Thunberg << TOON burg >>, Greta (2003-…), a Swedish environmental activist, has worked to convince politicians to take action against climate change due to global warming. Global warming is an observed increase in Earth’s average surface temperature. As a teenager, Thunberg became known for her boldness in confronting adult politicians for their inaction on climate change. She has called upon leaders to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide. Such gases trap heat in the atmosphere, warming the planet’s surface. See Greenhouse effect.
Thunberg was born in Stockholm, Sweden, on Jan. 3, 2003. She was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at a young age. As a child, she showed an interest in environmental issues. She convinced her family to reduce their carbon footprint by becoming vegan and giving up air travel. Carbon footprint is a measure of the greenhouse gas emissions associated with human activities.
In 2018, at the age of 15, Thunberg protested for action on climate change outside the Swedish parliament, inspiring other student protesters. Together, they organized school strikes to demand action on climate change. In August 2019, Thunberg sailed across the Atlantic Ocean from Plymouth, in the United Kingdom, to New York City, in the United States, on a “carbon neutral” voyage. Thunberg sailed aboard a yacht that got its electric power from solar panels and underwater turbines. While in the United States, she addressed the United Nations as part of its Climate Action Summit. During her speech, she announced that she and a group of other children were filing a lawsuit against five nations not on track to meet their emission-reduction targets under the Paris Agreement. The Paris Agreement is a global treaty designed to fight global warming.
Thunberg is the author of several books on climate change activism. No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference (2019) is a collection of Thunberg’s speeches. Our House Is on Fire (2020), a memoir by Thunberg and her family, tells how Thunberg’s personal struggles led her to become an activist. Thunberg’s best seller The Climate Book (2023) explains how the climate is changing and calls on society to adopt effective strategies to slow climate change.
