An estimated 10,000 people attended the school climate strike event in Newcastle on Friday, calling for more immediate action from government leaders to meet Australia's Paris Agreement commitments. Organisers say they are ecstatic at the level of community support and confident their message is being heard.
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The Civic Park event was one of about 100 held around the country and coincided with similar events being held in 150 countries around the world.
Organisers of the Newcastle rally, the fourth held in the city, had said before the event they were hoping for broader community participation and that's what they got, with thousands of adults turning out in support of the students.
The event began at about midday with a mass of people gathering in the centre of Civic Park for a series of passionate speeches from local high school students.
A march then took off in a westerly direction along King Street, before hooking its way through Cooks Hill and back down Darby Street to the park.
The strike and march comes only two days after a landmark NSW Independent Planning Commission decision to refuse the KEPCO Bylong coal mine because the long-term environmental costs of approving the mine, including the contribution to climate change, "will be borne by future generations".
The decision showed "Our voices are being heard", Newcastle organiser Alexa Stuart of Lambton High School said.
