the strikers’ thoughts: ‘‘Keep the Earth clean, it’s not Uranus’’; ‘‘Why do we still have to protest’’; and ‘‘Using fossil fuels leads to fossils’’.
In Taupo¯, a small but committed group of a dozen students from Taupo¯ -nui-a-Tia and Tauhara colleges staged a small protest at Colonel Robert’s Reserve.
In Dunedin, students marched through the central city to the Octagon. The O¯ tepoti School Strike 4 Climate group had three additional demands with a local focus. They were: stop burning fossil fuels to heat schools; the Dunedin City Council’s 10-year plan must deal with climate change more thoroughly; and local councils must work with central government to take all the Climate Change Commission’s recommendations.
In Christchurch, there were heated calls for mayor Lianne Dalziel to make an appearance, with chants of ‘‘Show your face’’ and ‘‘What do we want? Lianne Dalziel. When do we want her? Now!’’ Demands were for more investment into public transport, more investment into climate education, and an immediate halt to the council-owned Tarras Airport project. When Dalziel arrived, she apologised for being late.
Even students on Waiheke Island joined the cause, taking to the streets with signs and loud voices.