Standing on a wooden tripod on a major road leading to Lisbon Airport, a young activist holds a pink flag that depicts an airplane in flames, and raises her clenched fist.
“Climate Justice Now!” reads a large banner hanging from a footbridge above the blocked road. Drums and chants echo across roads emptied of cars, as a few hundred people gather on a May afternoon waving flags and holding signs saying: “Fewer planes”, “More trains” and “Just transition”.
They are protesting the Portuguese government’s plans to build a second airport in Lisbon. This civil disobedience action was organised by the climate justice group Climáximo with support from other environmental organisations. Protesters called for a reduction in air travel, more railways and a just transition for workers in the aviation sector.
“We have very little time to avoid climate chaos and the…
