May 16, 2019 - Energy & Climate

Greta Thunberg named one of TIME's "Next Generation Leaders"

Orion Rummler

In this image, Greta stands in a puffy winter coat and hat while leaning against a wall, with a bookbag near her. — Greta Thunberg. Photo: Michael Campanella/Getty Images

16-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was profiled in TIME's biannual list of "Next Generation Leaders," which will be publicly available on Friday.

The backdrop: In March, Thunberg led the largest and most widespread demonstration on climate change since the run-up to the Paris climate summit in 2014 and 2015. Organizers estimate that 1.6 million people — most of them students — in more than 100 countries participated.

“I believe that once we start behaving as if we were in an existential crisis, then we can avoid a climate and ecological breakdown. But the opportunity to do so will not last for long. We have to start today.”

— Thunberg in her TIME interview

The bottom line: "Thunberg’s main goal is for governments to reduce carbon emissions in line with the Paris Agreement, limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C over preindustrial levels," TIME magazine writes.

Go deeper: Thunberg tells EU lawmakers to focus more on climate instead of Brexit

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Greta Thunberg named one of TIME's "Next Generation Leaders"

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