TORONTO -- Calgary, a city steeped in Canada鈥檚 oil industry, was among the cities host to a group of youth-led protesters marching through the streets to join the global climate strikes on Friday.
Packs of people flooded the downtown area with colourful signs and chants, calling for a change in the way we are currently failing to respond to the climate crisis.
鈥淲hat do we want?鈥� came the cry through a megaphone.
鈥淐limate action!鈥� the crowd replied.
鈥淲hen do we want it?鈥�
鈥淣辞飞!鈥�
The demonstration was organized by Fridays for Future, inspired by teenage Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. Similar protests occurred all over Canada and the world as a whole, with protests from Australia to Germany.
The climate crisis affects everyone on the planet, but particularly young people, who are set to inherit a world that has been shaped by their parents鈥� actions.
As one young Calgary marcher told CTV News Calgary, 鈥渢here鈥檚 no Planet B.鈥�
Another marcher, Archie Sarjeant, told CTV News Calgary that he grew up in the city but hasn鈥檛 seen enough discussion about climate change until now.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 becoming an incredibly important voting issue,鈥� said the 30-year-old while holding a placard asking politicians to explain their position on climate change.
鈥淎nd if we keep going this way maybe we鈥檒l achieve actual change.鈥�
The Calgary protesters hosted a 鈥渄ie in鈥� on the steps of the Calgary Municipal Building, where participants collapsed on the ground. Photos of the prone figures were posted on Twitter, and among the participants was federal Green Party Leader Elizabeth May.
鈥淚鈥檝e never believed Albertans don鈥檛 care (about the environment),鈥� May told CTV News Calgary.
She was campaigning in Calgary that day to promote her plan for more public transportation, and has also said that a Green Party government would halt the production of combustion-powered vehicles by 2030.
She said it was important to 鈥渃ome together and plan for a future where the people who are working in the fossil fuel sector today are working in renewable energy tomorrow.鈥�
Other federal leaders have also spoken about their plans to tackle the climate crisis.
The NDP鈥檚 Jagmeet Singh has pledged to end fossil fuel subsidies and invest in renewable energy.
Justin Trudeau, leader of the Liberal Party, was the one to introduce the carbon tax, and says more action is coming, though details of what that is are unclear at this point.
Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer, on the other hand, has vowed to kill the carbon tax. However, he said he will review all business subsidy programs, including fossil fuel subsidies.
More marches are planned across Canada this week, including one in Toronto on Friday, Sept. 27.
