Demonstrators take to the streets of Switzerland
Thousands of people showed their concern over climate issues in Switzerland on Saturday, with the goal of putting pressure on the negotiators headed for the climate conference beginning Monday in Paris.
Demonstrations took place in Bern, Geneva, Zurich, Luzern, St Gallen and Lausanne, with an additional protest scheduled for Ticino on Sunday and 2,300 events scheduled over the weekend in 150 cities around the world.
In Bern, parliamentarian Nadine Masshardt of the leftwing Social Democratic Party rallied around 1,000 participants on the square before the federal palace, saying: “We’re not alone – we’re part of a huge movement!”
According to Masshardt, people expect binding climate targets to be agreed at the meeting. And on a local level, Switzerland needs to ensure that it decreases CO2 emissions by 60% by 2030, and completely eliminates its dependence on fossil fuels by 2050.
In Geneva, more than 2,500 demonstrators marched to the Place Neuve, where they arranged themselves in the shape of a human heart to be photographed from above by a drone with a camera.
In Zurich, around 1,000 demonstrators gathered on the Helvetiaplatz, where numerous NGO’s had set up stands.
Around 10,000 delegates from 195 countries are expected in Paris on Monday to discuss a new worldwide climate accordExternal link on the reduction of greenhouse gases.
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