ORGANISERS of Brighton’s climate change march have hailed it as an “absolutely fantastic” success, writes Carly-May Kavanagh.

An estimated 15,000 people in more than 60 towns and cities campaigned for action on climate change and in Brighton hundreds of students took to the streets last Friday, urging the Government to take urgent action on climate change.

Jake Woodier, a 26-year-old campaigner for UK Youth Climate Coalition who is based in Brighton, said: “The number of people who turned out shows how much passion and energy there is among people for the Government to act urgently and radically about climate change.”

A number of schools criticised students missing school to join the protest. Cardinal Newman Catholic School said they would not authorise any student absence to attend the protest, and that their geography curriculum teaches students about climate change, whereas Blatchington Mill School had concerns about the coordination of the protest and student safety.

Jake went on to talk about the next protest, which is planned for March 15 and will be part of a globally coordinated day of action.

He thinks a long-term approach is needed, saying: “Missing out on one day of learning is a far better choice to take than potentially not having a future to look forward to.

“A lot of the commentary has been about missing out on school and not getting an education for jobs in the future.

“But the stark reality is with our current trajectory that future doesn’t exist.

“It’s very appropriate for students to take action now to ensure they have that future.”

Tom Eames, an 18-year-old student at Bhasvic, said his college were letting people attend the protest but did not actively condone it, and that at least a couple of hundred people from the college attended.

He said: “It’s one of the biggest issues that our generation is going to have to face and a lot of people our age don’t feel it’s given enough coverage.

“I think coming together shows we’re not alone and gives you peace of mind that we are actually doing something towards keeping the planet healthy.”

Tom’s not worried about the response from Bhasvic though – he said: “What’s the worst that the school can do compared to the ramifications that global warming is going to have in the next couple of decades to century?