About 70,000 people at Amsterdam climate march, largest in the Netherlands

About 70,000 people participated in the climate march in Amsterdam on Sunday, an initial estimate shows. The organizer Climate Crisis Coalition speaks of a record number and points out that the entire route of more than 3 kilometers is full.

🙌 70.000(!) mensen and counting.. Dit is officieel onze grootste opkomst ooit. De politiek kan niet meer om ons heen. Politici, letten jullie op? Het signaal is duidelijk: de klimaatcrisis is nu en raakt ons allemaal. Nederland wil een eerlijke en groene toekomst! #klimaatmars pic.twitter.com/hqffi0MRyZ

— Klimaatmars (@klimaatmars) November 12, 2023

The police will only announce the final number of participants after the end of the demonstration but also point out that it is very busy in the city. "There is a good atmosphere, it is busy but manageable," said a police spokesperson.

The march started shortly after 1 p.m., but there were so many people that the march couldn't really move for a while, according to a reporter on the scene. Shortly after 2 p.m., the end of the climate march was almost gone from Dam Square and on its way to Museumplein. The climate demonstrators chanted, played music, and whistled.

"The oceans are rising, and so are we!" ✊ De sfeer zit er goed in. Duizenden mensen doen mee aan de mars en roepen de politiek op voor een ander klimaat! #klimaatmars #decrisisisnu pic.twitter.com/DYo1M2xenM

— Klimaatmars (@klimaatmars) November 12, 2023

According to the climate activists, there are many environmental and economic problems in the Netherlands and the rest of the world that are all linked to the climate crisis: New heat records, extreme weather conditions, housing shortages, and the slide of many people into poverty while companies make their profits. They are therefore calling on politicians to take immediate action. A previous climate march in Amsterdam in 2021 was attended by 40,000 people.

“While the crisis is now, politicians are failing to come up with good solutions. The much-needed transition to a sustainable and just society is not happening,” the Climate Crisis Coalition states on its website.

The march is being organized by the Climate Crisis Coalition, an alliance of Oxfam Novib, FNV, Fridays For Future, Greenpeace, Extinction Rebellion, Fossil Free NL, Milieudefensie, DeGoedeZaak, and TNI.