Warning on climate change

TENS of thousands of activists walked through Manhattan (曼哈頓), New York City (紐約市) on Sunday, warning that climate change is destroying the Earth.

They were in stride with demonstrators around the world whourged policymakers to take quick action.

Starting along Central Park West(中央公園西路), most came on foot, others with bicycles and walkers, and some even in wheelchairs. Many wore costumes and marched to drumbeats. One woman played the accordion.

Organisers said more than 100,000 marched in New York (紐約), including actors Mark Ruffalo and Evangeline Lilly. They were joined in midtown Manhattan by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, former US Vice President Al Gore and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.

They were marching ahead of the United Nations Climate Summit, when more than 120 world leaders convened to agree on a new global climate treaty by the end of 2015. However, no major agreement was made.

The New York march was one of a series of events held around the world to raise awareness about climate change.

In London (倫敦), organisers said 40,000 marchers participated, while a small gathering in Cairo (開羅) featured a huge art piece representing wind and solar energy. In Rio de Janeiro (里約熱內盧), marchers at Ipanema Beach (伊 帕內瑪海灘) had green hearts painted on their faces.

Celebrities in London including actress Emma Thompson and musician Peter Gabriel joined thousands of people crossing the capital’s centre, chanting, “What do we want? Clean energy. When do we want it? Now.”

“This is important for every single person on the planet, which is why it has to be the greatest grassroots movement of all time,” Thompson said. “This is the battle of our lives. We’re fighting for our children.”

In Australia (澳洲) the largest rally was in Melbourne (墨爾本), where an estimated 10,000 people took to the streets with banners and placards calling on their government to do more to combat global warming.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott was a particular target of the protesters. Abbott’s centre-right coalition has removed a carbon tax and has restricted funding for climate change bodies since coming to power last year.