Climate Strike Online on 24 April: Friday’s for Future Kyushu online climate summit

Youths around the world are showing their determined quality. Unfettered by the coronavirus outbreak, they are bringing the Global Climate Strike online under the banner #ClimateStrikeOnline. Come this Friday, 24 April, one of those Climate Strike Online will be held in Japan, Kyushu, named the “Online Climate Summit in Kyushu”.

The digital march is set to begin at 17:00 Japan Standard Time, through the ZOOM video chat platform. It will include Fridays for Future organizations from various prefectures in Kyushu, namely Fridays for Future Fukuoka, Dazaifu, Nagasaki, Oita, Kumamoto and Kagoshima (collectively named Fridays for Future Kyushu).

【みなさんのメッセージ急募‼︎】

オンライン気候サミットin九州

24日金曜日16:00~の「オンライン気候サミットin九州」では、みなさんから集めたメッセージの写真を一枚の画像にして、オンラインサミットin九州のzoomの中で発表します！！！ pic.twitter.com/EBzYhT5CuS

— Fridays For Future Fukuoka (@fff_fukuoka) April 20, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought on lock downs and self-isolation throughout the world, including Japan. Gatherings of social nature are being cancelled, let alone events and marches of large scales. However, this has not shaken Japan’s Fridays for Future will to act for the climate and the environment.

26%: Japan’s greenhouse gas emission reduction target

Furthermore, Japan’s Climate Strike Online has a focus for this march.

The Japanese government announced on 30 March that they will aim for a reduction of 26%. However, this commitment is considered low when compared to, for example England’s 57% and Germany’s 55% pledges.

This march will be a call to ask the Japanese government to raise the reduction percentage to 45% or more. Only then can Japan be consistent with the Paris Agreement.

Program for the Climate Strike Online

Fridays for Future Kyushu will be leveraging on advantages of the online communication platforms to bring people together. (This especially facilitates the collaboration between various Fridays for Future around Japan.) It will also bring special programs to the march, including live Twitter updates, and a reveal of a collage of 200 messages from Kyushu residents.

There will be a screening of the documentary “Signs from Nature”, featuring the climate changes in Japan too (separate screening). After Fridays for Future Kyushu’s march ends at 18:30, it continues with Fridays for Future Japan events.