Climate Change Creates Protests

During the fall of 2022, as the United Nations Climate Summit drew near, an unusual increase in climate activists hit the country, now armed with soup cans, paint and more unusual tactics. Many are now questioning if they are going too far. 

The most viral showcase of these protests occurred on October 14th, as two protestors wearing ‘Just Stop Oil’ branded shirts hurled tomato soup at Sunflowers, a famous painting from renowned artist, Vincent Van Gogh. Subsequently, the protestors glued their hands to the wall of the gallery while declaring, “What is worth more, art or life? More than justice? Are you more concerned about the protection of a painting or the protection of our planet and people?” This is one example of a more radical environmentalist movement, headed by the foundation Just Stop Oil. 

Despite just starting in February this year, Just Stop Oil is a far-spanning collective. It includes people in countries from the United States, Australia, Sweden, France, Italy and many more European countries. It even has an international headquarters. The demands of its many activists are stated clearly, an immediate halt to all future licensing, exploration, development, and production of fossil fuels within the UK. While this goal remains localized to the UK, the group has big dreams hoping to continue working on stopping fossil fuels across the globe. However, the root of Just Stop Oil’s controversies comes from how they hope to achieve this goal, their protests. From tossing soup and paint on paintings or buildings, to blocking major highways, protestors have been seen getting arrested and causing major disruptions to spread the message. These events as a whole have ignited global debate over how protests should be done. Is any press good press, or are these tactics causing more damage to their message? Emma Zheng, president of Northwest’s Environmental Club, explained, “I think doing these sorta radical protests that aren’t really furthering the issue that much is definitely detrimental to the movement’s public image. I think since part of the environmental movement is being conscious of the environment and how humans have impacted it in the present and in the past, doing something that is not conscious of how the environmental movement is perceived is hypocritical.” This sentiment has made Just Stop Oil a controversial force in the environmental movement. Alongside this, many people have brought up criticism of their goals. The demand for the end of fossil fuel harvesting is simple on paper, but many argue that the consequences are far more extreme than realized. 

Hydroelectric, wind and solar are often considered the main forms of renewable energy but many argue about their efficiency. Despite the environmental gains, the requirements and maintenance explain why renewables only make up around 30% of the world’s electricity. With this in mind, some have considered an interesting idea– making the fossil fuel industry less destructive. Northwest’s environmental ecology teacher Nancy Duncan explained, “It is not about the burning of coal, it is the emissions of coal. So if we would reduce emissions from the coal, and I get that coal is as cheap as it comes for energy, however, if we put more regulators and filters on our industry we could reduce a ton of the emissions, enough to make a change.” This is one option that many argue deserves much more regulation as a more achievable goal for activists, especially with the dependency of the world on fossil fuels. While many believe that future forms of renewable energy will fill the global need, the current requirements simply can not meet the demands of organizations like Just Stop Oil. 

So what does this mean for the future of climate change activists? Many argue that the Just Stop Oil protest has illuminated many important issues that urgently need to be addressed. While the cries of these organizations may ultimately be seen as negative by many, it shows a dire need for support for unheard-of solutions, from coal filtration to reductions of fossil fuel use to even simple infrastructure changes. Northwest student council member Christian Hollister said, “We all can do our little bit about recycling our bottles and making it better for ourselves, but at the end of the day one person isn’t going to change the world and the biggest thing we can do is pressure our governments’ to accept solutions and to help fight this problem on our behalf.” For those interested in discussing climate change or becoming climate activists, local communities such as Northwest’s Environmental Club are available for students.