What better way for Greta Thunberg to celebrate turning 17 than by having a punk rock laureate write her a poem?

Patti Smith has written a poem on Instagram in celebration of climate activist on her birthday.

With Greta Thunberg having just turned 17, Patti Smith has penned a poem on her personal Instagram applauding the climate activist.

The poem looks at Thunberg’s persistent fight for climate action, which in the case of Australia at the moment, is at the forefront of most of our minds. Ever since she took a stand by protesting in front of the Swedish parliament while holding a sign that stated “Skolstrejk för klimatet (school strike for climate),” Thunberg has become the face of climate activism.

Her ability to distill the fears and concerns of the younger generation has taken her to United Nations Climate Change Summits, and all the way to being named Times Person of the Year in 2019.

Smith’s poem reads, “This is/ Greta Thunberg, turning/ seventeen today, asking/ for no accolade, no gifts/ save we not be neutral/ The Earth knows its kind/ just as all deities, just as/ animals and the healing/ spring. Happy birthday/ to Greta, who stood today/ as every Friday, refusing/ to be neutral.”

This is just one of many tributes and comments on the young icon. From songs using her speeches through to calls that she is a ‘Modern day Joan of Arc’, there are bound to be countless more people showing their support for Greta Thunberg.

If you ask me, having Patti Smith write a poem about you is arguably the coolest thing that will ever happen to anyone. This is just another little milestone Thunberg seems to be racking up at a fantastically fast rate.