It can be easy to feel disillusioned and powerless as a young person today. (I’m 23.) A casual swipe through social media, and the barrage of damning statistics, petition pages and lukewarm infographics that awaits leaves me overwhelmed and riddled with fear for what my future — and woe betide that of any offspring I could eventually have — holds. In my lifetime, CO 2 emissions from fossil fuels have increased catastrophically. Even if we, by some miraculous feat, do manage to curtail global emissions by 2050, temperatures and sea levels will continue to rise throughout this century. But, as the planet hurtles towards doom, we have two choices: sit back and worry or get up and do something.
Many already are. You’ll doubtless be familiar with Just Stop Oil, Extinction Rebellion (XR), The Climate Coalition and their stunts. Those and others have blockaded Oxford Circus in a pink party boat (Extinction Rebellion), poured milk on Harrods’ floor (Animal Rebellion) and brought the M25 to a standstill (Just Stop Oil). Last weekend, demonstrators from Animal Rising delayed the start of the Grand National when they breached the tracks. Their argument has long been that such havoc breeds headlines, which in turn raises awareness. But when, for example, those actions prevent pensioners from getting to urgent hospital appointments, it can prove hard to keep the public on side. Last year, activists from Just Stop Oil hurled tins of tomato soup at Van Gogh’s Sunflowers. A move that — to say the least — divided opinion.
