We need to act faster and more effectively on the climate. Mario Draghi Assures the youth of Youth4climate who are pressing to start stopping the increase in climate “now” and accuse of blablabla, as did Greta Thunberg, the speeches of the “greats”, of the political leaders with whom they are confronted. Sometimes the “blah blah blah” is just a way to hide our inability to perform actions – replies Draghi off the cuff – but when such great transformations are carried out, we need to convince people, explain that numbers such as an increase of 1.5 degrees (of the temperature, ed) are not something created on purpose but numbers of science, and people of this must be convinced. My idea that the leaders are all absolutely convinced, that you have to act and you have to act quickly.
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The meeting with Greta and the other activists
Draghi speaks in Milan at the opening of the last of the three days of Pre Cop26 moderated by the Minister for Ecological Transition, Roberto Cingolani, in view of the world summit in Glasgow in November, together with the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella. In the morning, the premier had met Greta Thunberg and activists Vanessa Nakate and Martina Comparelli in the prefecture: a meeting that – he said – went very well. For Draghi, the proposals arrived from Youth4Climate are reasonable and constitute a great program of action for all our governments. We adults have created this problem, not young people, and billions of young people live in countries where emissions are the lowest in the world because there is poverty, he stresses. For this reason – he adds in response to the children’s request for greater equality linked to climate policies – fighting climate change is in itself a struggle for a more equitable distribution. The pandemic and climate change – Draghi recalls – have helped push almost 100 million people into extreme poverty, bringing the total to 730 million. The climate crisis, the health crisis and the food crisis are closely related. To address all of these crises, we need to act faster – much faster – and more effectively.
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Guys, we are listening to you
We need to act now. I strongly believe that we have a lot to learn from your ideas, your suggestions and your leadership. Your pressure, I say it frankly, welcome. Draghi lends a hand to young activists, recognizing their commitment and value. In the final passage of his Youth4Climate speech, the premier underlined how the mobilization of young people was of great impact. You can be sure: we are listening to you, added Draghi.
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Young people, the most threatened generation
The premier’s speech all focused on giving relevance to the younger generations and their fundamental contribution. You represent – underlined the head of the government – the greatest generation of young people in history. About 3 billion people under the age of 25, most of whom come from low- and middle-income countries. This generation, your generation, is the most threatened by climate change. Global inequalities in terms of poverty, malnutrition, access to health services are there for all to see. You are right – Draghi told the boys – to ask for a sense of responsibility, to ask for a change.
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The sit-it of the boys of Extincion Rebellion
After the meeting, Draghi went to Mico in Milan for PreCop26. Not far away, a group of young people belonging to the international Extincion Rebellion movement chants slogans in a protest sit-in at City Life gate 2. At the center of the event stands a gigantic ostrich which symbolizes the action of governments that hide the truth in order not to change the economic system. Now, with a phrase by Bertold Brecht as a slogan, When injustice becomes law, disobedience becomes duty, they await the possible arrival of Greta Thunberg.
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