SCHOOLCHILDREN from Reading and Wokingham have ‘shown their stripes’ to raise awareness about the effects that climate change is having on the planet.
The youngsters came together for a Youth Climate Summit on Wednesday, June 21, to discuss actions they’d like their schools to take to combat rising temperatures.
The event, which marks Show Your Stripes Day, saw the children gather at the Select Car Leasing Stadium, home of Reading FC, to display the University of Reading’s climate stripes.
The vertical-coloured bars were created in 2018, by Reading and National Centre for Atmospheric Science’s Prof Ed Hawkins. They have no words nor numbers, showing the progressive heating of the planet through a single, striking image.
The blue and red stripes show clearly how global average temperatures have risen over nearly two centuries.
Prof Hawkins said: “The climate stripes featured on the most recent Reading FC kit, and at an event last season we had lots of youngsters design their own amazing strips that featured interesting climate change messages.
“Schoolchildren know more about climate change than ever before but it’s so important that they keep starting conversations about our warming planet. We need to listen to our children’s concerns about the future and take action against climate change now.”
The summit makes up part of Reading Climate Festival, and is a joint initiative delivered by Design Nature, Reading Climate Action Network, Reading Borough Council and the university.
The SCL Stadium was not the only place where the climate stripes were on display this week.
In Reading, a number of landmarks are set to be illuminated red and blue to showcase the visualisation.
Elsewhere in the UK, The White Cliffs of Dover and the Tate Modern chimney in London had the stripes projected onto them.
Bridges, towers and other large structures in the USA and Canada, including CN Tower in Toronto and Ben Franklin Bridge in Philadelphia, will also be adorned with the pertinent red and blue blocks.
Children up and down the country are being encouraged to show their stripes by downloading graphics online.
Show Your Stripes Day has been chosen as Let’s Go Zero’s national school’s day of action.
Let’s Go Zero, a national campaign uniting teachers, pupils, parents and their schools as they work together to be zero carbon by 2030, will provide resources and activities for schools to have meaningful discussions about climate change.
