School students who want action on climate change will target Tony Abbott’s office in Warringah and Josh Frydenberg’s seat of Kooyong on Friday, as the two senior Liberals face tough re-election fights.
After staging two national days of protest in the past six months, the school strike movement is turning its attention to key seats in the upcoming 18 May election.
On Friday, students will also protest outside the offices of Labor’s Anthony Albanese and Jason Clare, prime minister Scott Morrison in his southern Sydney seat of Cook, and Liberal MP Trevor Evans in the seat of Brisbane, among others.
Warringah and Kooyong, two formerly safe Liberal seats, may be at risk of falling to climate-focused challengers.
Abbott is up against the independent Zali Steggal, and Frydenberg faces the Greens’ Julian Burnside, Labor’s Jana Stewart and independent Oliver Yates, a former head of the Clean Energy Finance Council and former Liberal member.
Fatima Kidwai, 18, who lives in Kooyong, said she felt frustrated that Frydenberg, who was environment minister from July 2016 to August 2018, had “not made much of a difference”.
“I’ve been living in Kooyong ever since I lived in Melbourne,” Kidwai said. “I once ran into Frydenberg at the train station. He has been in the seat for nine years, he has been environment minister, he had a lot of time to make a difference and advocate for change and we feel like he didn’t do as much as we’d like him to do.
“For the first time climate is such a big issue in this election. It’s a climate election – and [that’s] kind of thanks to all the students and all the work they have done.
“This time people are talking about how Kooyong is becoming a marginal seat. That’s why we’re so pumped to have a rally going outside the office just to keep up the pressure, to show him that we’ve had enough. You’ve had it pretty easy for a couple of years and now there is a change coming.”
In Warringah, Vivienne Paduch, 15, said she would be attending the protest against Abbott, describing him as “one of the most destructive climate deniers in Australian politics”.
“My whole life he has been my federal member, and it is a huge source of shame and disappointment,” she said. “He has proven time and time again that he doesn’t care about climate change. During his time in power, he abolished the carbon tax, which was successfully bringing down emissions at the time.
“He needs to know and he needs to see that the actions he has done are not OK and we won’t stand idly by.”
Paduch said older people were very receptive of the school student strike movement.
“There has been a lot of support especially from older generations, who are really concerned that one day we might not be able to have grandchildren of our own,” she said. “There has been a lot of support not just from our parents, and our grandparents. And adults are invited to come along and they have been coming to the last two climate strikes as well.
Bomaderry high school students Zara Podmore, 16, and Cedar Podmore, 15, took part in the last climate strike on 15 March and will strike again on Friday. Photograph: The Guardian“The outcome is to have as many people as possible and to really get the message across that he either has to change or he will get voted out.”
In the NSW seat of Gilmore, Bomaderry high school students Zara Podmore, 16, and Cedar Podmore, 15, took part in the last climate strike on 15 March and will strike again on Friday. They estimate around 200-300 students took part in Nowra.
“Last time there was a march across the Nowra bridge, yelling stuff,” Cedar said.
Zara said: “I think on Friday we’ll be marching through the town.
“But on the last one – it was interesting – there was a Liberal meeting across the road, we were yelling very loudly to get to them. I think Scott Morrison was even there.”
Cedar said: “He didn’t even come to the protest – he was in Nowra and he didn’t even come to say hi, which was rude.”
Asked what her message for the prime minister would have been, Cedar said: “We probably would’ve told him to get better policies on climate change.”
Zara said climate change was “not as real” for politicians because “they’re not going to have to deal with all of the consequences we have to deal with”.
Their mother, Sue Cuninghame, said she accepted the opinion of parents who did not let their children out of school and noted that other parents let their children skip school but did not disclose it was to attend the strike.
“We really wanted the girls to be able to be honest so we signed them out, to say it was for the climate change strike ... We were strong about it – that if you want to take action, you’re proud of what you do, and you’re happy to put your name to it and say that is what is happening.”
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Stephanie Liow, 15, lives in the electorate of Chisholm, and will be attending a central Melbourne protest.
“Both major parties are quite frustrating given neither party has an effective climate policy. Us young people were hoping that Labor would fight Adani, except they haven’t taken a clear stance against Adani and they even just introduced a 1.5bn gas pipeline that is clearly not in support of urgent climate action.
“It matters to young people so much. It will be our futures, and we’ll suffer the consequences of the government’s poor decisions.”
Kidwai, in Kooyong, said she was optimistic.
“It’s my first time voting in an election,” she said. “I’m pretty excited. The pre-polling booths will be on the way, I am probably going to be voting before the rally starts.
“Kooyong is really stepping up their game. The people are really explicitly talking about how they want climate action. It does make me really happy.”
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