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Why you absolutely shouldn’t care about climate change

By: Athena Insixiengmai 

 As climate change rapidly destroys our planet, why not simply enjoy what we have left instead of building a new and improved world for the generations that follow? 

Act III of Famous Painting ‘The Garden of Earthly Delights’ by Hieronymous Bosch

 It is predicted that by the year 2030, the effects of climate change will be rendered irreversible, meaning an increase of natural disasters, unusual weather patterns, higher poverty rates and even mass reductions of food production will happen. Within the next 11 years, between 35 and 122 million people are at risk of being in extreme poverty, mostly counting smaller scale farming communities. But, as someone lucky enough to live in a highly developed country, why should I care?  

 During the making of the National Geographic documentary ‘Before the Flood,’ actor Leonardo DiCaprio finds that time is not a luxury we have, and as a matter of fact, we are rapidly running out of it. DiCaprio and director Fisher Stevens used his fanbase to their advantage to allow people to become more aware of the problem. Perhaps seeing that an award-winning actor makes people see that the problem is real to everyone, and that there are changes to be made.  

The climate crisis affects all, but only cared for by some. It is mostly human caused, and not to point fingers but the world has never seen such a rapid rise in global temperature before we came around. It is a challenge for this generation to tackle, though it is a community effort that creates real impact.  

 As we are all different, whether it be within beliefs or even interests, this planet is all we have in common. This problem is the world's opportunity to band together, all reaching for the same goal. Today, the goal is to prolong life, within the century, the goal will simply be survival.  

 What does it take to get people to care? Why aren’t people more aware?

 What we did 

 To summarize what we did to get ourselves here, we ate, we bought, we consumed. We want more than we can have, and more than the planet can withstand. It is important to understand where the things you consume come from, and the negative effects of buying/using too much. Our food, water and energy consumption are all very quickly turning back on us. According to data from a 2010 study from the University of Columbia, 67.3% of global greenhouse gas emissions are from fossil fuels, the other 32.7% include agriculture, land clearing and all other gas emissions. The burning of coal, usage of oil and gas are the main contributors, AKA the energy used to power homes and buildings, worldwide. Of course, we can’t live without our food, water or power but we can certainly reduce. We used more than the planet could ever imagine, with extreme rates of animal extinction, deforestation, sea level rises and natural disasters, take a stand and cut down on your consumption.  

 Where we’re at 

 If we continue living in the same way as we have been, we will raise the global temperature by approximately 5°C by the end of the century, a change so drastic that we haven’t seen it since the Ice Age. What we are seeing right now is extraordinarily disastrous, such as record-breaking heat, extreme weather, sea level rise and ocean dead zones. It may be nice to have beautiful beach weather but since 2002, we have had 9 out of 10 of the hottest summers ever recorded.

 Due to the global surface temperature rising, the Arctic ice is melting. In even simpler terms, less ice equals more heat. Stephanie Pfirman of Columbia University compares the Arctic as an air conditioner for the northern hemisphere and says that once we lose the surface that reflects the sun, we begin to absorb it. Another issue is how polluted our oceans have become. Oceans will absorb over ¼ of CO2 emissions each year, meaning the ocean acidity rises. This puts marine life at risk, which means the marine food chains that feed us are also affected. Other things happening today are intensifying hurricanes, rivers flooding, bodies of water disappearing, and more. The way I see it, every aspect of life is interconnected, once one part goes down, it begins to bring other parts down with it. 

Global Surface Temperature, measured in anomalies, image from NASA   

How we can fix it 

 As we are very much the problem, it is important to become the solution, or at least be a part of it. It is a hard pill to swallow when accepting that we cannot fix everything, choosing a few things to help does matter. It’s not everyone’s job to fix everything, it’s everyone’s job to try and fix something, anything. Not every impact has to be big and drastic, taking baby steps is okay but take too long to change and it may be too late. We are responsible as individuals and as a society to be aware of the challenges of today and to learn how to overcome them. 

 As individuals, we can make personal changes within our lifestyles. Changing our diets, our modes of transportation, our energy consumption and more are all things that are usually accessible and quite easy. Did you know that it takes almost 8000 liters of water to produce one pound of beef? A USGS study shows that eating poultry takes 2000 liters for one pound, significantly less but not necessarily better. Challenge yourself to start living a more sustainable life, remember that it isn’t only for you, it is for the home you’ve always known.  

 Being a person on this planet makes you a part of a population, but it also means you are part of a community. As a community, we are the ones responsible to prolong the lives of our future generations, giving them the same opportunities of life that we’ve had. Quite a few regions of the world have access to much more sustainable energy, such as wind, water and solar/sun power. A University of California study says that if the world turned to WWS power (wind, water, solar), it would eliminate approximately 4.6 million deaths annually caused by air pollution worldwide as well as save $22.8 trillion dollars of health costs for the global economy.  It may not be easy, but it is completely possible for big changes to occur.  

 “The future is knocking at our door right now. Make no mistake, the next generation will ask us one of two questions. Either way they will ask, ‘What were you thinking; why didn’t you act?’ or they will ask instead, ‘How did you find the moral courage to rise and successfully resolve a crisis that so many said was impossible to solve?”

-Al Gore 

It is a worldwide responsibility to try and reverse the effects of climate change before it is truly too late for us. We barely have over a decade to make a difference, that means that every day counts. There is always something to do. 

 If you need ideas on how to help: 

1.      Use Reusable Bags, Cups, Utensils, etcetera. 

2.      Eat Less Meat & Dairy 

3.      Recycle 

4.      Save Electricity  

5.      Save Water 

6.      Print Less 

7.      Drive Less or Carpool 

8.      Vote Green Party! 

9.      Educate others on how to help! 

 If you want to become more aware and more educated on the topic, be sure to watch documentaries such as ‘Before the Flood’, ‘Cowspiracy’, ‘The True Cost’ & ‘Chasing Ice’.  

 (I hope the title was shocking and enticing enough for you to read through the entire text)

                         https://www.beforetheflood.com/explore/the-journey/