Motion to recognize climate change emergency passes unanimously in St. John's

A motion calling for climate change to become a priority for the City of St. John's passed unanimously at a council vote Monday night.

Coun.Ian Froude presented themotion, stating that the city should officially affirm a climate change emergency.

It was paired with a petition signed by members of Social Justice Co-operative N.L. and Green New Deal N.L., two local activist organizations.

The official title of Froude's motion was "Establishing Climate Mitigation and Adaptation as a Strategic Priority of the City of St. John's," and it included relevant information about the realities of climate change. The motion drew a considerable crowd in the public gallery.

'I think this is huge'

"The motion ensures that we, on an urgent timeline, have a plan in place with clear targets of 2030 and 2050 around our emissions," said Froude.

"There is no detailed sustainability plan currently in place and that's one of the actions that comes out of this motion."

Coun.Wally Collins said the city can do more to reduce its carbon footprint.

"I'm here nearly 15 years now. We are out there doing a lot toward this but, like you said, there's still room for improvement," he said.

City councillorsweren't the only ones in the room who supported the motion.

Alice Ferguson-O'Brien, a 15-year-old student at Holy Heart High School who co-organized the massive #FridaysforFuture march in St. John's last month, was in the audience for the proceedings.

"I think it is huge. We are going to be so disproportionately affected by this compared to any of the other generations that were here tonight. It affects us, it's going to affect our children and our adulthood more than anyone else's," she said.

"Youth really do care about climate change."

Hannah Baker an 18-year-old student at Memorial University was there as well.

"It was really amazing just hearing everyone stand up and say, 'I'm definitely going to support this,' and seeing everyone support it," she said.

"It was definitely great knowing that council believes in what we stand for and are going to take action against climate change."

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