Protesters will ask students to leave lectures on Friday for climate strike

This Friday protesters will enter Edinburgh University lectures and encourage students to leave them in protest against climate change.

In place of attending lectures, Scottish Youth Climate Strike and People and Planet Edinburgh are rallying students to join a "mass walkout" and day long "general strike" from university.

The initiative has been organised in coordination with Global Climate Strike, an international movement encouraging people everywhere to strike for the climate between the 20th-27th September.

Activists do not plan on "shouting down" lectures and will ask permission from lecturers to speak "for a couple of minutes" before class begins.

Protesters are leaving it "entirely up to lecturers" as to whether they should walk out of their own class.

Speaking to The Edinburgh Tab, strike organiser and Edinburgh University student Rory Leval said: "On the 20th of September, millions of people around the world will go on strike.

"A demand for action which started with one Swedish 16-year-old has turned into an enormous movement consisting of workers, school children and students demanding change in the face of human extinction…

"Climate strike organisers will, therefore, be going into lectures and asking people to leave class, to join with millions of workers and school children in the streets across the world in demanding urgent action to save humanity and the earth.

"There is almost no reason why students at the University of Edinburgh would not join in. Whilst our parents may die of old age, we, unless we fundamentally transform society, will die of climate change."

Alongside leaving lectures, Scottish Youth Climate Strike and People and Planet Edinburgh are encouraging students to join an Edinburgh-wide march taking place at 11am.

The march will begin on Middle Meadow Walk and end outside Scottish Parliament where a rally will take place.

A University of Edinburgh spokesperson said: “We share peoples’ deep concern about the climate crisis and the need for a sustained and urgent response. We support the right of all students to protest lawfully and peacefully – it will be a matter of individual choice for those who decide to miss class on 20 September and they will not be penalised for doing so. However, no student should feel under any pressure to miss classes. The University will operate as usual throughout the day.

“There will be a number of University events and stalls across our campuses on the day of action. People will be able to learn more about the contribution the University is making to tackle climate change and to share their views on our future approach. More information about these events can be found here."

It is not yet clear whether the walkout is being endorsed or discouraged by EUSA.

They have been approached for comment.