Climate activist Greta Thunberg has been barred from entering Venice for 48 hours after taking part in a dramatic climate demonstration that turned the city’s famed Grand Canal bright green.
According to Fox News, authorities issued the ban and a $172 fine to the 22-year-old Swede, along with roughly 35 other Extinction Rebellion activists involved in the action, according to The Telegraph.
In a statement, Extinction Rebellion said the group used a fluorescent, non-toxic tracer dye — a substance commonly used by scientists to study water movement and detect leaks. They insisted the dye posed no danger to the city’s waterways.
The group argued the brightly colored stunt was intended to “draw attention to the massive effects of climate collapse,” noting that Venice is among Europe’s most vulnerable cities as sea levels rise and flooding becomes more frequent.
Thunberg’s appearance in Venice came immediately after the close of the COP30 climate summit in Brazil. Extinction Rebellion had coordinated demonstrations across ten Italian cities to coincide with the high-profile climate talks.
In Genoa and Padova, activists dyed public fountains. In Turin, Bologna, and Taranto, rivers were turned vivid green. Meanwhile, in Venice, a banner reading “Stop Ecocide” was draped from the Rialto Bridge as a silent flash-mob of protesters, dressed in flowing red veils, wove through crowds of tourists.
Local leaders reacted sharply.
Veneto Province Gov. Luca Zaia said the group’s actions were “a gesture that risks having consequences for the environment,” despite the activists’ assurances that the dye was harmless.
He also blasted the demonstration as “a disrespectful act towards our city, its history and its fragility.”
Extinction Rebellion, for its part, criticized the Italian government under Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for resisting stronger climate commitments during COP30 — setting the stage for even more confrontational protests in the months ahead.
