From Barcelona to Athens, Seoul to Melbourne, the massive demonstrations — spearheaded by 16-year-old activist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Greta Thunberg from Sweden — captured the imagination of schoolchildren and others around the globe.

Thousands of Italian students participated in the protest and certainly made their voices heard.

With 235 events planned on the day, Italy was preparing to hold more demonstrations than any of the other 130 countries taking part in the so-called Fridays for Future movement.

In Rome, students from primary school up to university ditched their desks and marched past the Colosseum towards Piazza Venezia, where thousands were expected to gather for a series of speeches by young climate activists.

In Milan, students headed for city hall, where they’d planned a sit-in.

They carried posters and banners emblazoned with messages such as “No time left” and “There’s no planet B”.

Organisers said that, as of mid-morning, some 30,000 people were taking part in the march in Milan alone.

The protest was joined by the city’s mayor, Giuseppe Sala, who is one of nine mayors worldwide to have invited school children for talks on how their city can be made more sustainable. 

“Thanks for what you’re doing today, but start thinking already about what you’ll do tomorrow,” Sala told the marchers.

“Milan is setting a great example for Italy and you should feel that responsibility. What happens here will influence our whole country.”

Demonstrations were planned in some 200 other Italian towns and cities, including Venice, Naples, Florence, Turin, Bologna and Genoa.

Photo: ANSA

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte took to Facebook to express his support for the students.

“Climate change is a crucial challenge to safeguarding the future of our planet,” he wrote.

“Heads of state and government not only have the moral obligation to listen to the cries of alarm being raised today from every corner of the world, they must also take concrete steps. Apathy would be an unforgivable, historic sin.”

Conte said that “we still have a long way to go”, but that “the presence of thousands of young people in the streets gives us more incentive to move forward”.