Wildfires and deforestation tearing through the Americas, military clashes over hydrocarbons in the Mediterranean, droughts, polar caps melting – the destruction climate crisis seems to be intensifying by the day. Yet capitalist governments have done little to alter the course of this raging catastrophe that is altering the course of history and impacting the quality of life of billions globally. At the end of the day, saving the world isn’t a priority in a system ruled by those who prioritize profit over everything else.
But the situation with the climate is also radicalizing a whole new generation of young people who are ready and willing to take action to save people and the planet. Since 2018 the School Strikes for Climate/Fridays for Future movement has taken the world by storm over the past couple of years with millions participating across hundreds of countries. School students in particularly have played a heroic role in instigating mass protests and direct actions and even faced repression in places like India. There’s also been the emergence of groups like Extinction Rebellion, who have grown up around but not directly out of these actions.
How can the climate strikes win? What kind of strategy is needed to halt capitalism’s exploitation of the natural world? Can it be done on the basis of capitalism? What role do things like the trade unions, community groups and students have to play? Come discuss these questions and more!
How can the climate strikes win? One of 18 discussions at the Revolutionary Ideas Online Festival of Resistance and Socialism
Saturday 28 November
2-4 PM
Suggested reading:
What does Marxism have to say about the climate crisis?
The New Climate Normal: Capitalism is Killing the Planet
Eastern Mediterranean || Common Declaration Against Hydrocarbon Exploitation and War
