In her own words, Luisa Neubauer "never planned to be a climate activist". When she was 13, she learned about the greenhouse effectThe Earth's atmosphere traps heat and keeps the planet warm and habitable. Burning fossil fuels has increased this effect, causing global warming.. Irritated such a fundamental issue was "squeezed into a single geography lesson", she decided she must know more. And do more.

The youngest of four, Neubauer chose to study geography at university. She looked at the climate data and "couldn't believe what she was reading." We are halfway to doubling the pre-industrial levels of CO2Carbon dioxide. in the atmosphere, a key indicator of climate change.

"Humanity is creating an environment that's not safe for humans anymore", she says. It is an emergency and we need to switch to "crisis mode".

Governments promised action. In 2015, world leaders signed the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 2C. But the last six years have been the hottest on record. CO2 emissions are at an all-time high.

"Positive changes are slow," says Neubauer. "Too slow." But instead of giving up, she says we must turn our grief, fear and anger into a "source of energy". And take action.

"Generations have failed us. If we don't do this, they won't."

At the 2018 Climate ConferenceThe UN holds a Conference of the Parties (COP) each year to agree on international action on climate change. The next meeting, COP26, will be held in Glasgow next month. she met 15-year-old Greta ThunbergA teenage climate activist who inspired a mass environmental movement by schoolchildren in 2018, when she was just 15 years old. She has since spoken at the UN and been nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize.. The Swedish school student told leaders they were "acting like children" and "change is coming whether they like it or not".

A few months earlier, Thunberg walked out of class to camp in front of parliament. Her banner read "School Strike for Climate". Neubauer was inspired and decided to join.

On 15 March 2019, she led 300,000 German students on the first Fridays for FutureThe student movement is supported by many teachers and scientists, including 26,000 German-speaking academics who formed Scientists for Future. school walkout. By September, the movement had grown to 1.4 million in Germany and 4 million worldwide.

Her message: "Think we should be at school?" The "climate strike is the biggest lesson of all".

This year, she took her government to court, suing them for inaction on climate change. And she won, with a historic ruling that charged current leaders for failing future generations.

The media calls her the "German Greta", but Neubauer rejects talk of individuals. One protester is "inconvenient" but a movement is "hard to ignore". She wants everyone to be a climate activist.

For some, this means making greener lifestyle choices. UK polling shows nearly 60% of young people are vegetarian, vegan or want to be. The latest IPCC reportThe latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change declared "code red for humanity". said we must eat less meat and fly less often to avert a crisis.

"Every gram of emissions that is not emitted is good," admits Neubauer. But we are "more than consumers and shoppers". We are "political beings" who can work together to pressure governments.

Last month, a major survey of 10,000 young people in 10 countries showed a rising tide of climate anxietyThe fear of environmental doom is not a diagnosable condition. But a 2020 survey of child psychiatrists showed 57% were seeing patients distressed by the climate crisis.. Overwhelmed, sad and guilty, 45% of people aged 16 - 25 say the crisis affects their mental health and ability to function.

Neubauer says activism "empowers us" and turns this grief into hope. Now a judge for the Earthshot PrizeA global environmental award given out each year. , she dreams future geography lessons will teach how the climate crisis was "won by people like you and me".

Some say no, activism is a luxury. Not everyone has the time, money or energy to spend fighting climate change. Most people are just trying to get on with their lives. We elect politicians to make difficult decisions and it is not our responsibility to do their job for them.

Others say yes, doing nothing isn't an option. Luisa Neubauer argues activism doesn't mean studying all the research, going on marches and handing our leaflets. As friends, workers, teachers, students and voters, we can make others know that climate change is our top priority.