, holding a "" (School Strike for the Climate) sign,
Stockholm, August 2018
Strike at the Riksdag must be treated as a crisis! The climate is the most important election issue!" (11 September 2018) , 14 December 2018 In August2018, Thunberg began the school climate strikes and public speeches for which she has become an internationally recognized
climate activist. In an interview with
Amy Goodman of
Democracy Now!, she said she got the idea of a climate strike after
school shootings in the United States in February2018 led several youths to refuse to return to school. These teen activists at
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in
Parkland, Florida, went on to organize the
March for Our Lives in support of greater
gun control. In May2018, Thunberg won a climate change essay competition held by Swedish newspaper
Svenska Dagbladet. In part, she wrote: "I want to feel safe. How can I feel safe when I know we are in the greatest crisis in human history?" Thunberg tried to persuade other young people to get involved but "no one was really interested", so eventually she decided to go ahead with the strike by herself. Thunberg said her teachers were divided about her missing class to make her point. She says: "As people, they think what I am doing is good, but as teachers, they say I should stop." Rentzhog subsequently asked Thunberg to become an unpaid youth advisor to WDHT. He then used her name and image without her knowledge or permission to raise millions for a WDHT for-profit subsidiary, We Don't Have Time AB, of which he is the chief executive officer. Thunberg stated that she received no money from the company Throughout 2018, Thunberg's activism evolved from a solitary protest to taking part in demonstrations throughout Europe, making several high-profile public speeches, and mobilizing her followers on social media platforms. In December, after Sweden's 2018general election, Thunberg continued to school strikebut only on Fridays. She inspired school students across the globe to take part in her Friday school strikes. In December alone, more than 20,000students held strikes in at least 270cities. Thunberg spoke out against the
National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate)2020 and
Joint Entrance Examination2020 entrance exams, which were conducted in India in September. She said it was unfair for students to have to appear for exams during a global pandemic. She also said that India's students had been deeply impacted by the floods that hit states such as
Bihar and
Assam, which caused mass destruction. On 3February 2021, Thunberg tweeted her support of the ongoing
2020–2021 Indian farmers' protest. Effigies of Thunberg were burned in Delhi by
Hindutva nationalists who opposed the farmers' protests. Thunberg's tweet was criticized by the
Bharatiya Janata Party–led Indian government, which said that it was an internal matter. In her initial tweet, Thunberg linked to a document that provided a campaigning toolkit for those who wanted to support the farmers' protest. It contained advice on hashtags and how to sign petitions, and it also included suggested actions beyond those directly linked to the farmers' protest. She soon deleted the tweet, saying the document was "outdated", and linked to a different one "to enable anyone unfamiliar with the ongoing farmers protests in India to better understand the situation and make decisions on how to support the farmers based on their own analysis". The Indian climate activist who edited the toolkit,
Disha Ravi, was arrested under the charges of
sedition and criminal conspiracy on 16 February 2021.
Protests and speeches in Europe Thunberg's speech during the
plenary session of the
2018 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP24) went viral. She said that the world leaders present were "not mature enough to tell it like it is". In the first half of 2019, she joined various student protests around Europe, and was invited to speak at various forums and parliaments. At the January 2019
World Economic Forum, Thunberg gave a speech in which she declared: "Our house is on fire." She addressed the
British,
European and
French parliaments; in the latter case several
right-wing politicians boycotted her. In a short meeting with Thunberg,
Pope Francis thanked her and encouraged her to continue her activism. By March2019, Thunberg was still staging her regular protests outside the Swedish parliament every Friday, where other students occasionally joined her. According to her father, her activism did not interfere with her schoolwork, but she had less spare time. She finished
lower secondary school with excellent grades: 14As and threeBs.
Transatlantic voyage listening to Thunberg and her fellow activists discussing the urgent need to address climate change, 2019 In August2019, Thunberg sailed across the Atlantic Ocean from
Plymouth, England, to New York City, in the racing yacht
Malizia II, equipped with
solar panels and underwater
turbines. The trip was announced as a
carbon-neutral transatlantic crossing serving as a demonstration of Thunberg's declared beliefs of the importance of reducing emissions. The voyage took 15days, from 14 to 28August 2019.
France 24 reported that several crew members would fly to New York to sail the
Malizia II yacht back to Europe. On Thunberg's return voyage aboard the
La Vagabonde catamaran, she was quoted that she chose sailing as a way to send a message to the world that there is no real sustainable option to travel across the oceans. While in the United States, Thunberg was invited to give testimony in the
US House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis on 18 September. Instead of testifying, she gave an eight-sentence statement and submitted the
IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5 °C as evidence.
UN Climate Action Summit On 23September 2019, Thunberg attended the
UN Climate Action Summit in New York City. On the same day, the
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) hosted a press conference where Thunberg joined 15 other children, including
Ayakha Melithafa,
Alexandria Villaseñor,
Catarina Lorenzo,
Ridhima Pandey and Carl Smith. Together, the group announced they had made an official complaint against five nations that were not on track to meet the emission reduction targets they committed to in their Paris Agreement pledges: Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, and
Turkey. The complaint challenged these countries under the Third Optional Protocol to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Protocol is a quasi-judicial mechanism that allows children or their representatives, who believe their rights have been violated, to bring a complaint before the relevant "treaty body", the Committee on the Rights of the Child. If the complaint succeeds, the countries will be asked to respond, but any suggestions are not legally binding.
Autumn global climate strikes In late September2019, Thunberg entered Canada where she participated in climate protests in
Montreal,
Edmonton and
Vancouver, including leading a climate rally as part of the 27September 2019
Global Climate Strike in Montreal. The school strikes for climate on 20 and 27September 2019 were attended by over four million people, according to one of the co-organisers. Hundreds of thousands took part in the protest, described as the largest in the city's history. The mayor of Montreal gave her the Freedom of the City award. Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau was in attendance, and Thunberg spoke briefly with him. While in the United States, Thunberg participated in climate protests in New York City with Alexandria Villaseñor and
Xiye Bastida; in Washington, D.C., with
Jerome Foster II;
Iowa City; Los Angeles;
Charlotte;
Denver with
Haven Coleman; and the
Standing Rock Indian Reservation with
Tokata Iron Eyes. In various cities, Thunberg's keynote speech began by acknowledging that she was standing on land that originally belonged to
Indigenous peoples, saying: "In acknowledging the enormous injustices inflicted upon these people, we must also mention the many enslaved and indentured servants whose labour the world still profits from today."
Participation at COP25 Thunberg had intended to remain in the Americas to travel overland to attend the
2019 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP25) originally planned in Santiago, Chile, in December. However, it was announced on short notice that COP25 was to be moved to Madrid, Spain, because of
serious public unrest in Chile. Thunberg has refused to fly because of the carbon emissions from air travel, so she posted on social media that she needed a ride across the Atlantic Ocean. Riley Whitelum and his wife, Elayna Carausu, two Australians who had been sailing around the world aboard their catamaran
La Vagabonde, offered to take her. On 13November 2019, Thunberg set sail from
Hampton, Virginia, for Lisbon, Portugal. Her departing message was the same as it has been since she began her activism: "My message to the Americans is the same as to everyonethat is to unite behind the science and to act on the science." Thunberg arrived in the
Port of Lisbon on 3December 2019, then travelled on to
Madrid to speak at COP25 and to participate with the local
Fridays for Future climate strikers. During a press conference before the march, she called for more "concrete action", arguing that the global wave of school strikes over the previous year had "achieved nothing" because
greenhouse gas emissions were still risingby 4% since 2015.
Further activism in Europe and end of sabbatical year Thunberg was
guest editor of the BBC Radio's flagship current affairs programme, the
Today Programme in late 2019. It featured interviews on climate change with
Sir David Attenborough,
Bank of England chief
Mark Carney,
Massive Attack's Robert Del Naja, and
Shell Oil executive Maarten Wetselaar, and was released as a podcast containing these interviews and other highlights. A month later, she called on German company
Siemens to stop the delivery of railway equipment to the controversial
Carmichael coal mine, operated by a subsidiary of Indian company
Adani Group in Australia, but on 13January, Siemens said that it would continue to honour its contract with Adani. Thunberg returned to the
World Economic Forum held in
Davos, Switzerland, on 21January 2020. She delivered two speeches, and participated in panel discussions hosted by
The New York Times and the World Economic Forum. Thunberg used many of the themes contained in her previous speeches, but focused on one in particular: "Our house is still on fire." Thunberg joked that she cannot complain about not being heard, saying: "I am being heard all the time." The next month, she travelled to
Oxford University to meet
Malala Yousafzai, a Nobel Peace Prize-winning Pakistani activist for female education who had been shot in the head by the
Taliban as a schoolgirl. Thunberg was later to join a school strike in
Bristol. She also attended an extraordinary meeting of the
European Parliament's Environment Committee to talk about the European Climate Law. There she declared that she considered the new proposal for a climate law published by the
European Commission to be a surrender. Thunberg ended her gap year in August 2020. Travel over the next year was restricted because of the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Activism from 2020 to 2021 In early 2020, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic caused
worldwide implementation of
mitigation measures, including
social distancing,
quarantine, and
face coverings. On 13March 2020, Thunberg stated that "In a crisis we change our behavior and adapt to the new circumstances for the greater good of society." Thunberg and
School Strike for Climate subsequently moved their activities online. On 20 August 2020, the second anniversary of Thunberg's first strike, Thunberg and fellow climate activists
Luisa Neubauer,
Anuna de Wever van der Heyden and
Adélaïde Charlier met with German Chancellor
Angela Merkel in Berlin. They subsequently announced plans for another global climate strike on 25September 2020. Neubauer said that whether the strike in September is virtual in nature or in the streets would be determined by the pandemic situation. At a joint press conference with fellow activists echoing her sentiment, Neubauer said: "The climate crisis doesn't pause." On 14December 2020, Thunberg used Twitter to criticize the
New Zealand Labour Government's recent
climate change emergency declaration as "
virtue signalling", tweeting that New Zealand's Labour Government had only committed to reducing less than one percent of New Zealand's carbon emissions by 2025. In response, New Zealand Prime Minister
Jacinda Ardern and climate change Minister
James Shaw defended New Zealand's climate change declaration as only the start of the country's climate change mitigation goals. On 29December 2020, during a
BBC interview, Thunberg said that climate experts are not being listened to despite the COVID-19 pandemic highlighting the importance of using science to address such issues. She added that the COVID-19 crisis had "shone a light" on how "we cannot make it without science". Thunberg and other climate activists launched the annual
Climate Live concert to highlight climate change. Their first concert was held in April2021. In May2021, she addressed the COVID-19 crisis again, when she urged a change in the food production system and the protection of animals and their habitats. Thunberg's comments, which came amidst calls for meat-free alternatives, also addressed health concerns regarding animal welfare and the environment. Thunberg said that the way humans are destroying habitats are the perfect conditions for the spread of diseases and noted
zoonotic illnesses such as COVID-19, Zika, Ebola, West Nile fever, SARS, MERS, among others. In July2021, Thunberg received her
COVID vaccine, saying: "I am extremely grateful and privileged to be able to live in a part of the world where I can already get vaccinated. The vaccine distribution around the world is extremely unequal. No one is safe until everyone is safe. But when you get offered a vaccine, don't hesitate. It saves lives." The inaugural edition of
Vogue Scandinavia (August–September 2021) had a cover photograph of Thunberg shot by Swedish photography and conservationist duo Iris and Mattias Alexandrov Klum and an interview with her. The cover shows Thunberg wearing a trench coat while sitting with an
Icelandic horse in a woodland outside Stockholm. On the same day, she used Twitter to criticize the fashion industry as "a huge contributor" to the climate and ecological "emergency" and "not to mention its impact on the countless workers and communities who are being exploited around the world in order for some to enjoy
fast fashion that many treat as disposables". Thunberg's wearing of
wool during the photoshoot garnered criticism from other vegans, who said it promoted animal cruelty. According to
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), she was unaware that the clothing was made of real animal-derived wool. On 28September 2021, Thunberg criticized U.S. president
Joe Biden, British prime minister
Boris Johnson, Indian prime minister
Narendra Modi and other world leaders over their promises to address the climate crisis in a speech at the Youth4Climate Summit in
Milan. Thunberg also criticized and doubted organizers of climate conferences, saying, "They invite cherry-picked young people to meetings like this to pretend they are listening to us. But they are not." A month later, Thunberg took part in a protest in London, demanding that the financial system stop funding companies and projects that use
fossil fuels, such as coal, oil and natural gas. The protest in London is part of a series taking place at the financial centres around the world, including New York City, San Francisco and
Nairobi, Kenya. In November2021, Thunberg, along with other climate activists, filed a petition to the United Nations, calling it to declare a level 3 global
climate emergency, with the aim of creating a special team that will coordinate the response to the climate crisis at an international level. In December2021, Thunberg reiterated her criticism of U.S. president Joe Biden, saying, "If you call him a leader – I mean, it's strange that people think of Joe Biden as a leader for the climate when you see what his administration is doing", alluding to the United States expansions on use of fossil fuels during the Biden administration. Thunberg further lamented that activists and teenagers are needed to bring awareness about climate change.
Activism from 2022 to early 2023 In early 2022, Thunberg condemned the British firm
Beowulf and its mining of iron on
Sámi land. She said, "We believe that the climate, the environment, clean air, water, reindeer herding, indigenous rights and the future of humanity should be prioritized above the short-term profit of a company. The Swedish government needs to stop the colonization of Sami." Following the
invasion of Ukraine by Russian military forces, she combined her usual Friday climate protests to include opposing the invasion. She stood outside the Russian embassy in Stockholm holding a sign that read "Stand With Ukraine". On 29 June 2023, Thunberg met with Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other prominent European figures to form a working group to address ecological damage from the 16-month-old Russian invasion. Thunberg criticized the
European Parliament in 2022 for voting to label fossil gas and nuclear energy as "green" energy. She called that decision "hypocrisy", and stated that "This will delay a desperately needed real sustainable transition and deepen our dependency on Russian fuels. The hypocrisy is striking, but unfortunately not surprising." In November, Thunberg, along with over 600young people from a youth-led Swedish activist group , filed a lawsuit in a Stockholm district court against the Swedish government for climate inaction within Sweden. The
Nacka District Court subsequently allowed the class action lawsuit that posits Sweden has an "insufficient climate policy" to proceed. In late 2022,
The Climate Book was released. The book, written by Thunberg, is a compilation in which she brought together over one hundred expertsgeophysicists, oceanographers and meteorologists; engineers, economists and mathematicians; historians, philosophers and indigenous leaderswho wrote essays focusing on changes to the Earth's climate. Thunberg also contributed writings to the book and is credited as its author. She donated her copyright and all royalties generated by the book to her foundation and will not personally profit from sales or other commercial uses. While on her 2022midterm break from school, Thunberg embarked on a publicity campaign for the book's initial release; it is published under
Penguin's
Allen Lane Imprint books. An extract from
The Climate Book and reviews are available. In January 2023, Thunberg spoke during a protest in
Lützerath, calling on the German authorities to stop the expansion of a nearby coal mine. She was detained along with other activists by German police while demonstrating at the opencast coal mine of
Garzweiler 2, around from the village on 17January, after police warned the group that they would be detained unless they moved away from the edge of the mine. The mine's owner
RWE had earlier agreed with the government on demolishing Lützerath in exchange for a faster exit from coal and the saving of five villages originally slated for destruction. She was released the same day after an identity check.
Post-high school graduation Thunberg graduated from high school in June 2023 and marked the day by attending what would be her last school strike for climate protest before receiving her diploma. She wore the Swedish traditional graduation white dress and white (cap) to the protest, and vowed to continue, saying that her "fight has only just begun". In Thunberg's subsequent protest pictures on social media, some of the group photos have featured "School Strike for Climate" signage. Later in the year, she began a bachelor's program at
Stockholm University. In June 2023, Thunberg took part in a Reclaim the Future protest in
Malmö, Sweden, and was charged with disobeying a police order. A trial was held at
Malmö District Court where the prosecution presented its case against Thunberg for disobedience to authority after having disrupted traffic and refusing to follow police orders. While she acknowledged that the facts of the case against her were accurate, Thunberg said that due to the existential and global threat to the climate caused by the fossil fuel industry, her protest was a form of self-defence. She was sentenced by the court to pay fines totalling (equivalent to US$240). Within hours after the court convicted her, Thunberg attended a similar protest where Reclaim the Future again blocked oil tankers on a road in Malmö. She was again forcibly removed by police and later criminally charged. A second Swedish trial for disobedience (disobeying a police order to disperse) took place in October. She was found guilty for the earlier incident and ordered to pay fines totalling (equivalent to $414). Thunberg cancelled an appearance at the
Edinburgh International Book Festival in August to promote her book:
The Climate Book. She said that as a climate activist she could not attend an event sponsored by
Baillie Giffordan investment management firmdue to its connections with the fossil fuel industry. In making the announcement, the festival's Nick Barley said that he was disappointed but respected Thunberg's decision. "I share Greta's view that in all areas of society the rate of progress is not enough." He went on to say: "The book festival exists to give a platform for debate and discussion around key issues affecting humanity todayincluding the climate emergency ... We strongly believe that Baillie Gifford are part of the solution to the climate emergency." In its response, Baillie Gifford said that it was not a significant fossil fuel investor, with 2% of its clients' money being invested in companies with some business related to fossil fuels while the market average was 11%. Thunberg was arrested in London that October for protesting against the Energy Intelligence Forum, described as the "
Oscars of oil" as part of demonstrations organised by campaigning group
Fossil Fuel London. She was charged with failure to comply with a lawful order to disperse, a "condition imposed under Section14 of the
Public Order Act". She appeared at
Westminster Magistrates' Court and entered a plea of "not guilty". Early the following year, the case was dismissed by the presiding judge after the prosecution rested. The judge agreed with the defence that "the crown had failed to present enough evidence to prove their case". In April 2024, Thunberg participated in an
Extinction Rebellion–led protest in
The Hague where law enforcement forcibly removed her from blocking a road. She then joined another group of Extinction Rebellion protesters who were blocking a different road and was again removed. The BBC and some other media outlets reported that Thunberg was arrested while some media outlets only mention that she was detained. It is unclear whether criminal charges wereor will befiled. Shortly afterwards, she was charged with
civil disobedience for allegedly ignoring police orders to leave two climate demonstrations which law enforcement claim were blocking Sweden's parliament building in March. Her refusal to comply with police orders caused her to be forcibly removed. Thunberg entered a plea of not guilty. A Swedish court convicted her and she was fined (equivalent to US$550). Thunberg was also ordered to pay an additional kr 1,000 (equivalent to US$92) in damages. In June 2025, Thunberg participated in the
Budapest Pride to protest
its ban by the
Hungarian parliament. On 26 July 2025, Thunberg joined the protests in
North Macedonia against the construction of a hydroelectric power plant on the
Došnica River on the
Kožuf Mountain. On 31 July 2025, Thunberg joined the
Serbian anti-corruption protests in
Belgrade against
Aleksandar Vučić's regime.
Pro-Palestinian activism in solidarity with Palestine at an event in
Amsterdam in 2023 On 20 October 2023, Thunberg posted a photo during her usual Friday climate protests, showing her and three other protesters holding signs. One sign read "climate justice now" and the other three displayed support for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip amidst the
Gaza war. Her posts on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram also included fourteen links to "Palestine solidarity" social media accounts where, she said, "you can find information on how you can help." Thunberg was immediately criticized for not condemning the
October 7 attacks. The following day Thunberg posted "It goes without saying – or so I thought – that I'm against the horrific attacks by Hamas. As I said, 'the world needs to speak up and call for an immediate ceasefire, justice and freedom for Palestinians and all civilians affected. The
Israeli Ministry of Education responded to Thunberg's initial "statements in support of Gaza without condemning Hamas" by removing "various references in the educational curriculum that present Thunberg as a role model and a source of inspiration for youth". In December 2023, Thunberg, along with three researchers and activists affiliated with Fridays for Future Sweden, published an opinion piece in
The Guardian titled "We won't stop speaking out about Gaza's suffering – there is no climate justice without human rights." The piece set out her and FFF Sweden's support for
Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip amidst the Gaza war. The article stated that "All Fridays for Future groups are autonomous, and this article represents the views of nobody but FFF Sweden." They also addressed the criticism that Fridays for Future has been radicalized and is engaging in politics by stating that the organisation has always been political because it is a movement for justice. FFF Sweden believes that "means speaking up when people suffer, are forced to flee their homes or are killed – regardless of the cause". Thunberg was detained by Swedish police for taking part in a pro-Palestinian protest outside
Malmö Arena in May, which was hosting the
Eurovision Song Contest 2024, and subsequently released a statement opposing
Israel's participation in the contest. In September, Danish police apprehended Thunberg during a pro-Palestinian protest in Copenhagen against the Gaza war. Thunberg, along with five others, was detained after blocking the entrance to a building at the
University of Copenhagen. Less than a week later, she was "carried out" from the library of
Stockholm University by Stockholm police after she participated in an encampment inside the library. She characterized the police response as a "repression". Following those incidents, she was labelled "antisemite of the week" by
StopAntisemitism. While speaking at a pro-Palestine rally in the German city of
Mannheim in December, Thunberg said "Fuck Germany and fuck Israel." In response, local
CDU politician
Manuel Hagel accused Thunberg of "moving very consciously in close proximity to anti-Semitism". Reflecting on her pro-Palestine activism, Thunberg stated: In November 2025, she participated in numerous events and protests during the events of the
2025 Italian general strikes and protests for Gaza. On December 23, 2025, Thunberg was arrested by
City of London police for holding a placard, during a demonstration in support of pro-Palestinian activists, who were undertaking a hunger strike while they were
remanded in custody in the United Kingdom prison system. The protest group l, Prisoners for Palestine released footage showing Thunberg holding a placard reading, "I support Palestine Action prisoners. I oppose genocide," referencing the ongoing war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. She was later released on bail while the police investigate offences contrary to Section 13 of the
Terrorism Act 2000. which
Amnesty International and Thunburg have described as systematic starvation and
genocide, and resulted in increased global scrutiny and criticism of Israel's actions. Various international efforts to break the blockade have been made by flotillas of small private vessels with the goal to
deliver humanitarian aid. Flotilla organizers have argued that Israel's intentions are a violation of the
Geneva Conventions against intentionally starving civilians, while Israel has argued that its blockades had been declared legal by a United Nations panel of inquiry in 2011 because their intent was to prevent Hamas from smuggling weapons into Gaza. In May 2025, Thunberg planned to join a
Gaza Freedom Flotilla at a Maltese port. The plans were cancelled when one of the vessels, the
Conscience, was
attacked by drones in international waters off the coast of Malta before it could dock, setting it on fire and breaching its hull. This came after accusations from the crew on the board of harassment from Israeli ships and drones. At 3:34AM (
GMT+3), a video from Thunberg was posted to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition X (Twitter) account, recorded in advance in the case that the ship was seized before reaching Gaza. Shortly after, Israel's
Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the boat had been seized and was being taken to the
Ashdod port. She was deported from Israel the day after. In an interview, Thunberg said it was "a bit unclear" why she was released while others remained detained, and that they had not entered the country illegally. Remarking on Thunberg's aid effort, Trump described her as "strange" and "angry". Upon arriving in Paris following her deportation from Israel, Thunberg responded, "I think the world needs a lot more young angry women, to be honest. Especially with everything going on right now." Following the Israeli capture of the
Gaza Freedom Flotilla in July 2025, Thunberg joined the
Global Sumud Flotilla. She said that she and some others had signed a document stating they wished to leave Israel as soon as possible to take part in the Sumud Flotilla, which set sail from
Barcelona on 31 August to begin its journey to Gaza. According to its crew, the Madleen was carrying a "symbolic amount of aid", and was intercepted by Israeli special forces on 1 October 2025 in international waters, approximately 70 nautical miles (≈115 km) off the Gaza coast. A total of 45 vessels were seized and 462 activists were detained between 1–3 October 2025, bringing an end to what is considered the largest civilian effort to break the siege of Gaza. According to
The Times, detainees from the flotilla are believed to be held at the notorious
Ktzi'ot Prison while awaiting deportation. Several released activists and organizations have said that Thunberg was mistreated while detained, including that she was beaten, paraded while draped in an Israeli flag and held in bedbug-infested conditions with insufficient food and water. Israeli authorities denied the allegations. On 6 October 2025, Thunberg was deported together with other activists, arriving in Sweden the next day. She stated that she and other participants in the Gaza flotilla were tortured while held in an Israeli prison, though she noted that their mistreatment was minor compared with what civilians in Gaza endure on a daily basis. Israel's foreign ministry has repeatedly rejected allegations of mistreatment. According to Israeli detention court records Greta did not report any personal mistreatment during her detention. The day after her deportation, Thunberg posted to Instagram about the mistreatment of Palestinian inmates in Israeli prisons. One of the photos used in the post was of an emaciated
Evyatar David,
an Israeli hostage held by Hamas, suggesting he is a Palestinian prisoner suffering in an Israeli prison. David's family and others condemned Thunberg for the misleading use of the photo and called on her to take it down.
Boycott of COP29 Thunberg boycotted
COP29, hosted in 2024 in
Azerbaijan by the regime of autocratic leader
Ilham Aliyev, due to
human rights violations and
ethnic cleansing of Armenians in the disputed
Nagorno-Karabakh, and instead visited neighbouring Georgia and Armenia. In an interview, she said that "The only thing that will come out of [COP29] is loopholes, more negotiations, and symbolic decisions that look good on paper but are really just greenwashing." At a demonstration in front of the United Nations delegation headquarters in
Yerevan, she stated "We urge international media and those in power who are in
Baku to go and visit Armenian hostages and demand an immediate release to all political prisoners, prisoners of war and hostages." While in Armenia, she also visited
Pink Armenia, which stated "We extend our gratitude to Greta Thunberg for raising Armenia's critical issues on international platforms and for showing her solidarity with the LGBT+ movement". She also visited the
Armenian Genocide memorial in Yerevan, stating, "Now it's up to each and everyone of us to continue spread awareness and demand justice. Never again for anyone."
COP30 protest On 24 November 2025, Thunberg and 35 other activists of the
Extinction Rebellion group dyed
Venice's
Grand Canal bright green as part of a climate protest. She was banned from the city for 48 hours and fined €150 (about $172).
Luca Zaia,
President of Veneto, accused Thunberg and the other activists of "risk[ing] ... consequences for the environment." The activists said that the dye they used was environmentally harmless. The protest was timed to coincide with the conclusion of the
COP30 climate conference in
Brazil.
SCA In October 2025, she joined the protests against
SCA (company), a Swedish logging company, in northern Sweden. The protest was organized by Swedish environmental activist group Skogsupproret. The objective of the protest was to pressure SCA (company) to put an end to the logging of old forests in and around Sami lands. In a video interview with
Sveriges Television, she says: "In an escalating climate and biodiversity crisis, we should prioritize better and the Sami village has said a clear no." SCA (company) started logging in the area a week prior to the protests. == Position on climate change ==