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Swedish teenager leads Belgian students on seventh climate march

Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg has led a march of thousands of Belgian students who skipped classes for the seventh Thursday in a row to march through Brussels and draw more attention to fighting climate change.

The 16-year-old first addressed a European Union conference, chiding adults for their inaction in the face of such climatic global dangers.

She said youngsters are being forced to skip school and protest because adults are not addressing climate issues quickly enough.

Greta told the European Economic and Social Committee plenary session that “we are school striking because we have done our homework” on the dangers facing the Earth.

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, centre, during a climate march in Brussels
Greta Thunberg, centre, during the climate march in Brussels (Geert Vanden Wijngaert/AP)

The teenager has become her generation’s voice on climate change after inspiring students around the world to go on strike to express their anger and angst over global warming.

Also at the conference was EU Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, who said he was “glad to see that young people are taking to the streets for climate change”.

Demonstrators hold placards during a march for the climate in Brussels
Demonstrators hold placards during the march (Geert Vanden Wijngaert/AP)

“It can in fact bring change,” Mr Juncker said, notwithstanding the fact that Greta had chided his class of politicians for negligence in the face of such challenges.

Now Greta wants the adults to move immediately.

“There is simply not enough time to wait for us to grow up and become the ones in charge,” she said.

Demonstrators hold placards during a march for the climate in Brussels
Thousands took to the streets of Brussels (Geert Vanden Wijngaert/AP)

The march itself amid wintry sunshine gathered some 7,500 protesters in Brussels.

Thousands more were marching in large provincial cities.