Young Environmental Activists Making a Difference in the World Today
Written By: Kaitlyn Crowley
At the ripe age of 15, Greta Thunberg began her protests outside the Swedish Parliament, bringing a new, young perspective to the fight against climate change. Her protests made international headlines as she is helping to bring more attention and respect for youth environmental activists. However, she is not in the fight alone. There are many other youth activists working behind the scenes to help save our planet– Xiye Bastida being one of them.
Bastida is a Mexican-Chilean activist who is one of the organizers of the famous Friday for Future in New York City. At just 19 years old, Bastida already has an impressive list of accomplishments such as founding the Re-Earth Initiative and being a guest speaker at the Leadership Summit on Climate. In 2018, Bastida was recognized for all her hard work by being honored with the “Spirit of the UN” award. Today, she continues to work towards fighting climate change and helping to bring more attention to the climate justice movement all while attending the University of Pennsylvania.
Meanwhile, over at Minneapolis South High School, Isra Hirsi is leading the climate activism movement in her community. As the daughter of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, Hirsi has carved her own name in history through her environmental work. She began her activism from a young age, participating in student-led protests and clubs until she went on to found the U.S. Youth Climate Strike in 2018. It is said that she will continue her environmental work at Barnard College of Columbia University.
In the country of Uganda, 17 year old Leah Namugerwa is making international headlines for her environmental work. As a young teenager, Namugerwa became inspired by Greta Thungerberg’s strikes and decided to take action herself by founding the Fridays for Future Uganda. On her 15th birthday, she spent her special day planting 200 trees instead of producing waste by throwing a birthday party. This led to the creation of the Birthday Trees project which is an organization that hands out seeds to those wishing to celebrate their birthday in a sustainable way.
While these are just a few of the well-known student activists across the globe, there are many more who have gone on to found important organizations or even simply have some creative sustainable tips! It is important to remember that being internationally famous is not what defines a student activist. Making the right choice for the environment is always what is most important, no matter how small. Doing something as simple as picking up a piece of trash or even going vegan for a day can make all the difference.