Synthese Scientists and Extinction Rebellion

Calling for action on climate change

             For decades, scientists have been studying the effects of global warming and raising the/ alarm about the scale of the crisis.  Now, they speak out to denounce the decision-makers’ inaction and join the/rest of the population in their fight to be heard.  The documents at hand include an article taken from The Scientist,/a column written by two academics, Claire Wordley and Charles Gardner for The Guardian along with the picture of a mural probably done / by Bansky, posted on hypebeast.com and they are all dated /2019.  They raise the following question: what can be done to force governments to act?

             Traditionally, the role of scientists/ has been to provide information and trust political leaders to take action based on their research. As indicated in/ The Guardian, their goal is to raise public awareness to current issues like the extinction of species and ecosystems and the/ rising threat of global warming. However, according to Julia Steinberger, an ecological economist quoted in The Scientist their role must now be /redefined and they need to be actively involved in public protest.

               As a result, scientists based in London have signed/ a document in support of Extinction Rebellion, a group whose goal is to denounce political inaction on climate change. Claire Wodesley and /Charles Gardner in The Guardian also point out that a number of scientists have become member of Extinction Rebellion which advocates non-violent civil/ disobedience that in the past was used by historical figures such as Ghandi or Rosa Parks. In addition, Banksy’s mural, which/ depicts a young girl holding the Extinction Rebellion logo featuring an hourglass within a circle. She  embodies the younger generation who also use/ civil disobedience to challenge the decision-makers’ inaction. Similarly, the Guardian underlines the fact that people from all generations and social/ backgrounds have joined the movement.

                The scale and urgency of the crisis should not be underestimated as Julia Steinberger states    in/ The Scientist.  And it is all the more urgent to force governments to take action as the oil and gas industry/ are still extremely powerful and have a great influence on policymakers as indicated in The Guardian. Banksy’s mural conveys/ the same message: now is the time to act, to use “tactics”such as activism and peaceful protest to achieve what needs to be done.

        Civil/ disobedience has become a way for scientists and the population in general to express their protests and to urge governments/ to face up to their responsibilities.

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