100,000 expected for The Big One UK climate protest

Westminster’s failure to rollout effective climate policy, as highlighted in successive reports, will be the focal point of a four-day demonstration beginning 21st April. 

Attendees are expected to run the spectrum from Extinction Rebellion campaigners to NHS staff, social justice activists to teachers and scientists.

The events coincides with the four year anniversary of disruptive action that saw the British capital brought to a standstill by protestors in a bid to highlight the spiralling climate crisis. This resulted in the national Government declaring a climate emergency. 

‘The UK Government is failing to deliver the kind of wholesale action needed to avoid a full-blown climate breakdown,’ said Mel Evans, Head of Climate at Greenpeace UK. ‘That’s despite the stark warnings of ‘act now or it will be too late’ from the global scientific community.

According to many reports, up to 100,000 people are expected to participate. You can find full information on the protest and its schedule here.

Earlier this month, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published it synthesis report. This included stark warnings that the window to limit global temperatures to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels was rapidly closing. Experts believe this is essential to avert the worst of the environmental catastrophe, which – in the most extreme modelling – could pose a threat to the survival or many species, including humans. 

More recently, UK think tank Climate Change Committee unveiled a damning assessment of Downing Street’s preparedness for the changes to environment and climate already now underway. The summary labelled the country as ‘strikingly unprepared’ for the immediate and mid-term future, with a lack of effective policy in place to facilitate effective adaptation. Meanwhile, the 2023 budget, unveiled early March, has also been met with widespread criticism for falling short on areas like green finance, carbon capture, and clean energy transition. 

Image: Markus Spiske