I am Greta: A Panel Discussion

By Gwendolyn Warren, Staff Writer

Hulu is now streaming “I am Greta”, a documentary directed by Nathan Grossman. It tells the story of eighteen-year-old activist Greta Thunberg, who has influenced the world to protest against climate change. On May 4, a panel discussion that took place on Zoom was held through the City of Santa Monica and Civic Action. The event was followed by a panel that included Lily Chertock (’21) and other student activists across the U.S. They discussed important issues regarding the environmental crisis. 

The movie begins with Thunberg refusing to attend school for hours and sometimes days to promote climate change awareness. These school strikes were a large part of Thunberg becoming a leader in the climate movement.

As Thunberg’s platform begins to rise in the documentary, the audience sees the everyday struggles she faces with aspergers and tells the world that it is a superpower that helps contribute to the fight against climate change. 

The documentary showcased Thunberg’s UN speech, particularly the famous, “How dare you!” that Thunberg voiced to many world leaders at the U.N. The passion in Thunberg’s eyes was used to show people that climate change is something to fear and there must be a stop to the crisis. 

During the panel discussion, there was a celebratory moment of Thunberg’s success and her widespread influence on the world. In the discussion, many points were made that highlighted the documentary, including issues of environmental racism, how to be involved in climate change and the role education has towards understanding global warming. 

Chertock explained how her involvement with climate change has impacted her advocacy on the community.  

“Samo had a day where it was so hot that they let school out. This was such a small way to be impacted yet it was so alarming, something that nobody was expecting to happen for it to become too hot in Santa Monica for us to be at school. I just want to advocate for those who have lost their lives to climate change and I want to prevent as many people from facing that fate as possible,” Chertock said. 

The panel discussion and the movie revealed that everyone can join the fight against climate change. Even though we are currently still facing a global pandemic, the crisis has not disappeared, and many can still contribute to stopping climate change. 

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