Hundreds of students have walked the streets of Bendigo protesting inaction on climate change.
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Thousands also took part in the protest movement in Melbourne.
Read more:
2.11pm
Lisa Chesters tells the crowd: "What you can do right now is tell your parents to vote out Scott Morrison." More cheers.
She's told the protesters she would like to have an informed debate about the complex issue.
2.07pm
The protesters have reached Bendigo MP Lisa Chesters' office.
She was there to meet the group.
"It's a big deal for anyone to strike, whether you're a student or a worker, and I really respect what you've done," she told the crowd.
"I remember doing something similar to what you're doing when I was 16."
Ms Chesters said she had not received a list of demands from the crowd and asked them what they wanted.
A voice shouted: "All we want is action!" and the crowd cheered its support.
Soon, it was chanting: "No more talk - action!"
2pm
Watch the march live here:
1.40pm
A CROWD is gathering in the gardens outside the Bendigo library ahead of the protest march.
Students and parents are there with picket signs, joining people across the country in calling for action on climate change.
Speakers rallied the crowd ahead of the march
"Who's ready to demand action on climate change?" a speaker asked, to a roar from the crowd.
The group will march from the library to the offices of local MPs.
Earlier
STUDENTS across the country will take to the streets on Friday to protest climate change.
The movement started with a small group of Castlemaine students last year and has quickly grown.
About 40 protests are planned for Friday, including in Bendigo.
In Castlemaine, about 400 people headed to Melbourne for strike action.
Castlemaine's Dean Bridgfoot is travelling to Melbourne with his son Callum Neilson Bridgfoot and other students.
He said it was bedlam at the Castlemaine Railway Station and V/Line had put on six extra buses.
Mr Bridgfoot described a fantastic energy among the protesters.
"They will march en masse from Southern Cross, up Collins Street, to the main rally at Treasury Building," he said.
Earlier this month, Callum, 12, called for action on climate change.
"Obviously we are lacking behind a lot of countries on climate change and that is something that we shouldn't be proud of," he said.
He first started school walk-outs in October, along with other students.
He, and Harriet O'Shea Carre and Milou Albrecht, both 14, said earlier this month they would continue their protests until the federal government stopped the Adani Coal Mine, prevented any new coal or gas projects, and committed to 100 per cent renewable energy sources by 2030.
In Bendigo, a group of students will march from the Bendigo Goldfields Library Gardens to the offices of local MPs.
Read more from previous strikes:
- November 30: Hundreds of central Victorian students rally for climate action
- November 27: School strike for climate action prompts ‘outrage’ from Prime Minister Scott Morrison
- November 2: ‘I don’t think children get to have a say at all’
- November 1: ‘Start treating climate change like the crisis it is’ – students strike
More to come
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