Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg accused the Davos Forum on Thursday (January 19th) of bringing together "
the people who most fuel the destruction of the planet
", deeming it "
absurd
" to listen to them.
"
We seem to be listening to them rather than the people who are actually affected by the climate crisis, the people who live on the front lines, and that tells us how absurd the situation is
," she said during a event organized on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum meeting in the Swiss ski resort.
Greta Thunberg was accompanied by three other climate activists: Ecuadorian from the Amazon Helena Gualinga, Ugandan Vanessa Nakate and German Luisa Neubauer.
They arrived in Davos with a petition launched this week calling for the multinationals to stop exploiting fossil fuels.
The text had gathered more than 870,000 signatures on Wednesday evening.
Those who put “profits above people and planet”
Davos is “
the place where the people who fuel the destruction of the planet the most, the people who are in the middle of the climate crisis, the people who invest in fossil fuels, etc.
“, she noted, accusing them of putting “
greed
” and “
short-term economic profits above people, and above the planet
”.
Read alsoDavos Forum: millionaires ask to be taxed more
“
Yet these are the people we seem to rely on to solve problems that they have proven, time and time again, not to be a priority.
»
“
These people will go as far as they can, and as long as they can while they get away with it.
They will continue to invest in fossil fuels, they will continue to sacrifice people for their own profit
, ”she said again.
Changes 'will come from below'
“
We seem to be listening to them, rather than the people who are actually affected by the climate crisis, the people who live on the front lines, and that tells us how absurd the situation is
,” she lamented.
“
The changes we need are unlikely to come from within.
I rather believe that they will come from the base
,” she said.
“
Without massive public pressure from outside, (…) they will continue to invest in fossil fuels, they will continue to sacrifice people for their own gain.
".
Second visit to Davos: "the house is burning"
"
The oil must stay in the ground
," said Helena Gualinga earlier this week in an interview with AFP.
“
We come from different places in the world, but we have the same proposition.
It's a call to say 'we're fed up!', fed up because we've said it many times, we need urgent action.
»
“
If you don't act immediately, be warned that citizens around the world will consider legal action to hold you accountable.
And we will continue to demonstrate in large numbers in the streets
, ”proclaims the petition, which copies the appearance of a legal notice.
This is not the first time that Greta Thunberg has come to Davos during the World Economic Forum meeting.
The 2020 edition was notably marked by his skirmishes with US President Donald Trump.
It's time to "
panic
" because "
the house is burning
", she hammered already at the time.
Custody and support of Al Gore
Earlier this week, she had gone to support protesters who opposed the expansion of a coal mine in western Germany.
This initiative earned him a few hours of police custody on Tuesday January 17, according to a police source, but the support for Davos of the former American vice president and environmental activist Al Gore who said Wednesday "
in agreement
" with his fight.
Climate is a hot topic at the Davos meeting this year.
On Wednesday, the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, has already called for the oil majors to be prosecuted, as the tobacco companies have been, for having hidden for years the information they had on global warming.
“
Some fossil fuel producers were well aware in the 1970s that their flagship product was going to burn the planet
,” he said in a speech where he denounced their “
big lie
”.
Symbolic presence of Fatih Barol, director of the AIE
The Swede was speaking during a conversation with other young climate activists and the director general of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol.
"
My presence here is a very important signal that I want to give to the world
," said the latter.
Fatih Barol on December 21, 2022 during a press conference at the European Commission.
JOHN THYS / AFP
“
Climate change needs more attention.
Unfortunately, attention to climate change is decreasing
,” he lamented, when much more investment in clean energy is needed.
