#FridaysforFuture is a people's movement to strike from school every Friday, following the call from the inspiring 16 year old Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg. The movement aims to send a message to governments, at all levels, that immediate action on climate change and global warming is critical.

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As college students, we recognize that striking during primary and secondary school is much different than striking at a university; high school students are required to attend school, whereas we pay to be here. With that in mind, we are calling the UMD community to gather on McKeldin Mall on Fridays at 4PM to show the administration that we support even more ambitious action to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

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We applaud the efforts the University of Maryland has taken to reduce its emissions thus far, such as being the first university to sign the Cool Food Pledge and committing to carbon neutrality by 2050. However, in light of the most recent scientific findings by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that strongly recommends limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial temperatures by 2030, we are demanding accelerated action. Climate change is a nonpartisan issue. The effects of further atmospheric warming will be detrimental across the the world, especially for lower-income communities who will have more difficulties adapting or relocating. In Maryland, those living on the Eastern Shore are already experiencing sea level rise and flooding. This is just the beginning of the disastrous effects of climate change for the state of Maryland.

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We are mobilizing to stand with everyone who is currently or will be affected by climate change, rising sea levels, increased droughts and floods, food shortages, and record heat waves.

We are mobilizing to guarantee faster action is taken to address global warming, an international security threat.

We are mobilizing to remind our communities that we have hope for a safe future climate.

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“It is still not too late to act. It will take a far-reaching vision. It will take courage. It will take fierce, fierce determination to act now, to lay the foundations where we may not know all the details about how to shape the ceiling. In other words, it will take cathedral thinking. I ask you to please wake up and make changes required possible. To do your best is no longer good enough. We must all do the seemingly impossible.”

~ Greta Thunberg

Climate Activist and Founder of the School Strike Movement