It would arguably be in the fitness of things if the next statement of intent on climate change is crafted by the 16-year-old Swedish climate activist, Greta Thunberg. It sure will be riveted to brass tacks rather than hi-falutin platitudes that translate to nothing in tangible terms. Her resounding presentation to the UN Climate Action summit in New York on Monday is a speech that many world leaders would be proud of, but few able to claim.

It is bound to be part of the narrative on global warming, climate change and environmental pollution. Faced with the collective indecisiveness of the comity of nations, Greta has posed a simple query that is as pertinent as it is sharp ~ ‘How dare you? You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words’. World leaders will be fumbling for a response for some time yet. “If world leaders choose to fail us, my generation will never forgive them. We are in the middle of a climate breakdown, and all they can talk about is money and fairytales of eternal economic growth”.

Like Malala Yousufzai’s spirited performance on the subject of women’s education in the General Assembly last week. an adolescent has stumped the adult yet again, underlining the overwhelming failure of those who helm the nations of the world, developed and developing. It is quite another story if Greta’s stirring words attain fruition in an increasingly fractious world, which was put on notice last weekend with the climate strike, a spectacular rally by hundreds of thousands of teenagers from different parts of the world.

Greta was in the vanguard of the rally; her presentation at the UN summit was the logical culmination of her noble efforts in the midst of ignoble discord. Her bold assertion that the “politics and solutions needed are still nowhere in sight” must resonate in the echo chambers of the world powers. She has clothed her caveat with a statement of fact ~ “For more than 30 years the science has been crystal clear. You are failing us. But the young people are starting to understand your betrayal.

The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us I say we will never forgive you. We will not let you get away with this. Right here, right now is where we draw the line. The world is waking up. And change is coming, whether you like it or not.” Brave words. Greta has left the audience wondering why she had ascended the podium after all, her stirring voice amplified through the tannoy.

“I shouldn’t be standing here. I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean.” She has made it pretty obvious that she has emitted a signal to the world leaders in general with the evocative words ~ How dare you! She could well have been more specific ~ How dare Donald Trump, who has betrayed scant regard to the subject. No, this isn’t the same as Iran’s nuclear proliferation.