The time is running out, and Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg is urging leaders who attended the 2020 World Economic Forum (WEF) on Tuesday to commit to climate crisis mitigation.
The 17-year-old talked during a panel discussion entitled “Forging a Sustainable Path Towards a Common Future.” As part of her message, Thunburg cited the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report from 2018 as she addressed the audience of activists, politicians, non-government organizations, and policymakers.
The IPCC report warns that in the next few years, the world has to drop at least 570 gigatons of carbon dioxide (CO2) in order to have a 67% chance of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. However, Thunberg claims that science says that we only have very limited time to do something.
“With today’s emissions levels, the remaining budget is gone in less than eight years. These aren’t anyone’s views. This is the science. I’ve been repeating these numbers at nearly every speech I’ve given for the last 18 months.”
Echoing the same battlecry she had ever since she stood as one of the youngest climate activists in the world, she said that she “knows you don’t want to talk about this,” but she intends to keep on talking about it until people in power listens and do something.
When asked to reflect on what, if anything, had improved in recent years, Thunberg replied: “In one aspect, lots has happened that no one could have predicted.”
“The climate and the environment is a hot topic right now, and a lot of that is thanks to young people pushing,” Thunberg said Tuesday.
