2018/14: Should school students take strike action over climate change?
Introduction to the media issue
Video clip at right: On November 29, 2018, ABC News televised a report detailing some of the strike action taken by Australian schoolchildren protesting against climate change.What they said...
'We've got involved because at this stage we can't vote, we're not politicians and we want to make a difference'
Jean Hinchliffe, 14-year-old student from Fort Street High
'The best thing you'll learn about going to a protest is how to join the dole queue'
Resources Minister, Matthew Canavan
The issue at a glance
On November 30, 2018, thousands of students from hundreds of schools across metropolitan and regional Australia struck from school to demand their politicians act urgently to stop further climate change. Their protest focussed on the Adani coal mine.
Thirty major strike events took place across the country, in every capital city and almost 20 regional centres including Townsville, the Whitsundays, Inverell, Coffs Harbour, Ballarat, Newcastle and Bega. Instead of going to school, students assembled at their nearest Parliament House or Federal MP's office.
Some strikes had occurred on previous days.
The strikes were organised by a loose coalition of students titled 'School Strike 4 Climate Action'. The 'School Strike 4 Climate Action' movement was inspired by 15-year-old Swedish student, Greta Thunberg, who struck from school to protest about the impact of climate change on her country and the world.
The Australian students' actions met with a mixed response. While some politicians, such as the Greens' leader, Adam Bandt, congratulated them on their environmental awareness, others considered the students misguided and ill-informed. The Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, and the Resources Minister, Matthew Canavan, condemned the student strike and urged the protesters to remain at school.