A monumental youth-led climate strike will be taking place in U.S. cities on Friday, Sept. 20.

Greta Thunberg, who inspired the protest, decided it was time the world demanded lawmakers and leaders in their countries do something about climate change. She started the movement on August 20, 2018 — she skipped school to protest at the steps of the Swedish parliament demanding they take action against climate change, according to the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Soon after, Thunberg gained a massive amount of young supporters as she led the fight towards a more sustainable future.

In November 2018, more than 17,000 students in 24 different countries participated in, “Friday school strikes.” As of August 2019, the total number of climate strikers had amassed 3.6 million people in 169 countries, the majority close to her age.

Demands will be made

On Friday Sept. 20, Thunberg and the Future Coalition will start a week of climate change action demands with youth-led protests across the U.S. Thunberg traveled for two weeks by a zero-emissions boat. She plans to help lead the strike in New York, where she will be attending a United Nations summit on climate action, according to The Washington Post.

NYC public schools tweeted that students participating in the climate strike are excused from school with parental consent. Thunberg shared their tweet and responded by saying, “How will local governments and schools in the rest of the world respond? Time is running out…”

The demands of the strike are still to be announced and may include requesting more regulations on fossil fuel developments and emissions.

Why they are protesting

Earth is in danger. According to NASA the “planet’s average surface temperature has risen about 1.62 degrees Fahrenheit (0.9 degrees Celsius) since the late 19th century.” The rising temperatures are largely due to an increase in human made sources, such as burning coal, animal agriculture, deforestation and greenhouse gases.

There are catastrophic consequences to Earth’s warming temperatures: sea levels are rising due to melting ice, ocean temperatures and acidity are rising, and natural disasters are increasing in severity. Elizabeth Kolbert, author of “The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History,” said Earth is spiraling towards what is considered to be the “Sixth Extinction.”

“No creature has ever altered life on the planet in this way before, and yet other, comparable events have occurred,” she wrote in her book. “Very, very occasionally in the distant past, the planet has undergone change so wrenching that the diversity of life has plummeted.”

Some parts of the world are already experiencing the effects of climate change. Miami may be submerged underwater in 50 years. Saltwater has begun to infiltrate Miami-Dade County’s drinking water, and 12 wastewater treatment plants in southeast Florida are 1-3 feet below the current sea level, as reported by sealevelrise.org.

The U.S. economy has also been affected. The Fourth National Climate Assessment, released by U.S. government agencies, said that with the absence of global mitigation efforts, climate change consequences are going to greatly impact American infrastructure, tourism, agriculture and trade efforts.

Denver’s march will take place from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. It will start at Union Station and finish at the Colorado State Capitol.