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Wimbledon, the Ashes, the Proms and George Osborne\\u2019s wedding have all been interrupted by \\u2018Just Stop Oil\\u2019 protesters in recent days. Several areas of London have been brought to a standstill, provoking the ire of motorists and leading to multiple arrests. \\u2018Just Stop Oil\\u2019 describes itself as a \\u201cnonviolent civil resistance group demanding the UK Government stop licensing all new oil, gas and coal projects\\u201d. The Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he wouldn't be \\u201cgiving in to eco-zealots\\u201d disrupting the British summer.

The group\\u2019s supporters believe that blocking traffic, interrupting sporting events and vandalising artwork, are entirely proportionate in the face of an existential crisis bequeathed to our children and grandchildren. Right now, they argue, parts of Europe are literally on fire, and there is no more time left to wait for those in power to do the right thing. Their critics object to the fact that the targets of the protests are often ordinary people, who have more immediate concerns like the rising cost of living. Moreover, some believe the use of apocalyptic language is less likely to elicit a change in behaviour, since despair, like indifference, is not a good motivator.

How might our descendants judge today\\u2019s climate activists? Successful movements for social change, like the Suffragettes, have historically been disrupters who, in the face of inaction, adopt increasingly radical tactics. For some, the spirit they embody is irrepressible and necessary, which means that their methods cannot always be peaceful. For others, social progress can only be fully achieved through conventional democratic means.

Are acts of civil disobedience and sabotage by climate activists morally justifiable?

Producer: Dan Tierney.