Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the Friday at the end of the last sitting fortnight, students around Australia took action and were part of the global student strike for climate change. It also occurred in my electorate. It also happened to be the last day of school term in Victoria. Hundreds of local kids in Castlemaine, in Bendigo and in Kyneton either protested locally or caught the train to Melbourne to be part of this action. I spoke at the rally in Bendigo and wanted to acknowledge that young people getting actively involved in social issues, in global issues, should be encouraged. Being part of a robust democracy means the opportunity to stand up and to speak up. Whether you're a politician protesting on the streets of Hong Kong or a student taking time off in the afternoon from school to protest about your local environment and climate change, taking action is a big part of democracy, and I want to acknowledge all the students in my electorate who took that step.

Their asks are simple, and I do wish—and committed to them—to put on record some of the comments that they made to me in the letter that they presented to me at the Bendigo rally. It starts with: 'There is no Planet B. We require immediate action. We are all very worried about climate change because the future affects everybody. We are in the midst of the biggest threat to human existence and, even if we do manage to survive, we need action now.' They express their concerns about this government 'opening the floodgates' and not being serious when it comes to fossil fuels and talking about a transition to cleaner, greener energy. They say that these are the reasons why they're taking part in the global climate strike on 20 September, together with millions of young people around the world, to ask for action.

This is a movement that is happening not just in my community but all over Australia and, we also know, all over the world. I was proud to nominate one of the young activists from my electorate, Harriet O'Shea Carre, to attend the United Nations Youth Climate Summit in New York during this same period. Harriet, who also came to our parliament to speak, helped lead the movement in my community.

We should encourage our young people to speak up and, when they speak up, we should listen. It is their future that is at risk when we talk. We should take more action on climate change.