DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 18 (Reuters) – Greta Thunberg will meet International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol in Davos on Thursday, organizers said at a secondary roundtable at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting. Reuters.
The Swedish activist is due to meet Birol along with fellow campaigners Helena Gualinga, Vanessa Nakate and Luisa Neubauer, organizers said in a statement.
The IEA, which makes policy recommendations on global energy, had no immediate comment.
Thunberg was released by police on Tuesday after being detained along with other climate activists during protests in Germany.
“Yesterday I was part of a group peacefully protesting the expansion of a coal mine in Germany. We were roughed up by the police and then detained but released later that night,” she tweeted, adding: “Climate protection is not a crime. “
Former US Vice President Al Gore said in Davos that he agreed with Thunberg’s efforts in Germany and that the climate crisis was getting worse faster than the world was dealing with it.
“We are not winning. The crisis is still getting worse faster than we are implementing these solutions,” Gore told a WEF panel, highlighting the widening gap between those “old enough to hold positions of power and the young people of this world.” .
Thunberg, whose current whereabouts are unclear, attended the WEF meeting in Davos in January 2020, when she challenged world leaders, including former US President Donald Trump, to act on climate change, saying that “ our house is still burning’.
Climate activist Greta Thunberg takes part in a protest against the expansion of German company RWE’s open-pit Garzweiler lignite mine to Luetzerath, in Keyenberg, Germany January 14, 2023. REUTERS/Christian Mang
She has also participated in previous protests on the fringes of the gathering, which brings together business and political leaders in the Swiss resort for dialogue on topical issues.
Climate change is one of the main agenda items at this year’s meeting, which has already seen protests against the role of big oil companies, with activists saying they are hijacking the debate on how to tackle global warming.
Representatives of major energy companies including BP ( BP.L ), Chevron ( CVX.N ), Occidental Petroleum Corp ( OXY.N ) and Saudi Aramco ( 2222.SE ) were among 1,500 business leaders gathered there.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged those attending the World Economic Forum on Wednesday to make “credible,” responsible pledges to zero profit.
A social media campaign this week increased pressure on oil and gas companies, promoting a “cease and desist” notice sponsored by Thunberg, Nakate, Neubauer and Gualinga through the non-profit website Avaaz.
The petition, which has garnered more than 850,000 signatures, urges energy CEOs to “immediately halt the opening of new oil, gas or coal sites and stop blocking the clean energy transition we all so urgently need “.
He is threatening legal action and further protests if they don’t comply.
The oil and gas industry has said it needs to be part of the energy transition, as fossil fuels will continue to play a major role in the world’s energy mix as countries transition to low-carbon economies.
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Reporting by Maha El Dahan and Alexander Smith; Additional reporting by Noah Browning, Catherine Lurie and Jeffrey Dustin; Editing by John Stonestreet and Nick McPhee
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