Greta Thunberg Says a Political Career Would Be Too ‘Toxic’

Greta Thunberg told the BBC on Monday she isn’t planning on going into politics, finding it far too “toxic” from up close. The 19-year-old Swedish activist said she also found it “genuinely funny” that world leaders—notably Russian President Vladimir Putin and former U.S. President Donald Trump—might “feel intimidated” by her. “It says more about them that it does about me,” she added. Thunberg didn’t elaborate on what career paths she might pursue as she gets older but commented that the battle against climate change will only progress “if there’s enough public pressure from the outside.” The young activist also revealed that she doesn’t plan to attend the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP27, to be held this November in Cairo, Egypt. “I’m not needed there,” she said. “There will be other people who will attend, from the most affected areas. And I think that their voice there is more important.”