Greta Thunberg was 11 when she stopped talking. She was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome and selective mutism, meaning she only speaks when she thinks it’s necessary. Since then, the 16-year-old Swedish climate change activist has been raising her voice on some of the world’s biggest stages, surrounded by thousands of people because the threat of climate change is one her generation can’t ignore.Her words, powerful as ever at this week’s UN Climate Action Summit in New York, were felt and shared on social media by young people around the world, millions of whom are striking in her footsteps this week as part of the global movement she sparked last year when she started skipping school to sit outside the Swedish parliament and call for action on the climate crisis. The teen has now become the face of a new generation determined to push their leaders to do more to save their future. She’s also become a prime target for climate science deniers. The story of how it all began is simple and inspiring for many activists, young and old.Last Friday, Sept. 20, kicked off the latest globally co-ordinated climate marches headed by Thunberg, with an estimated four million participants across 185 countries. Millions are expected to come out again this Friday: students stepping out of class, adults stepping away from work, and trade unions, businesses and other organizations supporting the action. In Canada, local organizers are planning dozens of strikes across the country. Thunberg will be attending Friday’s rally in Montreal.The massive scope of the movement and how much it has grown seems to have surprised Thunberg herself.“It’s just such a victory. I would never have predicted or believed that this was going to happen someday,” she said to The Associated Press after last Friday’s successful protests. “And so fast, only in 15 months.”Thunberg, in a Facebook post in February, said the idea of a ...
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