UN on climate

The assembly discusses future climate plans

Mikaela Foehr / Asst. News Editor / The USD Vista

In the wake of worldwide climate protests, such as the one held on USD’s campus, the United Nations (UN) met in New York City to discuss its plans to face the problem of global climate change. While some countries pledged themselves to extremely progressive plans, others stuck to the status quo. China and India, two of the world’s largest emitters of carbon, reaffirmed their commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement, but expressed displeasure at the fact that the United States of America, another large carbon contributor, has effectively backed out. This was highlighted by the fact that President Trump only briefly stopped by the day-long summit, according to CBS News. Despite the lack of leadership by traditional global leaders, there were still many progressive pledges made by other countries. According to The New York Times, over 60 countries pledged to become carbon neutral by 2050, an achievement that matches the tone set by protesters on Sept. 20. A great deal of media coverage focussed on a speech delivered by Greta Thunberg, a 16-year-old climate activist from Sweden. Thunberg illustrated to the assembled ambassadors just how serious this issue was to her. “You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words,” Thunberg said. “The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us, I say, we will never forgive you.” Thunberg has also been very open about the fact that she has been diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, a fact that was used to mock her in the aftermath of the speech by some critics. Most notably, guest speaker on Fox News, Michael Knowles, referred to her as “a mentally ill Swedish child” and President Trump retweeted a video of her speech with the caption, “She seems like a very happy young girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful future. So nice to see!” Thunberg’s words, as well as the disparity of reactions to them, highlight the gap that exists between leaders and citizen activists at various levels across the globe. A gap that is beginning to close on our own campus through awareness efforts by students and policy changes by the school’s administrators.