Students tackle climate change issues

Clara McArthur, 17, of Canberra College, described Morrison's remarks as "ridiculous" and said students were using what they had learned at school to protest.

"We've been taught how incredible this planet is and how important it is to look after the environment, but it will not let us do anything.

"My friends and I are soon 18, we can vote in the next election and if he does not listen to us, it's ridiculous."

Miss McArthur said that every teacher and guardian she spoke to had been incredibly supportive of the strike. "I only heard praise," she said.

Zaki Sullivan, 10, said he was on strike because he felt that Australia should act now against climate change before more species disappear and that the number of natural disasters continues to increase.

"I do not want to live in this world," he said.

Zaki said that nature and the environment have always been a big part of her life.

"I love being in nature. I love camping, swimming and walking in the bush, like all Australian children. I want to live in the world I know now and it must be there as well." for future generations, "he said.

His brother Ayo, 8, said: "I am going on strike to make politicians think about the decisions they make and their impact on me.I can not vote yet, but I still have the right to have a future and a world who is fit to live in. "

The two boys, who attend Chapman Elementary School, said they wanted the government to commit to using 100% renewable energy by 2050.

A spokesperson for the ACT Education Directorate said that he valued the students' voice in the field of education and would not blame any student attending a rally, as long as he was supervised by helpers in "his actions as citizens of the world".

Iolo Cornthwaite, 11, also of Chapman Primary, said: "I would like the [government] listen to the 99 climate scientists who tell them in recent years that they must stop producing coal and adopt a 100% renewable energy.

Iolo said he was interested in the issue of global warming by learning that it was predicted that the temperature would increase by 1.5 ° C "because even a degree can harm our world for the rest of our lives."

His sister, Nia Cornthwaite, 10, was also on strike.

"I like school very much, but it is important. There will be no school in the future if the government does not listen, "she said.

Nia said she hoped that Australia would stop investing in coal mines like Adani and that it would continue to damage the Great Barrier Reef.

"If we destroy it, we will never be able to recreate it. We can not bring it back, "she said.

Shane Rattenbury, ACT's Minister for Climate Change, said: "Young people do not just want to stay there and watch this climate emergency unfold.

"As future leaders, they make their voices heard – and the message is clear."

The federal government must provide a clean and renewable future for all Australians, he said.