The earth just experienced its hottest September, and climate activists are taking a stand. 

  According to data released by the Copernicus Climate Change Service, a European group that measures the planet’s temperatures, the earth just had its warmest September on record.

  As for Raleigh, the temperature on October 3 reached a high of 102 degrees. Students at Sanderson were shocked by the heat. Junior Mackenzie Matthews said, “I can’t believe it was this hot in October!”

  So what does this increase in temperature mean for the state of the environment exactly? The idea of climate change is not a new idea, but there are certainly controversies surrounding it. 

  Although there is substantial scientific research proving that human activity is impacting this rise in temperature, people are continually failing to take the issue seriously. 

  The National Aeronautics and Space Administration clearly states the devastating effects climate change has on our environment, saying, “The current warming trend is of particular significance because most of it is extremely likely (greater than 95 percent probability) to be the result of human activity since the mid-20th century and proceeding at a rate that is unprecedented over decades to millennia.” 

  The week of September 20 included a series of international strikes and protests demanding action from the government to help reduce climate change. 

  Over 7.6 million people took to the streets to protest, one of which being 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg. Thunberg attended one of the climate strike summits in New York and gave an emotionally powerful speech addressing the world leaders that she feels have done nothing to help dilute the effects of climate change. 

In this now-famous speech, Thunberg said that “People are suffering, people are dying, entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth — how dare you!” 

These painful words have echoed around the world. We can only hope this cry for help will be heard by a person of power that becomes a part of the movement to reduce the effects of climate change.