Kaiser wrote about Greta Thunberg, climate activist, and her journey to the U.S. to participate in climate strikes. She gave a speech at the U.N. last Monday, and spoke at Montreal’s climate march on Friday. NBC reports that climate scientists say that Greta is having a tremendous impact on discussions and movements around climate change. Dr. Sally Benson, who is the co-director of the Precourt Institute for Energy at Stanford University, praised Greta for how she is motivating young people to be involved in the fight against climate change: “We’re seeing more grassroots action, and she’s creating a movement where young people are pushing communities, cities, states and corporations and saying, ‘we’re not going to wait.'”
Greta isn’t the only teenager who is working to change the minds of adults on the importance of acting now to save the planet: Maggie Gyllenhaal told People while she was at the New York Film Festival that her oldest daughter, 13-year-old Ramona, was the reason that she joined became involved in climate activism:
“My 13-year-old got us involved,” the Oscar nominee said. “She, like many, many children, isn’t able to push out of her mind the dire situation that we’re in. We’ve learned as grownups how to do that and they haven’t learned how to do that and they’re really concerned and upset demanding that the grownups pay attention. My daughter did that to me and it took me a minute.”
Gyllenhaal attended the Youth Climate Strike in N.Y.C. earlier this month and said she “can’t not pay attention” to what’s going on.
“It’s real and we need to really change the way we’re living,” she said. “My 13-year-old who woke me up to that. It’s happening all over the world, the children are mobilizing.”
On September 20, the day of the international climate strike, Maggie also shared on Instagram something that her 7-year-old daughter, Gloria Ray, wrote and drew:
I think it’s amazing that Maggie (and her husband, Peter Sarsgaard) decided to get involved in fighting climate change after talking with Ramona about it. They could have dismissed her, or even been supportive of her efforts without doing anything else themselves, but choosing to get involved sends a strong message to both their daughters that Maggie and Peter are paying attention and take them seriously. I really hope that the work of Greta and other young activists does lead to more positive change. Greta is absolutely right to put leaders on blast for “failing” children by neglecting and damaging the planet. It shouldn’t be on Greta or other children and teens to prod adults into doing the right thing, but I am so grateful that they are speaking up. I’ve also been awed by the various pictures of Greta striking alone in front of the Swedish parliament a year ago, juxtaposed with pictures from the climate strike: I’m moved and amazed by everything that Greta has done over the past year, and she’s been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize!
Photos credit: Avalon.red
So glad the next generation is really picking up the fight.
They are the ones this will affect the most so we adults have to listen to them.
I have a 12-year-old niece and climate change is the number one concern of hers, above all else. Her friends agree with her too. I think this new generation will hopefully be able to make a significant difference. I love how these tweens and teens are becoming mini-activists.
Teachers used to be able to easily incorporate curriculum about climate change, largely because teacher unions had power and were effective. Maggie made a movie smearing teachers and teacher unions. Pass on her until she acknowledges how important it is for kids to learn about climate change in the classroom, and how important teachers are in the fight to save the planet. Grownups have been paying attention for decades; they’re just not taken seriously or treated like professionals.
Are you talking about The Kindergarten Teacher? If so, I really don’t think the overarching point of that film was to smear teachers and unions…
Sorry if I’ve missed another film though.
I’m surprised her kids came out so conscientious and well-adjusted after reading that crazy-amazing long read about their school.
Yes! Did you pick that up from lainey too?
Yup, I can’t help but think about it when I read about those two. They did not come off looking so good.
Lainley had it, the original article was published on The Cut.
I completely missed all this, does anyone have the link (since I’m now really curious to read)?
I saw their Architectural Digest home tour on YouTube right after I read the school article and they were just insufferable, so combined, the pieces turned my opinion on them from thoughtful and quirky to full of themselves and intolerable.
How big are Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard’s greenhouse gas emissions compared to the average American? They work in a very resource intensive industry and lead relatively high consumption lifestyles. When entertainers talk about climate change, I wish interviewers would simply ask them how many flights they have taken in the last year.
I wonder if their 13 year old won’t fly private? Does this family take commercial flights wherever they go? Do they live in a mega-mansion and have six giant cars parked on the driveway? I like people that practice what they preach, not preach but don’t practice.
I support all the kids currently showing us how it’s done.
Completely off-topic but A) I want her sparkly coat and B) Did anyone else hear the rumors about her husband? If true, she’s either VERY forgiving or VERY blinkered…
It is so wrong that kids can’t vote, sometimes. They are the ones that will truly feel the impact of the decisions made on it now. The generations in power often have their eyes on only the next news cycle, at most the next five years. The generation in power only knows tiny changes in the environment and thinks it’s no big deal.
Our kids will be telling their kids that they used to play outside, breathe without filtering, and drink water out of the tap… and they will curse us for our short-sightedness.
I don’t understand how it’s ok for a 16 year old to drive a car but not responsible enough to vote lol ! It’s just insane to me. The voting age needs to be lowered.
Yeah, I watched that movie and thought it was about a teacher with serious mental illness and boundary issues but had nothing to do with smearing teachers in general. I also don’t recall anything about teachers unions.
Oops…this was meant to be in response to Kealeens comment above.