Auckland students turn out in force at Aotea Square, demanding climate change action

May 24, 2019

Marcail Parkinson and Luke Wijohn spoke to 1 NEWS about the importance of the event.

School students around the country today have again skipped school to participate in strikes calling for climate change action.

In Auckland, organiser Marcail Parkinson told 1 NEWS the "main goal" of the strike was to call on the Government to "wake up and listen to what we're saying about climate change and to really implement policies that are legally enforceable and are actually going to make a difference."

Sophie Handford and Raven Maeder discussed what to expect for their second strike event.

Marcail said the students have four demands: To "stop use and mining of all fossil fuels"; "for the Government to declare a state of emergency due to climate change"; for "all parties to work towards a legally-enforceable and achievable Zero Carbon Bill"; and for the Government to "set a goal that we don’t go over 1.5 degrees."

1 NEWS reporter Imogen Wells was there.

Co-organiser of the Auckland strike Luke Wijohn called climate change inaction "a direct attack on Papatūānuku, on our land."

"It's a few older generations, the baby boomers, that are almost selling away our futures for a bit of profit," Mr Wijohn said.

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"We are not happy with [the Government]. We want them to wake up, to declare a climate crisis ... we think they're asleep at the wheel."

Strikes also went ahead in Wellington and Christchurch.

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