Ou Hongyi (; 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 In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...

Biography

Ou's activism started after convincing her parents, both university lecturers, to adopt several lifestyle choices to reduce their own

carbon footprint A carbon footprint is the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by an individual, event, organization, service, place or product, expressed as carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). Greenhouse gases, including the carbon-containing gases carbo ...

. In late May 2019, at age 16, she did a school strike for climate by holding up homemade banners for several days in front of City Hall in Guilin to call for immediate stronger

action on climate change Climate change mitigation is action to limit climate change by reducing emissions of greenhouse gases or removing those gases from the atmosphere. The recent rise in global average temperature is mostly caused by emissions from fossil fuels bur ...

. Greta Thunberg said she is a "true hero", then the authorities said she must stop due to not having a permit. Her WeChat account was blocked. In September 2019, she organised a "Plant for survival" campaign. With her pocket money, she bought trees and planted them around Guilin. She was not allowed to return to school as long as she engages in climate activism. In 2019, youth activist group Earth Uprising nominated her to attend the

2019 UN Climate Action Summit The 2019 UN Climate Action Summit was held at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York City on 23 September 2019. The UN 2019 Climate Summit convened on the theme, "Climate Action Summit 2019: A Race We Can Win. A Race We Must Win." The ...

in New York. In 2020, China committed to net zero emissions by 2060, but continued to build coal-fired power stations. Ou keeps in touch with environmental activist Zhao Jiaxin. After she and three other activists were detained after a silent protest in front of the

Shanghai Exhibition Centre The Shanghai Exhibition Centre () or the Shanghai Exhibition Hall () is an exhibition and convention centre in central Shanghai. The building was built in 1955 as the Sino-Soviet Friendship Building () to commemorate the alliance between China ...

in September 2020 she was called "incredibly brave" by Greta Thunberg. Ou and her parents have become vegetarians. In Lausanne,

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, Ou started a hunger strike on Palud Square on 19 April 2021, to protest her 60-day prison and 1,200-

Swiss franc The Swiss franc is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) issues banknotes and the f ...

s fine sentence for protesting against expansion of the exploitation of the limestone quarry on Mormont hill by the Swiss-French cement company

LafargeHolcim Holcim is a Swiss-based global building materials and aggregates flagship division of the Holcim Group. The original company was merged on 10 July 2015 with Lafarge to form LafargeHolcim as the new company and renamed to Holcim Group in 2021 ...

References

External links

Earth Uprising
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ou, Howey Living people Climate activists Chinese environmentalists 2002 births Chinese women environmentalists Youth climate activists