On September 27, 2019, over 120 thousand people united to demand climate action on the streets of Vancouver, the unceded, ancestral and occupied lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Səl̓ílwətaʔ (Tsleil-Watuth), and Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) Nations of the Coast Salish peoples.
The global movement is growing
In August 2018, 15 year old Greta Thunberg sparked a youth led school strike for climate that quickly spread internationally. The same momentum made the climate strike on September 27, 2019, the biggest march in Vancouver's history. We have 10 years to avert climate disaster and more people are awakening to this urgency.
I'm constantly inspired by the tenacity of youth, but this resistance has deep roots across the country
While I'm 27-years-old and have only witnessed a fraction of the movement for climate justice in B.C., I know that this sense of stewardship for the planet has been practiced and vocalized by indigenous communities for thousands of years. Above all else, we should follow this leadership. As well as recognize the many indigenous youth who have been paving the way here already: Ta'Kaiya Blaney, Sii-am Hamilton, Kayah George, Sierra Tasi baker, Autumn Peltier – to name a few. While the future of every single youth is at risk, BIPOC communities have and continue to be disproportionately impacted by the climate crisis and converging social issues.