London, January 13, 2025 – Climate activists from Just Stop Oil spray-painted Charles Darwin’s grave in London’s Westminster Abbey on January 13, using orange chalk to write “1.5 is dead.” The message refers to global temperatures exceeding 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels for the first time in 2024.
The two activists involved, Alyson Lee and Di Bligh, entered the Abbey early in the morning and carried out the protest to highlight the urgency of climate action. “We have passed the 1.5-degree threshold that was supposed to keep us safe,” one activist said. “Darwin would be turning in his grave to know we are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction.”
Westminster Abbey’s conservators are working to clean the memorial and do not anticipate any permanent damage. The police arrested the two women on suspicion of causing criminal damage.