Fijileaks
  • Home
  • Archive Home
  • In-depth Analysis
    • BOI Report into George Speight and others beatings
  • Documents
  • Opinion
  • CRC Submissions
  • Features
  • Archive

MISSED OPPORTUNITY: "We don't need Greta Thunberg. We have our own youth climate champions". Fiji's Permanent Representative at the United Nations, Dr Satyendra Prasad, sabotaged Thunberg NY meeting

7/11/2021

 

"One of the great failures of Fiji's climate action campaign has been the missed opportunity of not linking up with arguably the world's foremost climate crusader and inarguably the biggest star at COP26 - the young Swedish activist, Greta Thunberg. And the blame for that rests squarely with Fiji's Permanent Representative at the United Nations, Dr Satyendra Prasad. As part of the communications team at the UN Climate Summit in New York in September 2019, we put a lot of effort into developing close ties with Greta Thunberg and her team to try to link her with Fiji's overall campaign and benefit from her immense appeal with young people the world over, including Fiji...A time and place were set - in the forecourt of the UN headquarters building by the East River - and everything was set to proceed. But then on the eve of the meeting, Satyendra Prasad used his influence with the Prime Minister to shut it down. We sat there stunned as he dismissively said: "We don't need Greta Thunberg. We have our own youth climate champions". "
GRAHAM DAVIS, Grubsheet

Picture
Picture
Thunberg arriving in Glasgow
Picture
Picture
GRUBSHEET: One of the great failures of Fiji's climate action campaign has been the missed opportunity of not linking up with arguably the world's foremost climate crusader and inarguably the biggest star at COP26 - the young Swedish activist, Greta Thunberg. And the blame for that rests squarely with Fiji's Permanent Representative at the United Nations, Dr Satyendra Prasad.

As part of the communications team at the UN Climate Summit in New York in September 2019, we put a lot of effort into developing close ties with Greta Thunberg and her team to try to link her with Fiji's overall campaign and benefit from her immense appeal with young people the world over, including Fiji. One of our team members spent several weeks getting close to the Thunberg camp with a view to setting up a meeting and photo call between her and Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama - the former COP23 President - and Thunberg's people were keen for this to happen.

A time and place were set - in the forecourt of the UN headquarters building by the East River - and everything was set to proceed. But then on the eve of the meeting, Satyendra Prasad used his influence with the Prime Minister to shut it down. We sat there stunned as he dismissively said: "We don't need Greta Thunberg. We have our own youth climate champions".

While that was true, Thunberg was already a global star whose celebrity could have added lustre to our young Fijian campaigners and Fiji's overall campaign. But Dr Prasad ( the "Dr" is a PhD in sociology) had other ideas and we were forced to go back to Thunberg's people with an apology and the excuse that Frank Bainimarama didn't have time in his busy schedule to meet her. He did but she wasn't important enough for the PM or Dr Prasad.

A lost opportunity that ought to niggle both of them at COP26 now that Greta Thunberg is an even bigger star and bigger than either of them will ever be. But as strangers to shame - and with barely a passing acquaintance with self awareness - don't bet on it.

Picture
Picture

From Fijileaks Archives

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture

Comments are closed.
    Contact Email
    ​[email protected]
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Archives

    June 2025
    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012