Scoil Aonghusa CNS Pupils Strike for Climate Change

Scoil Aonghusa CNS pupils pictured at Mallow Castle for a climate change protest last Friday.

“Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.” Native American Proverb

Last Friday, staff and pupils at Scoil Aonghusa CNS took a few hours to stop and think about their environment and to appreciate and acknowledge the importance of the global call for climate action. The ethos of the community national school promotes a holistic approach to education, developing all aspects of a child, intellectually, physically, culturally, morally, and spiritually. The staff of the school recognise that children are the custodians of the future and it is important to respect and encourage their right to ask their communities to protect their world. Children have what seems an innocent view of the world, but it is this innocence and simple view of what is right that makes them wise and capable young people who can and will change the world. Senior classes at the school watched the TED Talk by environmental activist Greta Thunberg.  Please see Greta’s inspiring talk at www.youtube.com/watch?v= EAmmUIEsN9A&t =268s. Two pupils from 4th class prepared a presentation on Greta’s talk and spoke about what they learned at the Friday school assembly. 4th to 6th class then walked along the river to Mallow Castle to mark the call for global climate action. Environmentalist Professor Sue Christie, OBE, heard about the pupils’ efforts and said “The response of young people to the scientific evidence that climate change is a serious and urgent threat is the one thing that can give us all hope. The willingness of children to act for what they believe in, and change how they live to solve this major threat to their future, will change the way all of us live and think so that this crisis can be solved.  I’m so very proud of all of you, and truly believe that you will change the world for the better.”