Meet Licypriya Kangujam, the 12-year-old Indian activist protesting at COP28
At the pivotal summit of COP28, a 12-year-old climate justice activist named Licypriya Kangujam grabbed eyeballs (and applauses!) as she held a sign above her head that read, "End fossil fuels, Save our planet and our future." Hailing from Manipur, this young hero has been actively contributing to the fight against air pollution and advocating for climate change education in schools.
Kangujam is the founder of The Child Movement
This young prodigy is the founder of The Child Movement, an organization that aims to raise awareness by tackling climate change and natural calamities to protect the environment. As per a report by BBC, she raised funds with her father for the victims of the massive earthquake that jolted Nepal back in 2015. In India, she has been campaigning for different environmental challenges.
She has designed a 'survival kit' to curb pollution
Kangujam's list of achievements and contributions keeps getting better as reportedly, she has even designed "a survival kit for the future" called Sukifu device to help the country battle against air pollution. With her ongoing fight against climate change, she is seeking more support and attention from Indian leaders, believing it is high time they acted to protect our future.
The world compared her with Greta Thunberg
When compared with Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, who is also known for challenging global leaders to take action against climate change, Kangujam told BBC that although they have similarities, "I have my own identity, story." Not only that, the young activist even shared that she had already started her movement to fight climate change before Thunberg.
'We are two good friends' and 'respect each other'
Both Kangujam and Thunberg attended the UN climate change conference in Madrid back in 2019. Speaking about her relationship with the latter, Kangujam said that the two are "good friends" who "respect each other."
What is Kangujam protesting against at the COP28?
Kangujam took to the stage at COP28 to deliver a speech as she protested against the use of fossil fuels. OP28 Director-General Ambassador Majid Al Suwaidi reportedly said he was impressed by the youth's zeal at the summit and asked the audience to applaud Kangujam once more. She later even shared the video of her protest on X.
She was detained for 30 minutes after her protest
In the post shared on X, the climate justice activist revealed that she was detained for over 30 minutes after her protest at COP28. "They detained me for over 30 minutes after this protest. My only crime - Asking to Phase Out Fossil Fuels, the top cause of the climate crisis today. Now they kicked me out of COP28," she posted on the platform.
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'Gross violation and abuse of Child Rights': Kangujam
Post her detainment, Kangujam's badge was ceased and she was kicked out of the conference. "What is the reason to cease my badge for protesting against fossil fuels? If you're really standing against fossil fuels, then you must support me and you must immediately release my badges. This is a gross violation and abuse of Child Rights in the UN premises," she tweeted.
'I will come back stronger than before,' she posted
Kangujam also shared on X that this incident is "an attempt to silence" her voice. "You can stop me from entering #COP28UAE but you can't stop my spirit. Trust me, I will come back stronger than before," she added to her series of tweets.
