Greta Thunberg to receive honorary doctorate from Finnish university

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Climate activist Greta Thunberg is to be awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Helsinki’s theology department in late Spring. 

The 20-year-old Swedish climate activist was named Monday among 30 other individuals to be awarded the title of "doctor honoris causa" – the university’s highest recognition. Among the most high-profile names included in the list was Sauli Niinistö, Finland’s president since 2012, who has been appointed an honorary doctorate in philosophy. The ceremony will take place in May. 

FILE: Climate activist Greta Thunberg gestures as she walks outside during the World Economic Forum in Davos (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland January 19, 2023. (Reuters)

The ceremony is part of Finland’s centuries-old Conferment of Jubilee, in which individuals are recognized for their professional and artistic achievements. 

Thunberg, a world-recognized climate protester from Sweden, was previously appointed an honorary doctorate at the Belgian University of Mons. 

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In 2019, she was named TIME Magazine’s "Person of the Year" for raising awareness of climate change. 

As a teen, she famously scolded world leaders during a speech at the United Nations, saying the world was in the beginning of a "mass extinction" but leaders were simply focused on money. 

"How dare you! You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words, and yet, I am one of the lucky ones," she said. 

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The announcement of Thunberg’s honorary title comes as a Swedish court gave her and hundreds of other climate activists the okay to proceed with a class action lawsuit against the Swedish state for "insufficient climate policy." 

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Thunberg and some 600 other activists in a group called Aurora sued the Swedish government in November, claiming it needed to be more proactive in addressing global warming to live up to the European Convention on Human Rights. 

Reuters contributed to this report.