Youth Spotlights
Greta Thunberg
Greta Thunberg is a 19-year-old Swedish environmental activist who became a household name in 2018 at just 15-years-old after she began skipping school to sit outside of Swedish parliament in protest of the government’s lack of action on climate change.29 Her actions ultimately inspired a global movement of youth who began skipping school on Fridays, which has now become an organized youth-led movement conducting strikes and marches globally known widely as Fridays for Future. In 2019, Thunberg attended the UN Climate Action Summit, where she delivered a speech sharply criticizing the inaction of policymakers worldwide. In her message to world leaders, Thunberg declared, “You are failing us. But the young people are starting to understand your betrayal. The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us, I say: We will never forgive you.”30 Since then, she has continued to inspire youth worldwide with her efforts to demand urgent climate action from governments, organizations and corporations.29
Hilda Flavia Nakabuye
Hilda Flavia Nakabuye is a 24-year-old climate activist from Uganda who focuses particularly on the intersectionality of environmentalism and social justice. Her dedication to climate activism started at an early age when she saw how it impacted her grandparents’ farm and livestock in rural Uganda, forcing them to grapple with economic and food insecurity.31 Inspired by Greta Thunberg’s actions, she began to make her own efforts to push governments to act on climate change, including founding the Ugandan chapter of Fridays For Future. Nakabuye, like many other BIPOC youth activists, emphasizes the enormous responsibility of Western industrialized countries in climate change and how their actions impact developing countries predominantly in the Global South, drawing attention to the complexity of problems caused by climate change.29
Autumn Peltier
Autumn Peltier is a 17-year-old Anishinaabe Indigenous rights and climate activist who is primarily known for her work in advocating for clean water rights and water conservation. Peltier is from the Wikwemikong First Nation in Northern Ontario and is of Ojibwe/Odawa heritage. She was named Anishinabek Nation Chief Water Commissioner in 2019. As part of her role, she has spoken internationally on issues like water contamination, particularly how it affects the health of Indigenous peoples and their land.32 Peltier, vocal about clean drinking water being a privilege not accessible to all, has spent most of her life advocating for improved water quality within Indigenous communities across North America and internationally. Peltier is known for her open criticism of Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau’s failure to fulfill his promise to have all long-term drinking water advisories lifted by 2021.29 As of April 2022, 33 long-term drinking water advisories are still in effect in 28 communities across Canada, most of which are predominantly Indigenous communities.33 Peltier, also known as a ‘Water Warrior,’ continues to bring attention to clean water issues in Canada and around the world.
