Fridays for Future is a global movement, born thanks to the activities of Greta Thunberg, which has pushed thousands of girls and boys to strike on Fridays and to gather in the squares of many cities to address governments, asking for concrete actions against climate change and claiming their right to the future. Climate change is a reality and is causing impacts and phenomena of frequency and intensity never seen in human history and with the suffering, loss of human life, disruption of ecosystems, and the wealth of biodiversity that sustains our lives. If we continue to burn fossil fuels, destroy forests, produce food and eat unsustainably, we will destroy our future. It is time for urgent action to prevent climate collapse! Billions of students from all over the world have voluntarily and enthusiastically joined this initiative.
There was also a large demonstration of students in Messina (in 2019) in defense of the environment for the third Global Climate Strike “Fridays For Future”, inspired by Greta Thunberg. “You in the armchairs do nothing, united for the climate”, “The world is not a landfill”, “If the earth burns, you too burn with it”: are some of the many banners that parade through the streets of the city invading students of Messina and its province. At the cry “Let’s change the system, not the climate”, the students of dozens of schools gathered in Piazza Antonello and began a long procession which ended in Piazza Unione Europea in front of Palazzo Zanca. The students, in their protest, are supported by the former Minister of Education, Lorenzo Fioramonti who sent a circular to the principals of all schools inviting them to justify the absences of students participating in the climate strike.
The strike comes at the end of #WeekForFuture, the week of climate events organized by Fridays For Future around the world. The week began on Friday 20 September 2019, with demonstrations in 130 countries around the world: according to the organizers, they involved a total of 4 million people.
Finally, it is necessary to mention the movement “Fridays For Future Barcelona Pozzo di Gotto” which on May 12, 2019, organized an awareness-raising conference on environmental issues entitled “It is YOUR FUTURE ”and the motto:“ It’s your future, it’s our future. And together we have the moral duty to defend our land ”. This movement aims to raise awareness on some fundamental issues for common protection: from the use of renewable energies to the protection of the marine environment.