Monday 7 October 2024
 11.2°C   ESE Moderate Breeze
Ocean Kinetics - The Engineering Experts

Environment / Schoolchildren to strike in climate protest

SCHOOLCHILDREN in Shetland are set to down their pencils and pens and leave their desks on Friday morning to join a global ‘strike’ to raise awareness of climate change.

The movement is spearheaded locally by three girls under the name of Eco Youth Shetland who want to make a stand and encourage politicians to do more about the state of the climate.

A spokesperson for Shetland Islands Council (SIC) said staff in schools have been advised to record any requests for leave to participate in the strike as ‘authorised absence’.

The protest is part of the Fridays For Future movement started by 15-year-old Greta Thunberg, who sat in front of Swedish parliament to protest against the lack of action on the climate crisis.

The local strike will see school pupils muster outside of the Anderson High School at 11am on Friday before marching to Lerwick Town Hall to meet SIC chief executive Maggie Sandison.

They want the council to follow Orkney’s footsteps and declare a climate emergency – something which around 70 other local authorities in the UK have also done.

The march will head to Lerwick Town Hall. Photo: Shetland News

The protestors also want to see the “ecological crisis” added to the national curriculum, while they say the government should do more to take into account youth views in policy as well as reduce the voting age to 16.

“We have chosen to do it this day as students across the globe are going on strike, so we thought it would be an amazing opportunity to finally share our voices with the rest of Shetland,” the group said.

The pupils, who say they have permission from their parents to ‘strike’ during school hours, want to see a “sustainable future where climate change is no longer a major problem”.

Become a member of Shetland News

 

They said that the protest highlights “civic engagement and being responsible citizens, which are core parts of the curriculum”.

The pupils point to under 18s not being able to vote in national elections – “so this is the only way we can make our voices heard”.

The trio originally wrote to Sandison, the chairs of the council’s education/families and environment/transport committees and also the head teachers of the Anderson and Brae high schools.

The students had requested that the council showed its support for the cause by 5pm today (Tuesday).

“A number of Scottish councils, including Edinburgh and Glasgow, have given their backing to the movement by considering the action as an ‘authorised absence from school’,” they wrote in their letter.

“We hope you will do the same and support our decision to join this event.”

Over 1.4 million young people took part in the previous Friday strike across 110 countries.

Schoolchildren in Orkney, for example, have already snuck out of school to take part in the protest.

In May Orkney Islands Council declared a climate emergency, stressing the need to reduce the world’s carbon footprint.

Become a member of Shetland News

Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -

  • Remove non-local ads;
  • Bookmark posts to read later;
  • Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
  • Hide membership messages;
  • Comments open for discussion.

If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.

 
Advertisement 

Newsletters

Subscribe to a selection of different newsletters from Shetland News, varying from breaking news delivered on the minute, to a weekly round-up of the opinion posts. All delivered straight to your inbox.

Daily Briefing Newsletter Weekly Highlights Newsletter Opinion Newsletter Life in Shetland Newsletter

JavaScript Required

We're sorry, but Shetland News isn't fully functional without JavaScript enabled.
Head over to the help page for instructions on how to enable JavaScript on your browser.

Your Privacy

We use cookies on our site to improve your experience.
By using our service, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy.

Browser is out-of-date

Shetland News isn't fully functional with this version of .
Head over to the help page for instructions on updating your browser for more security, improved speed and the best overall experience on this site.

Interested in Notifications?

Get notifications from Shetland News for important and breaking news.
You can unsubscribe at any time.

Have you considered becoming a member of Shetland News?

If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please consider paying for membership and get the following features and services: -

  • Remove non-local ads;
  • Bookmark posts to read later;
  • Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
  • Hide membership messages;
  • Comments open for discussion.