Glossary
The vocabulary of her story — from "Skolstrejk för klimatet" to "Section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000".
Fridays for Future
The international movement of school climate strikes inspired by Thunberg’s 2018 protest, in which students strike from school — usually on Fridays — to demand climate action. Also called School Strike for Climate or FridaysForFuture.
Skolstrejk för klimatet
Swedish for “school strike for climate” — the text of Thunberg’s original hand-painted sign, displayed outside the Swedish parliament from 20 August 2018.
School strike
The tactic Thunberg pioneered in 2018: skipping school to protest, on the argument that there is little point in studying for a future that climate change may take away. The tactic, and the truancy it involves, has been both praised and criticized.
UNFCCC
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change — the 1992 treaty under which the annual COP climate summits are held.
COP
“Conference of the Parties” — the annual UN climate summit. Thunberg has addressed or attended COP24 (Katowice, 2018), COP25 (Madrid, 2019), and COP26 (Glasgow, 2021).
COP24
The 2018 UN climate summit in Katowice, Poland, where Thunberg gave one of her first major international speeches (2018-12-12).
COP25
The 2019 summit, relocated from Santiago, Chile, to Madrid, Spain, after Chilean protests; Thunberg attended after crossing the Atlantic by sail.
COP26
The 2021 summit in Glasgow, Scotland, where Thunberg called the negotiations’ pledges “blah, blah, blah” at a fringe rally.
IPCC
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change — the UN body assessing climate science. Thunberg’s signature demand, “unite behind the science,” refers to its reports. Its 2018 special report on 1.5°C of warming underpins much of her 2018–2019 rhetoric.
Paris Agreement
The 2015 international treaty aiming to keep global warming “well below 2°C” above pre-industrial levels, pursuing 1.5°C. Thunberg’s original demand was that Sweden act in line with it.
1.5°C
The aspirational warming limit of the Paris Agreement. The IPCC’s 2018 special report found that holding warming to 1.5°C requires rapid, deep emissions cuts — the scientific basis for Thunberg’s demand for immediate action.
Carbon budget
The total amount of CO₂ that can still be emitted while staying below a given warming limit. Thunberg’s speeches repeatedly invoked the shrinking remaining budget.
Net zero
The goal of balancing greenhouse-gas emissions with removals — the long-term target of most national climate pledges, and a term she has used while warning that distant targets must not substitute for immediate cuts.
Greenwashing
Presenting something as environmentally friendly when it is not — a term Thunberg and Fridays for Future use for corporate and governmental climate pledges they consider empty.
Climate justice
The framing that climate change’s burdens fall disproportionately on the poor and the young, who contributed least to it — central to Thunberg’s moral argument and to her later activism beyond climate.
Extinction Rebellion
A separate UK-originated climate protest network (founded 2018) known for disruptive civil disobedience. Thunberg has spoken in support of its aims while her own movement remained centered on school strikes.
World Economic Forum
The organization behind the Davos Annual Meeting, where Thunberg delivered her “Our house is on fire” speech in January 2019 and returned in January 2020.
Malizia II
The zero-emission racing yacht that carried Thunberg across the Atlantic from Plymouth to New York in August 2019 (14–28 August), skippered by Boris Herrmann.
La Vagabonde
The catamaran on which Thunberg sailed back from the US to Europe in November–December 2019 after COP25 was relocated to Madrid, so she could attend.
Right Livelihood Award
The Swedish “alternative Nobel” prize, awarded to Thunberg in 2019 “for inspiring and amplifying political demands for urgent climate action.” She donated the prize money to climate causes (per her public statements).
Amnesty International — Ambassador of Conscience
Award given to Thunberg and the Fridays for Future movement in 2019 for human-rights leadership.
Global Sumud Flotilla
The September–October 2025 international flotilla of 40+ vessels attempting to deliver aid to Gaza and challenge the naval blockade; Thunberg took part and was detained and deported in October 2025.
Freedom Flotilla Coalition
The international civil-society network that organized the June 2025 Madleen voyage to Gaza, on which Thunberg sailed; Israeli forces intercepted the ship on 2025-06-09.
Section 13, Terrorism Act 2000 (UK)
The UK law under which Thunberg was arrested in London on 2025-12-23 for displaying a placard supporting Palestine Action, a proscribed organization. Displaying support for a proscribed group is an offence under the section, regardless of the placard’s other content.
Keffiyeh
The checkered scarf associated with Palestinian identity, which Thunberg has worn at pro-Palestinian demonstrations since 2024.
“How dare you”
Her signature phrase from the UN Climate Action Summit (2019-09-23), which entered popular culture as protest signage, memes, and merchandise.
Source notes
Definitions are standard reference material; institutional facts (IPCC, UNFCCC, COP venues and dates) are from the institutions’ own published records. Event-specific glossary entries cross-reference their dedicated pages.