Students walked out of their classrooms and workers walked off their jobs Friday to gather in Hartford for a Climate Change Strike, like those held around the globe.

News 12’s John Craven was at the state Capitol where he says a new generation, nervous about the climate change, were united in their cause.

"If you don't like something, then do something about it,” says Sena Wazer, a student at UConn. “…I still want a safe future for us and our generation."

Officials say in 2017, only 11 percent of the nation's energy consumption came from renewables. Connecticut, however, is ahead of the nation. Half the state’s power comes from renewable energy.

Gov. Ned Lamont wants to go carbon-free in two decades and the state just made a big commitment to wind power. Also, Connecticut's last coal plant housed in Bridgeport is about to go offline.

Critics argue that the state is still too reliant on natural gas.

Environmental groups also want to convert Connecticut's bus fleet to electric vehicles. They can cost up to seven times more but would have money on gas.

Earth has warmed about 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit since before the Industrial Revolution, and scientists have attributed more than 90 percent of the increase to emissions of heat-trapping gases from fuel-burning and other human activity.

Scientists have warned that global warming will subject Earth to rising seas and more heat waves, droughts, powerful storms, flooding and other problems, and that some have already started manifesting themselves.

Climate change has made record-breaking heat temperature records twice as likely as record-setting cold temperatures over the past two decades in the contiguous U.S., according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data.

AP Wire Services were used in this report.