- Before the COP26 UN climate summit, Greta Thunberg called on banks to “stop financing our meltdown.”
The teenager, a Swedish climate activist, is in London to protest, demanding that the financial system stop funding projects that run on fossil fuels. He tells the Andrew Marr that “changes can be made” at the summit if the pressure on politicians is maintained. However, he added that he was not “officially” invited to speak at the Glasgow event.
Demonstrations against investment in fossil fuel projects came as world leaders gathered in the Scottish city ahead of the opening of COP26 on Sunday. The London protests are part of a series taking place on Friday in financial centers worldwide. Including New York, San Francisco, and Nairobi.
Activists urge banks not to lend money to companies and projects that use fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas.
At the COP26 conference, more than 200 countries will be asked to present their plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. The summit is seen as essential if countries are to keep a promise. They made in 2015 to keep global warming “well below” 2°C above pre-industrial levels.
As a host country, the UK is pressured to force it into ambitious commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Thunberg confirmed this week that he would travel to Glasgow to join the “climate strike” taking place during the summit. But when asked if he was asked to speak at the event, he replied, “I don’t know. Very unclear. No, officially.”
In its formal summit program, the UK said it wanted to “raise the voice of youth” during a series of events co-organized with the official UN Youth Climate on one of the summit days. There will also a discussion on the results of the Youth4Climate Summit in Milan in September, where Ms. Thunberg gave a speech in which he mocked politicians’ use of climate slogans.
The interview was recorded at the Natural History Museum. Where the activist is researching a newly discovered beetle species named after him in 2019. The interview will be featured on Andrew Marr’s Sunday program on One.