Howey Ou

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Howey Ou
Howey Ou 2.jpg
Howey Ou, in 2021
Born11 December 2002 Edit this on Wikidata (age 18)
OccupationActivist Edit this on Wikidata

Ou Hongyi (simplified Chinese: 欧泓奕; traditional Chinese: 歐泓奕; pinyin: Ōu Hóngyì; IPA: ə̄u xʷúŋìː), also known by her English name Howey Ou, is a Chinese environmental activist who organises the school strike for climate in Guilin in southern China, calling for more action to limit greenhouse gas emissions by China and thus climate change.[1]

Biography[]

Ou's activism started after convincing her parents, both university lecturers,[2] to adopt several lifestyle choices to reduce their own carbon footprint. In late May 2019, at age 16, she did a school strike for climate by holding up homemade banners[3] for several days in front of City Hall[4] in Guilin to call for immediate stronger action on climate change. Greta Thunberg said she is a "true hero",[5] then the authorities said she must stop due to not having a permit.[6] Her WeChat account was blocked.[7] In September 2019, she organised a "Plant for survival" campaign. With her pocket money, she bought trees and planted them around Guilin.[8] She was not allowed to return to school as long as she engages in climate activism.[9][10]

In 2019, youth activist group Earth Uprising nominated her to attend the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit in New York.[11][12]

In 2020, China committed to net zero emissions by 2060,[13] but continued to build coal-fired power stations.

Ou keeps in touch with environmental activist Zhao Jiaxin.[10] After she and three other activists were detained after a silent protest in front of the Shanghai Exhibition Centre in September 2020[14] she was called "incredibly brave" by Greta Thunberg.[15] Ou and her parents have become vegetarians.[2]

In Lausanne, Switzerland, Ou started a hunger strike on Palud Square on 19 April 2021, to protest her 60-day prison and 1,200-Swiss francs fine sentence for protesting against expansion of the exploitation of the limestone quarry on Mormont hill by the Swiss-French cement company LafargeHolcim.[16][17]

External links[]

References[]

  1. ^ Elena Morresi (20 July 2020). "Howey Ou: China's first school climate striker – video profile". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Myers, Steven Lee (4 December 2020). "Ignored and Ridiculed, She Wages a Lonesome Climate Crusade". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  3. ^ "Howey Ou is risking it all to put climate change on China's agenda". RFI. 20 August 2020. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  4. ^ "Fighting Alone for Climate Action in China: Meet Teen Activist Howey Ou". www.vice.com. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  5. ^ "Howey Ou is a true hero. We are all behind you. Guilin, China". Twitter. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  6. ^ "Chinas Greta bricht ihren Klimastreik vorerst ab". www.t-online.de (in German). Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  7. ^ "Howey Ou – ganz allein im Klimastreik". www.ecoterra.info. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  8. ^ sina_mobile (4 November 2019). "16岁中国环保少女被网友骂惨:求你别瞎学瑞典那妹子"罢课"..." k.sina.cn. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  9. ^ Standaert, Michael (19 July 2020). "China's first climate striker warned: give it up or you can't go back to school". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b "18 Things to know about Howey Ou, China's only teenage climate striker". National Catholic Reporter. 25 August 2020. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  11. ^ Standaert, Michael (18 September 2019). "China's young climate heroes fight apathy – and the party line". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  12. ^ "Young voices in China's environmental wilderness struggle to be heard". South China Morning Post. 10 November 2019. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  13. ^ "China aims to cut its net carbon-dioxide emissions to zero by 2060". The Economist : United Kingdom. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  14. ^ "Greta Thunberg criticises China after climate striker held over protest". South China Morning Post. 29 September 2020. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  15. ^ "'Hypocrites and greenwash': Greta Thunberg blasts leaders over climate crisis". The Guardian. 9 November 2020. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  16. ^ "Vaud - Une zadiste chinoise entame une grève de la faim à Lausanne". 20 minutes (in French). 19 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  17. ^ Matthew Taylor, Emily Holden, Dan Collyns, Michael Standaert and Ashifa Kassam (7 May 2021). "The young people taking their countries to court over climate inaction". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 May 2021.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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