SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD Greta Thunberg, whose school strikes for climate change movement is barely a year old, was given the opportunity to address the most important leaders of the world at the UN in New York. Her short and passionate speech berated the inaction of the adults of the world for their lack of action and leadership on what any reasonable person can see is a climate disaster heading our way ("Thunberg lambasts world leaders on climate", The Herald, September 24).
The arrogant climate change denier, President Trump, who takes pride in confronting his enemies and those who do not agree with his views, was seen on television, in the same room as Greta and the young people campaigning for urgent action to be taken, to save our world. He ignored Greta and the young campaigners which surely tells us all we need to know about his disdain for them or is it his fear of them? This is typical of this American president who has already demonstrated his callous disregard for the thousands of American school children who are campaigning for gun control, to protect their safety at school. No child or young person would have suggested giving teachers a bonus to carry their guns into schools as the solution to school shootings.
Political leaders across the world must start listening to the growing pleas of the millions of children and young people, inspired by the likes of Greta, who dare to think out of the box, and who understand that greed and ignorance is fuelling the fires of climate change. Last week I and millions of adults responded to the call from our children and grandchildren to march for climate change in cities across the world.
We in Scotland have for over a decade been listen to our children and young people. We have a long-established Scottish Youth Parliament which is taken very seriously by the MSPs in our Scottish Parliament. e all need to start to understand that listening to young people is vital if we are to find solutions to so many of the ills facing our society; drug misuse, obesity, poverty, racism and all forms of discrimination. We need to harness the enormous energy, free-thinking innovative minds of our children and young people. They have and can lead us to find new ways of thinking and improving our society. Greta and her young supporters have demonstrated that without a doubt there are many ways of changing the world for the better.
Max Cruickshank, Glasgow G12.
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