Insulate Britain: Who Are They?
By Kaitlyn Brannan, Leah Burgess, Emily Cosh and Eva Allan
Blocked Roads. Disrupted Traffic. Public Upset. For multiple months now the group of activists “Insulate Britain” have been dividing the nation. But who are they and what do they want?
‘Insulate Britain’ is the name of a group of people known as ‘activists’. This means that they care a lot about a certain problem in the world and want to try and fix that problem to make things better.
What do this group care about?
There are loads of groups of people around the world who care about important issues but this group in particular cares about an issue called Climate Change.
What is Climate Change?
Climate Change is when the earth’s temperature gets too warm and starts to become dangerous. The main cause of climate change is humans using things that are bad for the environment. These include things like cars, which burn fuel and make the earth hotter.
What are the group ‘Insulate Britain’ doing to try and help climate change?
The members of this group are protesting by going out onto very busy roads, called motorways, and sitting down in the middle of the road to stop any cars from getting by. They wear bright vests so everyone can see them and they refuse to move.
Why do they do this?
People who are in their cars get very angry at this because they are busy and in a rush. This then makes the Government have to think about ways to help and try to fix climate change. Which then makes the group of activists called ‘Insulate Britain’ happy because the issues they care about are finally being dealt with.
What are their goals?
‘Insulate Britain’ is demanding that every house in Britain be insulated by 2030. Their website states that improving “the quality of our homes is fundamental (something basic that is needed) to achieve the British Government’s climate change, fuel poverty and water reduction (to make something smaller) targets”. This means that in order for climate change to improve, the group believe that houses need to be upgraded to kickstart the solution to climate change.
Is their activism effective?
Whilst their actions have created an uproar and gained attention for their cause, many activists are now facing consequences. There have been 860 arrests made and up to 32% of the group’s activists are facing up to 2 years in prison for breaking the law by blocking traffic on motorways. However, just over a week ago, the well known climate activist Greta Thunberg voiced her support for their tactics. She stated that sometimes you have to annoy people to protect the environment.
