HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - Hundreds of youth activists in Hawaii are participating in a “climate strike” in Downtown Honolulu on Friday afternoon.
The event mirrors similar events around the country and the world, and is meant to draw attention to the growing threat of climate change.
“The climate has changed a lot and I think it’s not good. We can do better than we are doing now,” said activist Nahe Quartero, 12. “I would like to see less extinctions in animal life, and less pollution so it doesn’t kill stuff, so our future will be like how our parents was when they were younger.”
The activists support a number of local and national initiatives.
In Hawaii, they want to see “meatless Mondays” offered in school, a climate curriculum, and measures that would push Hawaii closer to its own sustainability goals.
They also want Hawaii to declare a climate emergency.
Hawaii’s event kicked off at 4 p.m. at Washington Place, and participants marched first to the Hawaii State Capitol and then to Honolulu Hale.
At city hall, a rally featuring poets, musicians, and guest speakers was planned.
Around the globe, millions of youth activists have taken to the streets to raise awareness about a climate emergency whose first chapters are already being written.
Protesters point to a number of recent weather events to make their case, including the deadly and destructive hurricane season in the Atlantic, catastrophic flooding in Houston, and heat waves globally.
This story will be updated.
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