Fossil fuel giants 'throw people under the bus to profit', says Greta Thunberg in Davos

The Swedish activist also accused the participants of the Davos World Economic Forum of “fueling the destruction of the planet”, in an event held outside the official program, together with three other young activists, Helena Gualinga from Ecuador, Vanessa Nakate from Uganda and the German Luisa Neubauer.

In a panel with the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Greta Thunberg said the global energy industry would go as far as it could if there was no public pressure, adding that the sector would continue to invest in fossil fuels and “would throw people under the bus because of their earnings.”

The group of activists highlights the hypocrisy of CEOs of the oil and gas industry, who have long known about the disastrous impacts of fossil fuels. Activists say it's time to stop misleading people about climate crisis.

Oil company knew about the impact of its activity on global warming, but lied, says UN

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres accused big oil companies this Wednesday (18) of spreading a “big lie” about their role in global warming, days after the publication of a study on what the American giant ExxonMobil knew about this risk four decades ago. The research, published in the journal Science, revealed that the oil and gas multinational disregarded its own scientists' findings about the role of fossil fuels in climate change. 🤯

Cease and Desist

The four activists launched a few days ago, coinciding with the Forum, a petition calling on large companies to stop exploiting fossil fuels, a text that already has more than 900 thousand signatures.

called 'Cease and Desist', the document is aimed at fossil fuel CEOs and demands that they immediately stop opening any new oil, gas or coal extraction.

According to the petition, the fossil fuel industry:

• knew for decades that fossil fuels cause catastrophic climate change;
• misled the public about basic climate science and risks; It is
• misled politicians with misinformation, sowing doubt and causing delays.

'Cease and Desist' states that these activities must cease now as they violate the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, “their duty of care” and the rights of indigenous peoples. And he warns: if they don't act immediately, citizens around the world could take legal action.

Read also

What is the Davos World Economic Forum? How important is it?

The Forum is an international organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, responsible for organizing annual meetings that involve the participation and collaboration of various types of organizations and world leaders, both from the public and private sectors. The meetings are mostly held in the Swiss city of Davos and, as a result, are also known as the Davos Forum. Without a doubt, it is the most important event on the world economic agenda. Many important and famous people have been there, you know? From Nelson Mandela to Bono Vox.

Greta Thunberg, detained in protest, is the target of criticism on the networks and support in Davos

The arrest of activist Greta Thunberg, during a protest against the expansion of a coal mine in western Germany on Tuesday (17), is causing talk. On social media, there are people saying that it was all an act, exposing images in which the activist appears smiling at the moment of her arrest. On the other hand, Greta received support from former vice president of the United States and environmental activist Al Gore, during his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Check out!

Receive news and newsletters do Curto News by Telegram e WhatsApp.

Click here and download the app Curto News for Android.