Would you skip Fridays at school to protest for climate change at your country’s government? Greta Thunberg certainly would. 

Born on Jan. 3, 2003, Thunberg grew up in Stockholm, Sweden. She is a Swedish environmental activist, known for challenging world leaders to take action to fight climate change. 

When Thunberg was 8-years-old, she first learned about the climate crisis and was shocked that this was a problem that humans had to deal with. She made efforts to lower her carbon footprint by not flying since 2008 and has also become vegan. 

In August 2018, when Thunberg was 15-years-old, she skipped school on Friday to spend time protesting outside the Swedish Parliament. She wanted to call for action on climate change, holding up her sign, with the words: “Skolstrejk för klimatet” (School Strike For Climate). Soon after, other fellow students protested with her, and she became known around the world. 

In September 2019, Thunberg was invited to speak at the UN Climate Action Summit in New York City, New York, with the opportunity to speak with former U.S. President Barack Obama. Of course, she took a zero-emissions yacht with her father to arrive there, which took about two weeks. Her yacht, the «Malizia», was sponsored by German carmaker BMW as well as by the Swiss private bank EFG International.  

“I don’t care about being popular. I care about climate justice and the living planet… I don’t want you to listen to me,” Thunberg said while addressing climate change. “I want you to listen to the scientists.”

Because of her bold statements, Thunberg went viral for her speeches and her message. In about three months of time, more than 17,000 students in 24 countries had taken part in the Friday school strikes, with the new name, “Fridays For Future”. 

Now as an 18-year-old, Thunberg has since become a household name, winning awards like the 2019 Glamour Award for The Revolutionary and the 2020 Shorty Award for Best in Activism. 

On Oct. 16, Thunberg performed at a youth-led concert for climate action in Stockholm called Climate Live. She started off saying, “We are no strangers to love,” followed by a voice from behind that yelled, “You know the rules and so do I,” before the classic Rickroll kicked off. She belted out Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” in front of a large crowd full of excitement. 

This was very pleasing for fans to see, since her song and dance moves were a change from her fierce attitude with her push for climate change. Despite targeting high-profile figures, Thunberg herself is just a teen who wants to have fun as well.  

“I’m not that special,” Thunberg stated. “I can’t convince everyone. I’m just going to do what I want to do and what will have the most impact.” 

Photo courtesy of WIKIMEDIA COMMONS