Thousands of young people are holding rallies and marches around the world on 29 November demanding greater action to stop the effects of climate change. The Fridays for Future group called on young people to mark a "Global Day of Climate Action" ahead of the major UN Climate Change Conference in Madrid in December.

Australians were among the first to join the protests. Thousands of students skipped class on Friday to call for stronger action to combat climate change, which they blame for contributing to the recent wave of devastating wildfires there. The protests then shifted to Europe.

On Thursday night, leaders of the UK's major political parties took part in a televised debate on climate change ahead of the country's general election on 12 December. Prime Minister Boris Johnson decided not to attend and was replaced on the set with a melting block of ice.

While these global protests are aimed at focusing global attention on climate change, each country has its own objectives and complaints.  

In Hungary, for example, where hundreds of young activists marched on the Parliament Building, there is no Ministry of the Environment. The government has made commitments to reduce carbon emissions but critics say nothing concrete has been enacted so far.

In Spain, which is hosting the UN climate conference, the focus was on shopping. Protesters targeted stores in downtown Madrid, urging consumers to boycott the frenzy that comes with price discounts on so-called Black Friday. They believe consumerism also contributes to the climate problem.

Similar protests took place in France, where activists targeted the online retailer Amazon around the country and tried to blockade a shopping mall in Paris, denouncing it as rampant consumerism.

In Berlin, 24 environmental activists jumped into the chilly waters of the Spree river to protest the parliament's blocking of a government-backed package to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Elsewhere, thousands took to the streets across Germany as part of the Friday for Future protests. Similar marches took place throughout Europe.

In Poland, activists, some in gas masks, chanted and waved banners, which read: "Save our planet," "Plastics plague our oceans" and "Poland without coal 2030."

Swedish activist Greta Thunberg had been due to join a student strike in Lisbon, but her environmentally friendly voyage across the Atlantic from New York by sailboat was hit by high winds, delaying her by a few days, she told her social media followers.

Three weeks ago, US President Donald Trump formally announced the country will withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change. The European parliament on Thursday declared a Climate Emergency, calling for immediate stricter targets to limit the effects of climate change.

Now in the build-up to the UN Climate conference in December, many are looking to the European Union to take a leading role in combating climate change.