Extinction Rebellion put up mural at Cornish beach Porthtowan

It has gone up in Porthtowan and depicts a timeline with some of the successful protest movements over the last 200 years.

It initially caused some confusion over where it came from, but it has now been revealed to be the work of local environmental activists who said they wanted to remind people that great positive changes in history have come about because ordinary people took action.

It includes historical movements including the abolition of slavery in 1833, and votes for women in the early 1900s, as well as more recent success stories, including the successful campaigning by Surfers Against Sewage against the dumping of raw sewage off our beaches and the abolition of poll tax in the 1990s.

The final panels of the mural are dedicated to climate activism over the past two years, starting with the School Climate Strikes, inspired by Greta Thunberg, whose quote “no voice is too small to make a difference” has been followed by more than 1.4 million young people taking part in protests globally since she started the strikes in 2018.

A panoramic shot of the mural in full

Cornwall Council’s declaration of a climate emergency is also included, as are the 2019 Extinction Rebellion protests.

The mural ends with a mirror, and the Ghandi quote “ be the change you wish to see in the world”, with the timeline itself ending with a large question mark. Designers say they want the ending of the mural to make people realise that the future is in all their hands, and that everyone has the power to make that future a more positive one, if they are prepared to take action.

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It has been put up by the Porthtowan and Surrounds Extinction Rebellion group, with a spokesperson saying: "We hope the timeline will help people to draw parallels with our movement and others which, in their time may have been considered to be 'extremist', but with the benefit of hindsight we now see were fighting for long overdue, universally recognized justices.

It ends with a mirror encouraging people to look at what they can do

"The challenges posed by the Covid-19 crisis have highlighted that we are capable of great change when our lives and the lives of our loved ones are at risk. The risks posed by climate change are great, and very real, and so we need to demand that our Government take them even more seriously than they are taking the risks of Covid-19."

They added that while some locals were disappointed not to have been consulted, "most understood the need for rapid action on the climate and ecological emergency, and the fact that there simply isn’t time for lengthy consultation processes."

Kerensa Trebilcock, owners of the Nature’s Treats shop, said: “ I love the mural, it's very thought provoking and powerful. An important reminder that when people come together they can bring about change. I hope it's got people thinking and feeling hopeful for a better future.”