#PayYourClimateDebt! Fridays for Future announces a nationwide climate strike for 13 November

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Fridays for Future is calling for a nationwide climate strike on Friday 13 November, in the midst of the COP31 World Climate Conference. Under the slogan #PayYourClimateDebt, actions are planned across Germany, including in Berlin, Hamburg, Würzburg, Halle (Saale) and Dortmund.

Following a summer in which the climate crisis was more palpable than ever before, the activists are calling on the German government to honour its commitments under the Paris Agreement and fulfil its historical responsibility by actually paying out the funds it has pledged to countries particularly affected by the climate crisis.

Nele Evers, spokesperson for Fridays for Future, explains: “This summer has shown us that the climate crisis is a reality; it is escalating before our very eyes, and we can all feel its effects. It is clear: we can no longer afford ‘business as usual’. Fair climate protection and climate adaptation are not just ‘nice to have’. They are not optional – they are vital for our survival! A government that fails to act decisively now – and this includes providing funding for the countries most severely affected – is failing in its responsibility and recklessly risking human lives! All negotiators must be aware of this at the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference. There is a great deal at stake and time is running out!”

Fridays for Future criticises the lack of concrete action to implement measures to comply with the Paris Climate Agreement. For example, billions have been promised to support, in particular, countries in the Global South and island nations – yet the majority of this money has not yet been paid out.

Yet these are the very countries that contribute the least to the climate crisis but are affected by it the most, Fridays for Future points out. Without financial support, they are at the mercy of the climate crisis and will literally go under, according to the activists.

Funding is needed for climate adaptation and climate protection to make these measures possible on a global scale. Germany can and must deliver, rather than merely making empty promises. The climate movement is calling on everyone to join them on 13 November whilst the negotiations are taking place in Antalya.

Friday at the Federal Administrative Court

The Leipzig group of Fridays for Future is organising a climate strike on Friday, 13 November, at 3.00 pm on Simsonplatz in front of the Federal Administrative Court.

Afterwards, the plan is to march through the city along the following route: Wilhelm-Leuschner-Platz – Peterssteinweg – Markt – Richard-Wagner-Platz – Ring – Goethestraße – Augustusplatz. The march is then set to end at Johannisplatz.