Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg conquered the American continent on shaky legs and visibly exhausted – shortly afterwards she gave her first press conference. She first apologized – her brain wasn’t working properly yet, she said. Your message to US President Donald Trump: “Please listen to the scientists.” However, you will concentrate on making the status quo of the current climate crisis public. She will rest for the next few days – but first she wants to take a shower, said the 16-year-old.
The crossing took two weeks to their destination New York. After waiting several hours for customs clearance, the Swede was accompanied by an escort with 17 United Nations boats past the Statue of Liberty to the North Cove Marina in Manhattan.
Thunberg tackled the Atlantic crossing on August 14th together with the experienced Hamburg professional sailor Boris Herrmann in Plymouth, England. In New York, the figurehead of the “Fridays For Future” movement is expecting a series of climate summits and protest marches. US President Donald Trump did not want to meet, Thunberg had announced.
“I never got seasick once. It was just nice to come out to sea and be yourself, disconnected from everything and everyone,” Thunberg said shortly before the arrival of the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter. It was a unique experience to be able to observe life in the sea.
Herrmann sailed them exactly according to schedule to New York Bay, where the last few meters dragged on. Already around 2:30 p.m. German time, Herrmann had tweeted a photo on Wednesday that showed Thunberg on the boat “Malizia II” just off the coast. “Arrived”, the experienced circumnavigator commented on the picture.
Customs stopped the “Malizia II” hours
The yacht then had to anchor for a few hours off Coney Island, “Customs clearance and immigration,” wrote Herrmann. Only later in the evening in Germany did the go and the accompaniment of the 17 boats of the United Nations, each symbolizing one of the 17 sustainability goals of the UN.
Greta Thunberg was particularly fond of the dolphins during the crossing
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Shortly before sunrise, the climate activist and her team had sighted land for the first time in two weeks. Almost 70 kilometers from the coast, Thunberg posted a photo with the words “Land !! The lights of Long Island and New York City ahead.”
Thunberg refrains from flights for environmental reasons. In order to be able to keep appointments around the UN climate summit in New York (21 to 23 September), the world-famous climate protector decided to travel on the 18-meter-long, almost emission-free ocean-going yacht “Malizia II”. Before the first test drive with Herrmann, Thunberg had never sailed.
The boat is equipped with solar panels and underwater turbines to generate electricity for the boat. On board were Herrmann’s co-skipper Pierre Casiraghi, Greta’s father Svante and the filmmaker Nathan Grossman, who made a documentary about the trip.
nob / mak (dpa, afp, sid)
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