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Global Citizen Live, the long-awaited 24-hour global broadcast event, took place last weekend and brought together some of the world’s greatest artists, activists and engagement makers on seven continents to kick off an equitable global recovery from COVID-19 . and help move the world to defend the planet and fight poverty.
During the one-off event that saw musicians, poets, contemporary dancers and more take the stage, we heard from spirited activists from all over the world. Although each conveyed their messages in different ways and in different languages, the call for change was clear.
By fearlessly calling on leaders to take immediate action on some of the world’s most pressing issues at a global level – both the G20 summit and the COP26 climate conference which are fast approaching – these voices for change are just that what the world needs to hear now.
From calling for justice and justice for the most marginalized communities to illustrating the impact of COVID-19 and climate change on vulnerable populations, here are some of the inspiring, determined, and passionate activists who speak out on Global Citizen Live have, and what they had to say.
1. Louise Aubery
Louise Aubery speaks on the Global Citizen Live stage in Paris.
To kick off this list with a call to justice, French creator and activist Louise Aubery – known on social media as MyBetterSelf – simply stepped onto the stage in Paris to highlight the many injustices women worldwide have experienced and have experienced for centuries because of their gender.
In French, she aptly stated that this story of violations of women’s rights amounts to systemic repression and called for systemic changes to correct this injustice.
“I believe that sexism is systemic because of centuries of oppression, just as racism is systemic,” she said. “A construct of the system. But the good news is that what has been constructed can also be deconstructed. But to do this you have to learn to recognize, question and accept that the system has to change. “
2. Camille tienne
The French climate activist Camille Étienne speaks at Global Citizen Live in Paris.
In a passionate speech to the Parisian audience, 23-year-old climate activist Camille Étienne spoke about how climate change affects every single person and that it is up to us to reverse its devastating effects.
Using the metaphor of putting out a fire, she leaned on the idea that it takes real unity to bring about real change in defense of the planet, then found that tens of thousands of global citizens already believe in joint action and urged everyone to to move to make a difference.
3. Yann Arthus-Bertrand
World famous photographer and environmental activist Yann Arthus-Bertrand speaks at Global Citizen Live in Paris.
World-renowned photographer and environmental activist Yann Arthus-Bertrand has painted a picture of how the climate crisis is affecting the most vulnerable communities. Speaking about Bangladesh, he explained that the country has experienced some of the worst natural disasters, from cyclones to sea level rise. Arthus-Bertrand told the audience that despite its low per capita CO2 emissions, it is one of the countries hardest hit by climate change.
He then compared it to his home country France and America, highlighting the high carbon emissions of both wealthy countries and calling it an injustice – that those who have contributed least to climate change are also those who are hardest hit by its effects
The 75-year-old ended his speech with an appeal to citizens from all walks of life to reduce their carbon footprint and make a real contribution to combating climate change.
4. Xiye Bastida
It couldn’t have been easy to follow a pulsating performance by Lizzo on the New York stage, but young Brazilian activist Xiye Bastida did just that and had the audience calling for climate change.
In a video message that was shown on stage before her appearance, Bastida said that the climate crisis was having a devastating impact on her hometown in Mexico, the way her parents experience the world because of climate change.
She said, “The climate crisis is robbing culture and tradition, and that is robbing knowledge and wisdom; the same knowledge and wisdom that we actually need to take care of the world. “
On stage in New York, she set out what leaders must do to make significant progress in ending climate change.
“In less than two months, the world’s leaders will be meeting at COP26 and our message to them is that we need to put our dependence on fossil fuels behind us. We have to switch to 100% renewable energy. We must put all of our efforts on resilient and protecting communities on the front lines. They owe it to future generations as much as they owe it to their current voters, ”she said.
5. Gizele Martins
Grassroots activist and human rights activist Gizele Martins described what the impact of COVID-19 was like on her home in the Maré favela in Rio de Janeiro, saying that food insecurity in the region has increased significantly due to job losses.
“We learned to live with the pandemic, but the pandemic is increasing unemployment,” she said. “How do you learn to live with hunger?”
In response to rising hunger, she and other Frontline Defenders advocacy group came together to raise food donations for those in need. In her speech at Global Citizen Live, she stated that COVID-19 is not the only cause of hunger in Favela Maré and said that solidarity is key to solving the problem.
“The lack of basic human rights, as well as racism and social inequality, force us to choose who gets food in the midst of widespread hunger,” she said. “I want the world to know that mutual support and solidarity will save us from any crisis while we still do not have the same right to life as the rich.”
6 & 7. Eddie Ndopu and Valeria Colunga
UN Global Goals advocate Eddie Ndopu and UN youth activist Valeria Colunga speak at Global Citizen Live in New York.
Representing the United Nations, Global Goals Advocate Eddie Ndopu and UN youth activist Valeria Colunga met in New York to discuss the need to involve marginalized communities in climate change talks.
“Here’s the brutal truth: while blacks and indigenous people, disabled people like me, are the hardest hit by climate change, we are the most likely to be left out of this conversation,” said Ndopu.
He added, “1.5 billion people live with a disability and most of us live in poverty in the global south … Disability is a language of innovation, we have the answers, so include us in this fight.”
Alongside him, Colunga urged world leaders to commit themselves to a deliberate and just effort in defense of the planet.
8. The Youth Climate Strike LA and Stand LA
Young activists from Youth Climate Strike LA and Stand LA speak at Global Citizen Live in Los Angeles.
In between musical performances in Los Angeles, six young Youth Climate Strike activists, each holding a sapling, alerted global audiences to the importance of planting trees to tackle air pollution in their community.
“Forests play a vital role in fighting climate change, planting trees can literally save our planet, and we need everyone to get involved,” said Sarah Hardyman of Youth Climate Strike LA.
The young leaders in climate protection ended their speech by calling on world leaders to prioritize environmental protection.
“We call on our leaders attending the UN Climate Change Conference in November to put the future of our planet first,” said Nalleli Cobo of Booth LA.
9. Nun Coen
In a breathtakingly serene speech, Monja Coen, community leader and founder of the Buddhist community in Brazil, spoke to the audience about the importance of caring for all living beings and appealed to citizens to make caring for the world around us a priority.
“The spirit of equality is called the superior spirit. It is the awakened mind. Only when we realize that all life forms have a certain value, that every life is important, ”she said.
“That is why we take this path to do good with all living beings. We are the life of the earth. We are not separated from anything or anyone, ”she added.
10 & 11. Dr. Thato Mosehle and Dr. John Nkengasong
Miss Supernational South Africa, frontline health care professional and global health advocate, Dr. Thato Mosehle spoke about the urgent need for vaccines on the African continent.
“Our main goal right now is to vaccinate at least 60% to 70% of our population so we can move forward with that immunity,” she said.
She also noted that while other nations stand ready to move forward with booster vaccinations, in South Africa, her home country, only 28% of the population have received a dose of a two-shot vaccine.
The director of the African CDC, Dr. John Nkengasong, repeated this point at the continental level, saying that only 3.5% of the African population is fully vaccinated. He also explained the need to manufacture vaccines locally, a move that would make the vital health resource more accessible to all countries on the continent.
He ended the segment with the words: “Nobody is protected until everyone is protected.”
You can join these notable activists to advocate justice, climate change and the fight against famine by supporting the Global Citizen Live campaign here.
You can join the Global Citizen Live campaign to help defend the planet and fight poverty by taking action here and becoming part of a movement that is driven by citizens around the world who work with governments, businesses and philanthropists take action to make change happen.
