Thunberg,who turns 17 in January,is in Madridattending the annual United Nations climate summit,or COP25. She said she was"a bit surprised"to receive theTime honour,and wanted to dedicate the award to all young activists.

"I could never have imagined anything like that happening,"she said.

"I'm of course,very grateful for that,very honoured,"Thunberg said,but added that"it should be everyone in the Fridays for Future movement because what we have done,we have done together."

Thunberg said she was hopeful that the message being pushed by her and other activists - that governments need to drastically increase their efforts to combat climate change - is finally getting through.

But she insisted that the media should also pay attention to other activists,particularly indigenous people who she said"are hit hardest by the climate and environmental crisis,"and to the science around global warming.

"That is what I am trying to do,to use my platform to do,"she said.

In a speech at the summit on Wednesday,Thunberg saidbusiness and political leaders were misleading the public by holding negotiations that were not leading to real action against warming temperatures,which she referred to as a climate emergency.

"The real danger is when politicians and CEOs are making it look like real action is happening,when in fact almost nothing is being done,apart from clever accounting and creative PR,"she said.

"Finding holistic solutions is what the COP should be all about,but instead it seems to have turned into some kind of opportunity for countries to negotiate loopholes and to avoid raising their ambition."

The activist,whose speech garnered wide applause,cited scientific reports that have established that unchecked warming above 1.5 degrees Celsius for the planet would be catastrophic.

Reuters,AP,Washington Post