HAMBURG, GERMANY - MARCH 01: Teenage Swedish activist Greta Thunberg demonstrates with students against global warming at a Fridays for Future demonstration on March 01, 2019 in Hamburg, Germany. Fridays for Future is an international movement of students who, instead of attending their classes, take part in demonstrations demanding for action against climate change. The series of demonstrations began when Thunberg staged such a protest outside the Swedish parliament building. (Photo by Adam Berry/Getty Images)
Loveland Magazine is one of the 400 news outlets worldwide, with a combined audience of over 2 billion people “Covering Climate Now”, a global journalism initiative committed to bringing more and better coverage to the defining story of our time.
The initiative, was co-founded by The Nation and Columbia Journalism Review

Mihaela Manova is “Covering Climate Now” in Loveland, Ohio as an editor for Loveland Magazine

 

 

L

Now they have an entirely new worry: a global coronavirus outbreak.

With lockdowns on public gatherings taking hold around the world, the groupā€™s best-known tactic – staging mass street protests to focus public attention on climate change threats – is no longer wise or possible for now, activists say.

Instead, Extinction Rebellion (XR) – like the student climate strike movement spearheaded by Swedish teen Greta Thunberg – is looking for new ways to make a mark, from taking its campaigns online to using its networks to battle the virus.

ā€œWe are in XR because we are compassionate individuals who have seen the harm coming to everything we love,ā€ said Vishal Chauhan, 30, a London-based member of Doctors for XR.

ā€œWe act on imminent threats – and thatā€™s what coronavirus is right now,ā€ said the former emergency care doctor, describing how many members of the movement were redirecting their energies to aiding communities and vulnerable neighbors.

ā€œWhat this health crisis is doing is making people realize what is importantā€ – and that could help drive action on climate risks in the future, he said.

Climate protest movements surged worldwide in 2019, with youth climate strikes drawing millions out on the streets.

In London, the British government declared a climate emergency and later set a 2050 net-zero emissions target weeks after an unprecedented Extinction Rebellion protest in London.

This month, however, Fridays for Future youth climate protesters have taken their weekly actions digital, using the Twitter hashtag #ClimateStrikeOnline.

ā€œIn a crisis, we change our behavior and adapt to the new circumstances for the greater good of society,ā€ strike founder Thunberg tweeted to her more than 4 million followers last week.

ā€œWe must unite behind experts and science. This of course goes for all crises,ā€ the 17-year-old noted.

Activists in countries from India to Sierra Leone and Russia have heeded the call, posting images of themselves holding protest signs on social media, with their posts sometimes coordinated to appear at the same hour.

Those still protesting in person have said they are trying to main the ā€œsocial distancingā€ recommended by health officials.

FRIENDLY MESSAGE

Kenyan youth activist Makenna Muigai said the virus spread had forced cancellation of an Africa-wide strike planned for April 24.

ā€œIā€™m thinking now everything will be digital,ā€ she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in a telephone interview.

She said the coronavirus pandemic may be cutting emissions globally, as Chinaā€™s industries slow and more people stay at home. But ā€œin terms of getting peopleā€™s voices heardā€ on climate issues, it represents a roadblock, she said.

ā€œRight now everyoneā€™s focused on the virus. Getting people to also remember and understand that climate change is still a problem might get overpowered,ā€ she said.

Medic Chauhan, however, said the strengthening of social and community ties in response to coronavirus, as people work together to confront the threat, could lay the groundwork for more effective future action on climate threats.

ā€œWeā€™ve so far urged negative disruption. We hope people see our message and it percolates,ā€ he said.

But with members now focused on strengthening community ties, ā€œwe can start talking to people about the climate crisis as friendsā€, he said.

ā€œItā€™s a much more beautiful way of getting the message across,ā€ he added.

For now, the British arm of Extinction Rebellion has said mass public gatherings will not be organized ā€œif it is not safe to do soā€. That means a planned large-scale London protest in May has been called off.

But ā€œwe will make alternative, creative plans for May and June – watch this spaceā€, the group promised in a tweet.

Reporting by Laurie Goering @lauriegoering; editing by Megan Rowling. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters. VisitĀ news.trust.org/climate

Your comments can change our community

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.