The world-renowned Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has set sail from southwestern England, bound for United Nations climate talks in New York City next month. The 16-year-old Thunberg sparked a global movement of weekly “student strikes for the climate” last year when she skipped classes each Friday to stand outside the Swedish parliament demanding action to confront the climate crisis. Thunberg refuses to fly because of the heavy carbon footprint of air travel; she’s instead making her ocean voyage aboard the Malizia II, a 60-foot racing yacht covered in solar panels. Thunberg hopes to be in New York in time for the U.N. Climate Action Summit on September 23, before moving on to South America for more U.N. climate talks in Santiago, Chile, in December. Just before setting sail, Thunberg dismissed climate deniers who’ve launched an online campaign seeking to discredit her activism.
Greta Thunberg: “I’m not concerned about reactions. What I am concerned about is whether we will do something or not, whether the people in power will react and act with necessary force.”