On Friday, high school and college students dropped everything to join an on-campus Climate Strike, the second of its kind in Chico.

“We’re stopping business as usual and demanding that transformative action be taken to address the climate crisis we are currently living through,” Steven Marquardt of Sunrise Chico said.

The strike began at 9 a.m. with intention setting and team building.

This was followed by a rally between the Students Service Center and Bell Memorial Union. During the rally many spoke about their feelings towards the current administration as well as the reasons they came out to strike.

“We are here because in 10 years if we do not take action we might not have our world here anymore as we know it,” Alexander Smith, one of the students who participated in the strike, said.

Professor of philosophy Susan Dobra held her class at the rally to encourage students to come out to the strike.

“This to me is based on science, students still may not be convinced on (climate change) and it’s my job to give them the evidence so that they can make up their minds,” Dobra said during the strike.

During the rally, members of the strike also walked the campus with signs and drums to make it known what was being done.

The rally also included workshops, performances and teach-ins. Speakers also went into the workings of the Green New Deal to further educate the audience.

“We are one of the most sustainable schools here on the planet, but this isn’t just only us, this is a national strike and we need to hold those at the top accountable,” Smith said.

Carolyn Allen and Jack Lewis can be reached at [email protected].