Climate activists hold last Friday rally in Sudbury

Fridays for Future is an international movement of students who sometimes skip Friday classes to rally for action on climate change.

April 11 marked the last rally in Sudbury, as the youth are moving on with their futures and education, but they hope the community continues the important messaging surrounding the climate crisis.

Sophia Mathur, a youth climate change activist, led a chant for change. Mathur started the Fridays For Future rallies in Sudbury seven years ago, inspired by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.

“I always felt like there was no real organization or place for youth to reach out -- it all felt like lobbying campaigns run by adults until Greta came out,” Mathur said.

“She started talking about Fridays for Future and talking about missing school and talking about what it felt like to be a youth and I felt so connected. And I really wanted to start that here in North America and start doing these strikes here in Sudbury.”

Youth in attendance on Friday said they hope people keep the spirit of the rallies alive.

“I believe that climate change is one of the biggest issues facing humanity,” said climate change activist Sam Sweet.

“Protesting and civic engagement is a very effective way of getting change done. It’s better than, for example, commenting online. Commenting online is not as effective as things like boots on the ground.”

Also in attendance Friday was the Coalition For A Liveable Sudbury, with a message that local efforts matter and that every action taken lowers the impact of climate change.

“Canada is the 12th largest emitter of fossil fuel pollution in the world,” said coalition chair Naomi Grant.

“Cities account for 70 per cent of fossil fuel emissions, so what we do in our cities really matters. Cities make decisions about some of the top sources of pollution.”

The youth involved in Fridays For Future said that while it was the last rally in the city, they hope young people will find other ways to express climate anxiety and demand action on the climate crisis.