Crowds of protestors gathered for a climate crisis march in Eyre Square on Friday 23 September.
Protestors included college goers, school students and members of the public, and attracted hundreds of on-lookers with their signs and chants.
“Friday’s are for the future” was a call used in particular and references a movement of the same name started by prominent Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg involving school students in the climate movement.
The protest was led by Malena Thren, the first-ever part-time Sustainability officer with the University of Galway Students’ Union.
She says this is not the first iteration of this protest, but with nobody at the helm, the turnout and organisation of previous protests would always be poor.
This time, there were over 50 protestors which was more than what she expected.
Other members of the Students’ Union Executive including Vice President for Education Joe Mee and Imogen O’Flaherty Falconer and other independent organisations pushing for solutions to the climate crisis were present at the protest.
The march saw representation from all walks of life. Long-time activist Geraldine said she started learning about the climate crisis 30 years ago.
“I used to have a table with leaflets on it so passers-by could see it…I read books which helped me learn a lot and followed the works of Green Peace and Friends of the Earth decades ago!,” she said.
Geraldine later joined Trócaire, who, according to her, was aware of the intense droughts third-world citizens were facing. She added, “the poor of the Earth are the people who are suffering the most”.
Another protestor at the march was first-time climate change protestor Liz Mole, who explained that she was “extremely anxious” for her grandchildren.
Scott Ryder, a 17-year-old activist, has been in the for over three years and expressed his gratitude for Greta Thunberg, “the people who don’t understand her shame her…but I’m grateful for her and her bravery.”
