Youth and adults rally in Idaho Falls to bring awareness to climate change
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IDAHO FALLS — “Climate change is real, you know — come on, let’s go,” is what roughly 30 people chanted at the Broadway Bridge on Wednesday as part of a climate change rally.
Sunrise Movement South East Idaho and Idaho Falls Supports Youth Climate Action rallied in Idaho Falls in support of policies to address climate change.
“I’m disappointed that we don’t have 300, but the 30 that we have are committed and they’re here, and I’m so proud of them all,” event organizer Rev. Lyn Stangland Cameron told EastIdahoNews.com.
Local youth, adults and their families were invited to attend the rally.
“I just want people to respect … the planet because no one really has respect for it anymore,” 14-year-old Compass Academy student Shae said.
The rally featured speakers such as Dr. David Adler and Ph.D student Veronika Vazhnik. They spoke about climate change and how the United States should address it.
“When I think about climate change, to me it’s about solidarity with the people that are living currently that will be living in the future, and also making my choice right now. If I know that the carbon footprint of a meat-based diet is higher than vegetarian, I have to act,” Vazhnik said.
Adler said people need to call on local and national leaders to combat climate change.
“America needs to regain its role as a leader on the world stage in combatting climate change. We need to re-enter the Paris Accord,” Adler said. “We need to embrace all elements of the Green New Deal.”
Adler is the president of the Alturas Institute. According to the organization’s website, its mission is to promote the Constitution, gender equality, and civic education.
Idaho Falls Mayor Rebecca Casper also spoke at the rally. She shared with those in attendance a resolution the City Council may vote to adopt Thursday to pledging to maintain a carbon-free power grid.
“I wanted you to know we may well be the only city that owns 100 percent carbon-free (energy),” Casper said.
She said she does not necessarily hold the same political beliefs as the organizers of the rally but just wanted to be friendly and share the resolution with people who would appreciate it.
“I just thought that there was a nice harmony to it that the council happens to be considering something in the very week that they’re expressing their concerns,” Casper told EastIdahoNews.com. “I thought that on my way to my 5:30 appointment I would just stop by and share that very quickly.”
Wednesday’s rally in Idaho Falls is one of many across the country. On Friday, young people gathered at the Idaho State Capitol and at the Pocatello City Hall to participate in climate-related rallies championed by the 16-year-old Sweedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.
An estimated 60,000 people gathered in New York City on Friday as part of the protests, while London, Berlin and Melbourne, Australia, each saw 100,000 protestors. according to The New York Times.
“I want young people to know that there are people in Idaho Falls who care, that they’re not alone in their living rooms or in their bedrooms when they start to worry about what’s coming up in the future,” Stangland Cameron said.
