Swedish teen leads Belgian students on 7th climate march

BRUSSELS (AP) - Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg led a march of thousands of Belgian students who are skipped classes for the seventh Thursday in a row to march through Brussels and draw more attention to fighting climate change.

The 16-year-old Thunberg first addressed a European Union conference, chiding adults for their inaction in the face of such climatic global dangers. She said youngsters are being forced to skip school and protest because adults are not addressing climate issues quickly enough.

She told the European Economic and Social Committee plenary session that "we are school striking because we have done our homework" on the dangers facing the Earth.

Thunberg has become her generation's voice on climate change after inspiring students around the world to go on strike to express their anger and angst over global warming.

Also at the conference was EU Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker who said he was "glad to see that young people are taking to the streets for climate change."

"It can in fact bring change," Juncker said notwithstanding the fact that Thunberg had chided his class of politicians for negligence in the face of such challenges.

Now, Thunberg wants the adult to move immediately.

"There is simply not enough time to wait for us to grow up and become the ones in charge," she said.

The march itself under a wintry sunshine gathered some 7,500 protesters in Brussels. Thousands more were marching in large provincial cities.