The morning began with an electric hush. At Manik Mia Avenue in Dhaka, banners fluttered in the low sun, voices gathered, breaths held in quiet reverence. Young climate activists—students, poets, farmers, everyday citizens—stood shoulder to shoulder, their chants rising soft and steady: “fund our future,” “we want justice,” “save our planet.” On that September day in 2023, Bangladesh marked more than a protest; it marked a turning point.
What began as hundreds of voices became a symphony carried across 25 districts, each echoing the same demand: act now, or watch our future slip away. The global climate strike had found in Bangladesh not just participants, but believers.
The Strike That Spoke For Many
On September 15, 2023, young climate activists across Bangladesh joined hands with a worldwide movement. The strike spread to 25 districts—including Dhaka, Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar, Sylhet, Barisal, Jessore, and Khulna—bringing together voices from urban high rises to vulnerable coastal hamlets.
In the capital, the gathering outside the National Press Club began around 9:30 a.m. Within minutes, a sea of placards and banners filled the road. Slogans like “Leave fossil fuel in the ground” and “Our future is not for sale” echoed across the crowd.
Rifat Anik, an organizer with Stories of Change, reflected, “It was truly inspiring to witness the overwhelming presence of young individuals.” Meanwhile, Sohanur Rahman, executive coordinator of YouthNet for Climate Justice, put it plainly: “We cannot afford to add more fuel to the fire.”
The strike’s demands were firm and clear:
- End the financing of new fossil fuel projects.
- Accelerate the transition to renewable energy.
- Scale up climate finance, especially for frontline communities.
It was this third demand—climate finance—that resonated deeply, echoing beyond slogans into strategic necessity. Many activists observe that while emission cuts and green tech are vital, without funding those shifts, promises remain hollow.
More Than A Protest: Voices From The Ground
While the strike itself made headlines, the real power lay in its stories—those of students, parents, farmers, and community leaders who had already felt climate change’s weight.
In the Haor regions of northeast Bangladesh, communities have long battled flooding and erratic rainfall. Young activists there spoke of submerged fields, failing crops, and futures violently reshaped by storms.
During the 2025 climate strike, YOUCAN (Young Climate Action Network) organized in districts including Sunamganj, Sylhet, Dinajpur, and Patuakhali—amplifying the cries of these frontline communities.
On April 11, 2025, Dhaka’s Manik Mia Avenue again transformed into a stage of hope and resistance. Over 1,000 youths and citizens converged, carrying climate art, placards, and stories of lived loss. The strike was organized by YOUCAN, Fridays for Future Bangladesh, and ActionAid, with over 35 youth and civil society organizations collaborating.
One especially poignant moment: a young girl from a coastal district raised a placard that read, “Saltwater stole my father’s farm.” Others nearby nodded in solemn affirmation. The crowd pressed forward, not in anger, but in determined solidarity.
Mohua Rouf, representing Save the Children, reminded the audience: “State and non-state actors must work together, ensuring transparency and accountability—so climate funding reaches people who need it most.”
Ayesha Akter Eti, founder of the World Youth Army and climate activist, declared, “Fossil fuels are killing us. We must shift now to clean energy.”
A Movement Broadens: Youth, Workers, Justice
The jovem energy behind Bangladesh’s climate movement did not emerge in a vacuum. In recent years, youth voices have grown louder across Dhaka and beyond, mobilizing not only for green causes, but demanding fair development and political accountability.
Yet many observers note a gap: the labor force—garment workers, small farmers, day laborers—has remained largely absent from public climate debate. In a 2023 feature, the Reuters Thomson Foundation reported that while youth-led climate activism is expanding, workers and vulnerable social groups remain underrepresented.
Professor Shamsad Mortuza, coauthor of a report on just transitions, urged that any green shift must involve marginalized populations, including women, low-income communities, and workers from carbon-intensive industries.
One activist put it simply: climate justice cannot be achieved without social justice. As Bangladesh prepares its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under global climate agreements, the task ahead is not only technical—it is political, inclusive, and just.
Four Lessons From Bangladesh’s Climate Surge
From the waves of protest to the stories whispered in flood-ruined villages, Bangladesh offers lessons worth global attention. Among them, four deserve special emphasis:
- Youth Are Not Just Messengers; They Are Architects: The Bangladeshi climate strike was youth-led—from organizing committees to frontline speeches. Their voice is shaping national climate discourse, not waiting for permission to speak.
- Finance Is The Fulcrum: In every district, in every chant, the cry for “fund our future” wove through the movement. Activists argue that without adequate, equitable climate finance—especially directed to most-affected people—ambitious plans remain wishful.
- Local Stories Are Shared Stories: Coastal farmers, haor communities, riverbank dwellers—climate impacts are not distant. The activism in Dhaka is inseparable from the flooding in Sylhet or salt intrusion in Patuakhali. The narrative is personal, not abstract.
- Justice Must Lead Transitions: A key lesson—and one sometimes overlooked—is that clean energy or emission targets alone aren’t enough. The movement insists that transitions must be equitable, rights-based, and inclusive. Labor groups, vulnerable communities, and marginalized voices must not be left behind.
Among the gathered activists, a quiet murmur spread: “If we ask for progress without justice, it’s just another debt we pass to our children.”
Looking Forward: Hope In Motion
As the strikes dwindled, many expected quiet. But in Bangladesh, the momentum has kept surging.
In policy circles, climate issues now command attention. The government has engaged consultations around climate adaptation funds and energy policy shifts. Yet activists caution that real change means more than talk—it means transparency, equitable funding channels, and accountability all the way to district levels.
In communities still battered by monsoon flooding or land erosion, climate resilience projects—mangrove restoration, local solar systems, rainwater harvesting—are slowly taking root. But the scale and equity of these efforts remain uneven.
Among the most compelling voices is Farzana Faruk Jhumu, a Bangladeshi climate activist and advocate with Fridays for Future. For Farzana, this movement is not protest: it’s responsibility. She reminds us: “We have the solutions; we can deal with the crisis.”
Her journey—growing from local plastic cleanups to global climate forums—mirrors the arc of Bangladesh’s youth activism: grounded, hopeful, insistent.
Epilogue: The Strike That Never Ended
A single day of protest cannot solve climate change. But in Bangladesh, the strike of 2023 and its successors became something else: a testament, a turning point, a call that refuses to fade.
In the alleys of Dhaka, in the rice paddies of the delta, in the tidal zones of the south—those banners still float. The voices still demand finance, justice, and futures. The movement may rest, but it has not recoiled.
Bangladesh is witness to what many countries hope for: when youth, when communities, when justice and science converge, momentum becomes enduring. The climate strike became not an event, but a question: What happens next?
And in that question lies hope.
