Climate champion Greta Thunberg plans one year out of school

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, 16, speaks during a demonstration calling for action on climate change in Vienna, Austria on May 31, 2019. PHOTO: REUTERS

STOCKHOLM (DPA) - Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg is planning a break from school for a year to pursue her international campaign, sources have told dpa.

The 16-year-old has brought fresh attention to the issue by accusing current world leaders of failing young people by not doing enough to stop climate change, and leading a series of student walk-outs.

She is intending to take part in a UN climate summit in New York in September, and at the UN climate conference in Chile in December.

Last year, she attended the UN climate conference in Katowice, Poland.

After this school year finishes, she is planning to devote herself to her climate campaign full-time, the sources said.

According to the reports, which first surfaced in Swedish paper Dagens Nyheter, she is not concerned about her school progression and is planning to move to a senior school one year later than usual.

The timing was crucial, she said.

"It has to happen now. 2020 is the year we have to turn the emissions curve sharply downwards if we are going to keep global warming within 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius," she told Dagens Nyheter.

Since Ms Thunberg doesn't fly, she and her family were looking at how she can cross the Atlantic, possibly by ship, the sources said.

Ms Thunberg this week visited Vienna at an event hosted by Mr Arnold Schwarzenegger, the action movie star and former California governor.

The R20 Austrian World Summit is a networking event for cities and regions that have launched climate protection initiatives.

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