We are having an impact! We are igniting the hearts of millions! Together we are making a difference. #SystemChange is happening, which is great news! Activism works! Keep doing what you’re doing because it’s building the pressure on leaders to act to stop our climate crisis!

At the end of the newsletter, you will see information on helping us choose upcoming global strike dates, using the “Fridays for U” App, and spreading your news and success stories.

First: the bad news.

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The deluge of frightening, disheartening, and frustrating news seems to increase by the day. We have before our eyes increasingly visible evidence of the climate crisis and environmental degradation, like the devastating fires throughout wide swaths of Australia and much of the Global South, the heartbreaking flooding in Venice and other Italian cities, and the crippling levels of air pollution in New Delhi.

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This is not a fictional horror film. This is our real-life climate breakdown.

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As we move toward the annual global climate conference, global carbon emissions are at a catastrophically high level and continue to rise. The gap between the emission targets and the reality are “glaring – and growing,” according to yet another alarming UN report.

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Despite the stark gravity of the situation, large parts of the world continue in business-as-usual mode and some leaders even deny the science demonstrating the links between the ongoing natural disasters and climate change.

What can we do against this?

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In response, we continue to strike each Friday in thousands of cities around the world, and we invite everyone to join us this Friday, November 29, for our fourth Global Strike, to show leaders that we need them to get out of their comfort zone, show courage, stand up and act.

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Greta Thunberg continues to stand up for scientific truth and to live in accordance with her values. She has hitched a ride back across the Atlantic Ocean to attend the COP25, which has been unexpectedly relocated in Madrid. She is sailing aboard the boat La Vagabonde with an Australian family and an expert British skipper. This is not a favorable time of the year for an Atlantic crossing, so let’s hope they arrive safely. They are aiming to reach Lisbon, Portugal around the beginning of December.

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November 29 and December 6

The fourth global strike will be held on November 29. It coincides with #BlackFriday and precedes the opening of COP25 in Madrid.

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We strike in order to send a clear signal to world leaders and climate negotiators that we are watching and expecting concrete action. Carbon emission rates need to fall sharply in 2020.

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More political action is needed right away to ensure safety for society, secure our health, prepare for what is to come, and create clean energy job opportunities.

On November 29, Australia will be holding “solidarity sit-downs” with firefighters and all people losing their loved ones, homes and livelihoods to protest the government’s denial and inaction regarding the catastrophic fires devouring and blackening our forests in many parts of the country, and also many parts of the Global South! Our Leaders #BlackFriday is unforgivably Black!

In Germany, ParentsForFuture, ScientistsForFuture, and EntrepreneursForFuture have collaborated to create informative material for the global strike, which might be of inspiration to others. Many others will focus on the BuyNothingDay!

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We already have over 3400 events (and growing!) for the strike on November 29, so we look to be set to have almost twice as many as in March.

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December 6 already has over 2400 events! And Madrid, Stockholm (Rinkeby), Santiago, and New York will ‘rock’ with deep strikes!

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Now for the good news! We are seeing steps for #SystemChange!

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Changing climate discourse, reinventing the narrative.

In the last few weeks, two separate dictionaries have recognized terms that have grown out of the climate movement as words of the year. They recognized the frequency and impact of these terms, and the ways in which their use is changing how society thinks about climate. They highlighted how these terms are dramatically ramping up the sense of urgency around the matter.

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First, Collins Dictionary named the term “climate strike” as its word of the year. A few weeks later, Oxford Dictionaries declared “climate emergency” as its word of the year for 2019. Oxford Dictionaries reported a hundred-fold increase in the usage of “climate emergency” and noted how it demonstrated a “greater immediacy” in the way we talk about the climate compared to more traditional terms. (The dictionary’s definition is “a situation in which urgent action is required to reduce or halt climate change and avoid potentially irreversible environmental damage resulting from it.”)

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News from around the world

Major legislation passed in New Zealand: New Zealand passed the watershed Zero Carbon Bill. “This is our Nuclear Movement!” proclaimed Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, in a direct reference to the country’s anti-nuclear protests in the 1980s. She thanked #ClimateStrikers for their excellent work in creating momentum for this new law!

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Late addition: Europe, 400 million people, Declare Climate Emergency!

Congratulations to us all! Nice work, nice pressure #VoteforMyFuture!

Many do not know it, but they have declared! Almost 1 billion in total! It is difficult to name one intelligent, wealthy government which hasn't declared!

'European Commission "to fully ensure all relevant legislative and budgetary proposals are fully aligned" with the 1.5-degree-Celsius target limit on global warming...'

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Increased climate awareness in Bangladesh: In mid-November, Bangladesh declared climate change to be a “planetary emergency” and called on the world to work “on a war footing” to combat it and reduce its impacts. Bangladesh is among the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. The motion calls on countries to step up their commitments under the Paris climate agreement and highlights that developing countries require assistance to build up resilience against climate-induced disasters.

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Cities from around the world unite: The C40 Mayors from 94 cities leading the fight against climate change, which altogether are home to nearly 300 million people, recognised the global climate emergency, joined by youth climate activists, representatives from labour, business and civil society.

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UK Labour makes important promises: In the UK, the opposition party (Labour) pledged they would delist companies from the London Stock Exchange if they were not taking adequate measures to tackle the existential threat of climate change to the planet.

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Major victory from European banking: Climate activists scored a significant victory when the European Investment Bank (EIB) voted to stop funding fossil fuel energy projects from the end of 2021.This decision came after many months of internal wrangling and a “marathon board meeting.” It is very significant for various reasons. First off, according to various analysts, the EIB’s fossil fuel financing has averaged more than EUR 2 billion annually. The largest portion of this funding has been going to gas infrastructure projects, which gas-friendly countries have claimed as a safe transition fuel despite the mounting evidence showing otherwise. With this new decision, these funds will now go toward renewable energy projects. Moreover, the bank’s decision sets a major precedent. Other players won’t be able to ignore this move. We want to see all public and private banks, pension funds and private investors follow suit and end the funding of coal, oil and gas in order to help tackle the climate crisis and protect the health of people around the world.

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Sweden sells bonds: Sweden’s central bank recently sold off bonds from Western Australia and Queensland and the oil-rich Canadian province of Alberta because it felt that the amount of greenhouse gas emissions coming from these regions were too high.

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Italian schools make necessary curriculum changes: Italy announced that it will make sustainability and climate crisis compulsory subjects for school children. State schools will begin incorporating the UN’s 2030 agenda for sustainable development into as many subjects as possible from September, with one hour a week dedicated to themes that include global heating and influence that humans have had on the planet. (We see this as an important development, though note that it is useless for children to study the climate if politicians and other decision-makers don’t listen to and act upon climate science. Perhaps politicians should be attending weekly climate lessons as well?)

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Are #GlobalStrikeForFuture dates important to you? Do you want to have input on when they will take place in the coming months? Have your say here!

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Fridays For U iApp-aApp: The latest version of the Fridays For U iphone and android app has a feature which allows strike leaders to send push notifications to app users that have subscribed to updates for a particular city or country. We would like to test this feature in a number of cities and countries now. If you are interested to try this out as a strike leader, let us know at Questo indirizzo e-mail è protetto dallo spam bot. Abilita Javascript per vederlo. , and we will provide access to the messaging console.

Petitions: please sign and share

FridaysforFuture requires all governments to Declare Climate Emergency and Act Now!

FridaysForFuture European Citizens' Initiative: Actions on Climate Emergency!

Fridaysforfuture is testing ActionNetwork.org as a tool to aid mobilisation for local strikes. ActionNetwork is a USA based system. Newsletters may be sent from the ActionNetwork FridaysforFuture system in the future.

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More system change and success stories please forward: newsletter@fridaysforfuture.org

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Happy striking, and thank you for all that you are doing!

Please take care of yourself. You matter.

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#FridaysForFuture

FridaysforFuture is a global movement

Recognizing the climate emergency &

Wanting a safe pathway under 1.5C!

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Everybody is welcome. Everybody is needed!

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Organiser News: November

Calendar Have your say 2020 Spring Census

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Upcoming strikes

1.November 29, 2019, Global Action/Strike For Future, estimate 3,500 strikes.

2.December 6, 2019, COP25, Chile, Madrid, New York and Stockholm.

3.2,300 weekly strikes worldwide.

2020 1st half global strike options

1.January, 22-24 World Economic Forum/Failure, Switzerland

2.February, 8, 2020, EU Ursula von der Leyen 100 day countdown End!

3.February, 14, 2020, Valentine’s Earth, Australia and NZ

4.March, 13 2020, March 15 one year anniversary.

NZ/Christchurch issue due shooting anniversary.

5.April, 3, 2020, Canada

6.April 13, 2020, Monday XR Rebellion start, plan to hold until May, 1.

7.April 22 Wed, 2020, Wednesday Earth Day Network,

50 year anniversary.

8.April 24 FFF USA have chosen this day, and will join April 22 also.

FFF USA plan to make a 3 day strike.

School holidays for NZ and Aust, NSW (not Vic, Qld, WA).

9.May 1, 2020, Friday, May Day Union demonstrations.

Often a ‘free’ day, earned by strikes 50 years ago. Maybe problematic with biased political connotations, and FFF independence.

10.May 14, Thurs, 2020, Pope Francis Reinventing the Global Educational Alliance.

11.May 15, 2020, Friday, Earth Strike. Switzerland strike announced!

12.Mid-June, 2020 Poland. Too far between large/global strikes.

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A note on your decision making:

We know that as activists, we have limited time and energy. We each need to figure out what we think is the best way to contribute to a movement. We subscribe to a theory of change that is centered around maximizing impact, and encourage activists to consider tactics that entail one or more of the following:

a.Having more people at the same time,

b.Lasting more days in a row,

c.Involving stronger displays of civil disobedience.

FridaysforFuture is unlikely to use stronger forms of civil disobedience, as we seek to maximize feature A (having more people at the same time), and calling for stronger civil disobedience would most likely shrink demonstration and strike numbers. Other Climate Justice movements—for example, XR—already employ stronger forms of civil disobedience. Therefore, we encourage activists to make decisions for themselves regarding what forms of activism they are in a position to commit to, and work with both movements if they desire.

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For more Organiser information, email: Questo indirizzo e-mail è protetto dallo spam bot. Abilita Javascript per vederlo.