Greta Thunberg Named TIME Magazine’s Person of the Year for 2019

TIME Magazine honored Greta Thunberg on Wednesday by declaring the teen environmental activist as their 2019 Person of the Year.

Thunberg became an international person of interest this year when she sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to warn about climate change in a speech to the United Nations. The speech had a bombastic reception as Thunberg warned the U.N. that their member nations aren’t doing enough to protect the environment and that future generations “will never forgive you” if failure to act eventually leads to a calamitous global climate shift.

TIME’s profile on Thunberg recounts her international travels and how her advocacy led her to grabbing the attention of numerous world leaders. They also heap praise on her for being frank and direct about her argument that the world must take heed of the science before climate change and everything it entails goes beyond human control.

“Thunberg is not a leader of any political party or advocacy group. She is neither the first to sound the alarm about the climate crisis nor the most qualified to fix it. She is not a scientist or a politician. She has no access to traditional levers of influence: she’s not a billionaire or a princess, a pop star or even an adult. She is an ordinary teenage girl who, in summoning the courage to speak truth to power, became the icon of a generation. By clarifying an abstract danger with piercing outrage, Thunberg became the most compelling voice on the most important issue facing the planet.”

TIME editor-in-chief Edward Felsenthal gave an interview on NBC to elaborate on the magazine’s choice, saying Thunberg “represents a broader generational shift in the culture” with how she sparked a worldwide movement.

“She embodies student activists” Craig Melvin summed up, to which, Felsenthal agreed and added, “she embodies youth activism, and youngest person ever to be person of the year.”

Watch above, via NBC.