Hundreds of protesters join St Andrews climate strike

Hundreds of people marched through St Andrews, calling for climate justice, with school children among those showing their support for the campaign.

The march, organised by Climate Action St Andrews, started at the St Salvator’s Quad, culminating an hour later at West Sands.

Local politicians, including MP Stephen Gethins and MSP Willie Rennie, and University representatives, spoke to the crowd about the issue.

The protestors then stood side-by-side, in a line which stretched out of sight, along West Sands, falling silent for five minutes as they reflected on climate change.

One of the organisers, Léa Weimann, told the Citizen: “We started last year as part of the global strike for climate and we said we had to do something in St Andrews as well.

“There’s so much that can be done here. St Andrews is a seaside town. What does climate change mean for us and what can we be doing?”

The St Andrews strike was just part of a global movement, with thousands around the UK and millions around the world taking part.

This was not the first climate strike that has been organised by the group. In March, around 100 protesters walked through the streets of St Andrews.

But what is the message?

“The message is, firstly, we are here not because we don’t value our education or our future, but because we do care so much about our future that we want to participate in this,” Léa said.

“Our future is being stolen away from us and we have a right to stand up for it.

“We need to question what kind of changes we need on a political and systematic level, but also on an individual level. As a society, we need to be able to say that we are ready for change.”

While the protesters at the previous strike were mostly University students and children from local schools, more adults turned out to show their support at Friday’s strike, something Léa welcomed.

“It’s been cool to get more adults to join in,” said Léa.

For more information about the group, visit www.facebook.com/climateactionstandrews.