By Bonnie Adams, Managing Editor
Westborough – As millions of people gathered Sept. 20 in places all across the globe, including the United States, Europe and Africa, to demand immediate action on climate change, nearly 100 people also rallied in Westborough.
The peaceful event, held in front of the Westborough Town Hall, was organized by Dianne McPherson and Cristin Hodgens, the founder of WAVE of Westborough. The initiative was inspired by the young Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg who has caught the attention of the world through her efforts to bring attention to climate change through a school climate strike movement, Fridays for Future.
Those at the Westborough rally included parents and grandparents, many who were accompanied by their kids or grandkids. It was for those children, the adults said, that they were standing outside Town Hall on a very unseasonably hot Friday afternoon holding signs imploring leaders to take action on the climate crisis.
The children themselves were also encouraged to make signs to hold. In their childish, innocent scribbles, they asked adults to “Save the Earth.”
One woman, Faith, said she had felt compelled to come because “there is no planet B” for her eight grandchildren.
“I’m very concerned about what kind of world they will inherit,” she said. “We need to do something about it now.”
Hodgens noted that organizers knew that it could be “intimidating for some people to talk about climate change, but we must start that conversation, without judgment and willingness to enter that conversation.”
“There are different ways to broach that. We need to determine how we can find ethical solutions right here in our community.
“Otherwise, this could be a truly pandemonious situation.”
photos/Bonnie Adams
