Greta Thunberg to skip 'greenwashing' COP27 climate summit in Egypt

Speaking at the London Literature Festival at the Southbank Centre on Sunday, climate change activist Greta Thunberg called out the United Nations climate summit in Egypt for being "held in a tourist paradise in a country that violates many basic human rights". The impending summit, also called COP27, is to be held next month. While promoting her book titled, "The Climate Book", the 19-year-old Greta Thunberg dismissed the climate summit saying, that it helps "people in power... to greenwashing, lying and cheating". Thunberg tweeted regarding COP 27: "We stand in solidarity with prisoners of conscience in Egypt & joined @copcivicspace petition urging Egypt to open civic space and release everyone arbitrarily detained ahead of #COP27 Sign the petition urging @AlsisiOfficial @Cop27P to #FreeThemAll". 

'The space for civil society is going to be extremely limited': Thunberg

Though the climate change activist attended the previous summit, COP26, held in Glasgow last year, she said she won't attend COP27 which is to be held at Sharm El Sheikh from November 6 to November 18. Speaking at the London Literature Festival, Greta Thunberg said, "The space for civil society is going to be extremely limited. It's important to leave space for those who need to be there. It will be difficult for activists to make their voices heard." Previously at United Nations climate summits, the main points of contention were limits on accreditation and attendance badges for activists and the fact that public demonstration is effectively banned in Egypt.

Thunberg's book contains explanatory articles from climate experts

Greta Thunberg's The Climate Book contains articles that are written by over 100 activists. They also contain notes from authors like Margaret Atwood, as well as scientists like Michael Mann and Katharine Hayhoe. When she was asked if she agreed with Just Stop Oil's campaigns, she said, "People are trying to find new methods because we realize that what we have been doing up until now has not done the trick. It's only reasonable to expect these kinds of different actions".