By Maha El Dahan
DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) – Greta Thunberg and around 30 other activists braved sub-zero temperatures on Friday in a protest calling for climate justice as the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting wound up in Davos.
The protesters chanted “What do we want? Climate justice. When do we want it? Now” and “Fossil fuels have got to go”, while Thunberg held up a sign saying “Keep it in the ground”.
Thunberg, who was detained by police in Germany earlier this week during a demonstration against the expansion of a coal mine, was in Davos after a Thursday joint round-table discussion with the head of the International Energy Agency.
While IEA boss Fatih Birol, whose agency makes policy recommendations on energy, insisted that the transition to net zero had to include a mix of stakeholders, Thunberg stuck to her stance against all new oil, gas and coal developments.
Thunberg and fellow activists have presented a “cease and desist” notice to oil and gas executives, which protesters brandished during the demonstration on Friday in Davos.
The oil and gas industry, which has been accused by activists of hijacking the climate change debate in the Swiss ski resort, has said that it needs to be part of the energy transition as fossil fuels will continue to play a major role in the energy mix as the world shift to a low-carbon economy.
In 2019, the then 16-year-old Thunberg took part in the main WEF meeting, famously telling leaders that “our house is on fire”. She returned to Davos the following year.
(Reporting by Maha El Dahan and Kathryn Lurie; Editing by Alexander Smith)
