I'm sure she is still campaigning online dring this COVID lockdown.
Ari is a member of Extinction Rebellion. They're having their meetings on Zoom, planning their campaigns for when the social distancing restrictions have been fully lifted.
I doubt if that girl will ever stop while she's alive. She's fully committed and driven with passion.
My hypothesis is that she has gone quiet because of the virus. Virus is dominating the news and we are mostly all staying home. Perhaps she is too! But in any event, in terms of environmental impact, they do say that the environment is enjoying this break. Less air travel, less travel full-stop, less people damaging the environment... So Greta probably felt that she can afford to step back for a while
It's professional scientists and engineers who understand the subject I want informing and advising me, not boorish renta-mobs like Extinction Rebellion, and that self-important lass from Sweden.
Hmm, I agree with you that I'd far rather listen to professional scientists and engineers, and I make a point of seeking out their research.
But I disagree with you about Extinction Rebellion as a rent-a-mob. My husband is a member of one of the groups, so I know the mechanics of how they operate and fund themselves. It's done entirely on volunteer work with donations used to fund things like big signs, sound systems for microphones and costumes to attract media attention. The groups vary. Each is autonomous. Some are more radical and disruptive that others. My husbands group focuses on creative events. They keep in touch with each other via the internet.
It's true that Greta's style is odd. I think it's what happens when a girl fairly high on the Spectrum receives coaching in public speaking - and despite her few years on the job, she's still a beginner. I think she has played a valuable role in showing politicians that school kids care a great deal about the world they are inheriting. They are scared, maybe signifcantly more than we are, and they're the next generation who will be voting for politicians.
Oh, I am sure there are plenty of ER members who are civilised but unfortunately some of the organisation's methods are anything but; and disrupting ordinary people for simply trying to carry out their normal lives is what gains the headlines and the reputation.
I agree with Book - but would add too that actually, there's nothing to stop an individual becoming very learned on any subject. Quite often an interested self-taught individual can surpass an expert in some areas. I will give an example. I am into felines, I love cats, I spoil my pets rotten. My vet is a professional, fully trained expert. Indeed, he is way above most vets in the UK - (I should know as I tried a lot before settling on this one). However, while he way surpasses me on general knowledge and most specific knowledge there ARE things that I know, that he doesn't.. and quite often he's been the one looking something up and coming back to me saying, 'yep you are right that's the correct dose.' The way I see it, we work together.
We have to remember too that most experts in the past were just people who self-taught. The famous inventors, the mathematicians, the scientists. So perhaps we do have to be a little cautious of putting too much faith in science or qualifications.
My feeling is we need both and it's the body of evidence that matters - we have to use our commonsense, (not that it's that common any more!) as scientists disagree with each other on a daily basis! We have to be informed and make informed decisions as to what to believe.
As to Greta, again, we shouldn't assume she doesn't speak from the facts. It's relatively easy to learn and get very well-informed - there's more than enough science out there! Again, I used to be somewhat of a local expert on environment myself - another story... I spent months researching and then writing a pond management plan.. I wrote it and presented it to my local council. They rudely dismissed it, assuming that as I am not qualified, I couldn't possibly know as much as the experts.... Even so, they kept the plan... a few years later they commissioned, as in paid for, a pond management report from an expert. The expert must have asked to see any previous management plans.. They showed them mine. And.. the expert report not only referred constantly to my report, but agreed with every word! So, we don't always need qualifications in order to be right!
I agree fully that you can learn a subject to a very high level; and I know the problem of being treated dismissively for not having the "right" formal qualifications whatever your real experience. It's happened to me, at work.
I was responding to what I see as publicity unfairly weighted in favour of the ones who don't have the learning or experience, formally qualified or not, and the evident lack of technical understanding shown by too many politicians and journalists.
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Looking into that can be quite revealing. I worked for a while (before we were sold off!) for a national organisation whose intranet held a staff social forum a bit like this one - but without the rude sections and you had to use real names. One day I posted in the appropriate section the question, "How much mechanical engineering goes into the computer you are reading this on?". Most of the staff were far brighter than me - highly qualified scientists, mathematicians, IT people and administrators - and the company's field was high-grade, specialist, mainly electronic engineering. Of the few replies, some mentioned the hard-drive and steel case, but none revealed a deeper understanding of an Engineering question that is more subtle than it first seems!
Durdle 