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Scarlett Westbrook
Born (2004-07-08) 8 July 2004 (age 20)
Birmingham, U.K.
Occupations
Movement

Scarlett Westbrook (born 8 July 2004) is a British climate justice activist and journalist.

She is noted for her work in climate and education policy, and was the youngest regular policy writer in Parliamentary history.[1] She is a spokesperson and coordinator with the UK Student Climate Network, head of political engagement at Teach the Future, a prominent figure in the Fridays for Future movement,[1][2] and a spokesperson for Labour for a Green New Deal.[3]

As a journalist, Westbrook has written for The Independent,[4] gal-dem,[5] the Metro[6] and i-D.[7]

Early life

[edit]

Westbrook grew up in Birmingham. She was the youngest person in the world to obtain an A Level in Government and Politics, which she self-taught in 2018, aged 13.[8][9] Westbrook rose to prominence for journalism discussing Brexit and youth political engagement, beginning in December 2018 with an article that tackled the underrepresentation of youth in UK politics.[8]

Climate activism

[edit]

Beginning in 2019, Westbrook became involved in climate justice activism. She co-organised Birmingham's first school strike for climate action,[10] before joining the UK Student Climate Network as a coordinator for community engagement, political outreach and organising around the Green New Deal.[11] She helped to organise Birmingham climate strikes in March and May 2019,[12] writing about the protests in The Independent ahead of the May global climate strike.[13] She continued to organise climate strike marches in Birmingham, London and across the UK.[14]

Westbrook became involved with the daughter organisation of the UK Student Climate Network, Teach the Future, and was appointed as Head of Political Engagement.[15] Through Teach the Future, Westbrook authored the first ever student-written bill, the English Climate Emergency Education Act.[16] In February 2020 Westbrook organised and spoke at the Parliamentary Reception for the English Climate Emergency Education Act,[17] receiving praise from MPs across the House.

In November 2021, the English Climate Education Emergency Bill was presented to Parliament by the MP Nadia Whittome.[18][19][20][21][22] Westbrook was interviewed about this first reading of the bill by i-D Magazine, stating "By starting with climate education, and by starting with decarbonising schools, we're creating a legacy of climate justice. That means we can continue action, and it's sustainable, and continuous, and, hopefully, better for education."[23] The bill is set to have its second reading on 6 May 2022.[24]

Westbrook has appeared at high-profile events and on national television, including an interview in 2019 on BBC Breakfast alongside Greta Thunberg, discussing the Global Climate Strike and the Green New Deal. She was also interviewed by ITV to discuss the petition for the leaders of the major political parties to hold a televised debate focused on the climate crisis ahead of the 2019 General Election, which she helped to launch as a spokesperson for the UK Student Climate Network.[25] She said, "We can't really be guided by what's deemed to be politically possible, when we need what's scientifically necessary. Politics by definition is the process by which conflict is resolved and this is arguably the biggest crisis we've ever faced."[25] In response, Channel 4 held the 'Emergency on Planet Earth' debate of party leaders on 28 November 2019.[26] This was the first ever party leaders’ debate focused exclusively on climate change in the UK.[27]

In 2020, Westbrook headlined the International Women's Day march led by Care International in London, where she outlined the links between climate justice and justice for women, especially those living in the Global South.[28] She was the youngest-ever headline speaker at a Care International International Women's Day mobilisation.[29]

Westbrook appeared again on BBC Breakfast on 25 February 2020 to introduce the Teach the Future campaign.[30] In June 2021, Westbrook was interviewed for Sky News about climate anxiety and her research that found that only four percent of students felt they knew enough about the climate crisis. She said "We need the knowledge to be able to deal with this post-climate breakdown world that we're going to be entering, as we exit university and schooling and into the workforce."[31]

In July 2020, Westbrook spoke at the Children's Media Conference[32] and was named as one of Greenpeace's 30 Under 30 climate activists,[33] and on 23 September 2020 she won the Institute for Public Policy Research 'Big Ideas' policy event.[34] She went on to be the youngest person ever longlisted for the Merky Books writing prize in December 2020, and in February 2021 she became the youngest ever recipient of the Women of the Future Young Star award.[35] In November 2020 she was named as one of Forbes Top 100 UK Environmentalists.[36]

In 2021, Westbrook received the prestigious Diana Award for her journalism and environmental activism[37] and was named 'one of the UK's most high profile youth activists' by Sky.[38]

In November 2021 Westbrook attended COP26 in Glasgow, and her subsequent column 'Young people like me have made history this COP26 'youth day' – now it's your turn' in the Independent[39] was featured in The Week's list of best opinion columns.[40] Ahead of the conference, she was profiled in The Observer New Review,[41] the Evening Standard,[42] and National Geographic.[2]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Olivia Laing (17 October 2021). "Gen Z on how to save the world: young climate activists speak out". Archived from the original on 10 May 2022. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
  2. ^ a b Simon Ingram (1 November 2021). "26 Changemakers Fighting for the Planet". Archived from the original on 9 June 2022. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
  3. ^ "Labour for a Green New Deal". Labour for a Green New Deal. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  4. ^ "The Independent:Scarlett Westbrook". The Independent. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  5. ^ Scarlett Westbrook (27 May 2020). "A whole new world: four writers and activists share their visions of utopia". gal-dem. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  6. ^ "The Metro: Scarlett Westbrook". The Metro. 20 April 2022. Archived from the original on 24 October 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  7. ^ "i-D: Scarlett Westbrook". i-D. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  8. ^ a b Scarlett Westbrook (21 December 2018). "I'm 14 years old and Brexit is already affecting my life. Why won't people listen to me?". The Independent. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  9. ^ "Children's Media Conference: Scarlett Westbrook". Archived from the original on 17 August 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  10. ^ Rakeem Hyatt (30 May 2019). "'Why we skipped school' – meet the Birmingham children protesting for climate change". Archived from the original on 14 September 2021. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  11. ^ Emma Loffhagen, Ghazal Abbasi, Alex Goldsmith, Radhika Aligh (29 October 2021). "Gen Zero: Meet the next generation of climate campaigners – Scarlett Westbrook". Archived from the original on 8 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ "'Why we skipped school' – meet the Birmingham children protesting for climate change". 30 May 2019. Archived from the original on 15 October 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  13. ^ Scarlett Westbrook (24 April 2019). "Dear Boris Johnson, using your gigantic platform to moan about kids like me won't stop us fighting climate change". Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  14. ^ Will Millar. "Teen activist Scarlett Westbrook tells DMU how to fight climate change". De Montfort University Leicester. Archived from the original on 14 March 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  15. ^ "Stories Festival Speaker Profile: Scarlett Westbrook". Evening Standard Stories Festival. Archived from the original on 14 September 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  16. ^ Zamzam Ibrahim. "Teach the Future unveils Climate Emergency Education Bill". Students Organising for Sustainability United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  17. ^ EAUC (24 February 2020). "English Climate Emergency Education Bill launched". EAUC: The Alliance for Sustainability Leadership in Education. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  18. ^ Mishti Ali (26 November 2021). "What the new student-written climate education bill actually means". i-D Magazine. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  19. ^ "Climate Education Bill". UK Parliament: Parliamentary Bills. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  20. ^ Joe Brindle. "What is the Climate Emergency Education Bill?". Teach the Future. Archived from the original on 5 November 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  21. ^ "English Climate Emergency Education Bill launched". EAUC: The Alliance for Sustainability Leadership in Education. 24 February 2020. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  22. ^ Sarah Wilson (26 January 2022). "'Their voices can't be ignored any longer': MPs to debate student's Climate Education Bill". The Big Issue. Archived from the original on 25 April 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  23. ^ Mishti Ali (26 November 2021). "What the new student-written climate education bill actually means". i-D Magazine. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  24. ^ "Climate Education Bill". UK Parliament: Parliamentary Bills. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  25. ^ a b Charlotte Cross (15 November 2019). "Tens of thousands sign petition urging politicians to debate climate crisis ahead of election". ITV News. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  26. ^ Zoe Drewett (29 November 2019). "Ignoring the piffle paffle, here's what was said in the leaders' climate debate". Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  27. ^ Krishnan Guru-Murthy (28 November 2019). "The Channel 4 News Climate Debate". Channel 4 News. Archived from the original on 22 November 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  28. ^ Frances Rankin (9 March 2020). "March for Women Highlights Need for Climate Justice and Gender Equality". DeSmog. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  29. ^ "Thousands march through London for International Women's Day". The Morning Star. 9 March 2020. Archived from the original on 14 September 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  30. ^ "Teenage climate activists Scarlett Westbrook and Joe Brindle go live on BBC Breakfast to talk about the Teach the Future campaign". Vimeo. 25 February 2020. Archived from the original on 17 August 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  31. ^ Laura Bundock (1 June 2021). "Youngsters suffering from 'eco-anxiety' as campaigners demand more climate change teaching in schools". Sky News. Archived from the original on 24 January 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  32. ^ "Children's Media Conference: Scarlett Westbrook". The Children's Media Conference. Archived from the original on 17 August 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  33. ^ Almaz Ohene, Helle Abelvik-Lawson (16 July 2020). "Meet the young people of colour fighting for our planet". Greenpeace. Archived from the original on 10 June 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  34. ^ "Webinar: The big ideas debate with Ed Miliband MP: Building a better, fairer and greener future". Institute for Public Policy Research. 7 September 2020. Archived from the original on 19 October 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  35. ^ "Women of the Future Awards shortlist 2020". Women of the Future Awards. Archived from the original on 25 July 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  36. ^ Solitaire Townsend (16 November 2020). "100 UK Leading Environmentalists (Who Happen To Be Women)". Forbes. Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  37. ^ "Roll of Honour 2021". The Diana Award. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  38. ^ Ashna Hurynag (5 November 2021). "COP26: Thousands of activists march on the streets of Glasgow". Sky News. Archived from the original on 21 November 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  39. ^ Scarlett Westbrook (5 November 2021). "Young people like me have made history this Cop26 'youth day' – now it's your turn". The Independent. Archived from the original on 26 April 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  40. ^ "Your digest of analysis from the British and international press". The Week. 5 November 2021. Archived from the original on 9 November 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  41. ^ Olivia Laing (17 October 2021). "Gen Z on how to save the world: young climate activists speak out". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  42. ^ Emma Loffhagen, Ghazal Abbasi, Alex Goldsmith, Radhika Aligh (29 October 2021). "Gen Zero: Meet the next generation of climate campaigners – Scarlett Westbrook". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 8 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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