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Bay Area youth push for climate change
During California's climate action week and a global day of action Friday, hundreds of Bay Area elementary, middle and high school students marched for climate justice. KTVU's Amanda Quintana reports.
SAN FRANCISCO - During California's climate action week and a global day of action Friday, hundreds of Bay Area elementary, middle and high school students marched for climate justice in San Francisco.
The group is calling for specific measures, including stopping the "line 3" pipeline, passing the Reconciliation Act, the stoppage of oil drilling and the passage of the Green New Deal.
They chanted, "Ain’t no power like the power of the youth, 'cuz the power of the youth don’t stop," as they marched down Market Street.
"We need to tell and demand these politicians to take change and to take action now," said one student speaker.
The students were dressed in red, yellow and orange to represent the color of wildfires. There are currently ten major wildfires raging across the state.
"Just since 2020, six of the seven largest wildfires occurred in California history. Just this year we have experiences another deadly wildfire season, 2.35 million acres have burned so far this year," said Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The rally comes a day after Newsom signed a historic climate action law with the goal of "future-proofing" California. It commits $15 billion to tackling the climate crisis, including funding for wildfire and forest resilience and programs to address the drought, extreme heat and sea level rise.
"On the track we’re on, our kids are going to inherit a world with eight degree higher temperatures than they have today, we’re on that path," said Newsom.
In San Jose, young people are also playing a big role in the push for climate change.
On Friday, the city celebrated the one year anniversary of the first-in-the-nation California Climate Action Corps by working to create defensible space around Alum Rock Park to protect the area from wildfires.
"Certainly Governor Newsom has started something extraordinary, and we're doubling down on it here in San Jose and that is really leveraging the incredible energy and talents of our young women and men," said San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo.