Every year, usually during our graduation ceremonies
UBC has the honour of bestowing
honorary degrees upon individuals who in the opinion
of the university community have fit the criteria
of excellence and eminence
in their chosen field.
Greta Thunberg exemplifies these characteristics
and it is our pleasure to grant her an honorary degree.
At just 18 years of age
Greta Thunberg has gained international recognition
for challenging world leaders to take immediate
science-based action against climate change
and for prompting climate change activism
among youth in many countries.
She began garnering attention in 2018
when she challenged students
in Sweden to join her in a school strike for the climate
and ultimately inspired hundreds of thousands of students
from around the world to participate in weekly strikes,
sparking the international youth led movement known
as Fridays for Future.
The movement grew as global citizens
of all ages joined exemplified most famously
in September of 2019
when she led a massive march
of protestors to demand climate action
at the New York City Global Climate Strike
and inspired what became the largest climate protest
in history with an estimated 4 million people marching
in 150 countries.
She also gave speeches at a World Economic Forum in Davos,
Switzerland, at a European Parliament in front
of the legislatures of Italy, France, the United Kingdom,
and the United States,
at the 2019 UN Climate Change Conference in Madrid,
and at the 2019 UN Youth Climate Summit in New York,
to which she famously traveled on an emissions free yacht.
She has received numerous awards and honours
including the Royal Scottish Geographical Society
Geddes Environment Medal,
the Amnesty International Ambassador of Conscience Award,
an honorary doctorate from the University of Mons,
and is a three time Nobel Peace Prize nominee.
In 2019, Time magazine named her Person of the Year.
She was just 16 years old.
In recognition of her courageous determination
to alter the course of human history
and for inspiring the youth
of the world to lead responses to climate change,
we are pleased to confer the degree Doctor of Laws
honoris causa
upon Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg.
It now gives me great pleasure
to ask Doctor Thunberg to say a few words.
- Mr. Chancellor, Mr. President, and graduates.
I'm incredibly happy and honoured to be here
with you today on your special day.
And I want to send my biggest congratulations
to all of you on your big achievement.
This is your day, and I truly hope
that you're proud of yourselves for what you have done.
And also I am so honoured
and grateful to receive this this honour.
I'm very thankful for that.
It really means a lot, especially
since British Columbia is a very special place.
I have many beautiful memories from British Columbia
it from all the, all the people there and from the nature
there it is truly a remarkable place and it's
it reminds me of home.
So it really is a special place.
And I know that we, we are now
facing an existential crisis
the climate and environmental emergency,
and we all have a duty to, to act
but the bigger your platform
the bigger your responsibility.
So I, I just wish
that we all today do our part as democratic citizens.
If I were to send something to you today
it would be to use your voice, to speak up, stand
up for what you believe in, stand up for what is right,
because that is our moral responsibility.
And I know that you, like myself, are young people
with your future ahead of you
and you really are the future.
You are the ones who will shape our future.
So I, I wish you good luck on that journey.
And I truly look forward
to seeing you making that change in the world.
Congratulations on your big day
thank you.
To the graduating class of 2021.
I wish you all the best
and you should really be proud of yourself.
And I hope that you, you realize
that now your hard work pays off
and I truly wish you congratulations.
And I wish you good luck
as you now moving to the next chapters of your life.