Thunberg has inspired a number of her school-aged peers in what has been described as the "Greta Thunberg effect".
[52] In response to her outspoken stance, various politicians have also acknowledged the need to focus on climate change. Britain's secretary for the environment,
Michael Gove, said: "When I listened to you, I felt great admiration, but also responsibility and guilt. I am of your parents' generation, and I recognise that we haven't done nearly enough to address climate change and the broader environmental crisis that we helped to create." Labour politician
Ed Miliband, who was responsible for introducing the
Climate Change Act 2008, said: "You have woken us up. We thank you. All the young people who have gone on strike have held up a mirror to our society … you have taught us all a really important lesson. You have stood out from the crowd."
[7] In June 2019, a
YouGov poll in Britain found that public concern about the environment had soared to record levels in the UK since Thunberg and
Extinction Rebellionhad "pierced the bubble of denial".
[53]
In August 2019, a doubling in the number of children's books being published which address the climate crisis was reported, with a similar increase in the sales of such books—all aimed at empowering young people to save the planet. Publishers attribute this to the "Greta Thunberg effect".
[54]
Inspired by Thunberg, wealthy philanthropists and investors from the United States have donated almost half a million pounds to support Extinction Rebellion and school strike groups to establish the Climate Emergency Fund.
[55] Trevor Neilson, one of the philanthropists, said the three founders would be contacting friends among the global mega-rich to donate "a hundred times" more in the weeks and months ahead.
[56]
In February 2019, Thunberg shared a stage with the then
President of the European Commission,
Jean-Claude Juncker, where he outlined “In the next financial period from 2021 to 2027, every fourth euro spent within the EU budget will go towards action to mitigate climate change”.
[57] Climate issues also played a significant role in European elections in May 2019
[58] as Green parties nearly doubled their vote to finish second on 21%,
[59] boosting their MEP numbers to a projected 71.
[60] Many of the gains came from northern European countries where young people have taken to the streets inspired by Thunberg.
[59] The result gives the Greens a chance of becoming 'kingmakers' in the new European parliament.
[60]
In June 2019,
Swedish Railways (SJ) reported that the number of Swedes taking the train for domestic journeys had risen by 8% from the previous year, reflecting growing public concern about the impact of flying on CO
2emissions that is highlighted by Thunberg's refusal to fly to international conferences. Being embarrassed or ashamed to take a plane because of its environmental impact has been described on social media as 'Flygskam' or "Shame of flying", along with the hashtag #jagstannarpåmarken, which translates as #istayontheground.
[61][62]