Photo/Illutration College students pose in front of the Climate Clock installed at the Shibu Hachi Box tourist information office in front of Shibuya Station in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward on April 15. (Ryo Takeda)

A group of student environmental activists set up a Climate Clock in front of Shibuya Station in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward to alert people that time is running out until there is a climate doomsday.

The clock shows there are only about seven years left until the average global temperature rises by 1.5 degrees compared to prior to the Industrial Revolution. The rise is the target of the Paris Agreement, which is aimed at reducing global greenhouse gas emissions. 

Concern is growing among climate experts and activists that global warming could be irreversible in about seven years unless strong measures change the current trend. 

“Shibuya is a source of youth culture,” said Mutsumi Kurobu, 20, a third-year student at the Kunitachi College of Music, who helped install the clock.

“I hope we can install many Climate Clocks and create momentum for a culture where everyone naturally protects the environment.”

It was installed at the Shibu Hachi Box tourist information office in mid-April.

Measuring 40 centimeters wide and 10 cm high, the clock counts down the time that is left before the climate doomsday. 

A QR code displayed on the same screen leads to a campaign website with detailed explanations.

A group of climate change-conscious student activists called “a(n) action,” comprising nine high school and college students, played a key role in installing the Climate Clock.

Of these, seven members raised 13.536 million yen ($105,800) from 1,546 people through a crowdfunding campaign in about one and a half months.

Kurobu joined the cause after visiting Sweden when she was a high school student.

She witnessed how members of the same generation as her own skipped school to stage a sit-in protest to call for action against climate change.

Kurobu was inspired that she could also serve as a catalyst for change in society.

After returning home, she started spreading information on environmental issues via social media.

With the help of the Shibuya City Tourism Association, the group intends to install a Climate Clock at 100 spots in the ward, including educational institutions and commercial complexes.

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