Climate Change

CLIMATE CHANGE IS REAL - WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT...


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In September 2017, an iceberg, four times the size of Manhattan had calved in Antartica, leaving a gaping hole, making the threat of climate change more real than ever. Unfortunately, this did not make it to the headlines unlike Beyonce's twins, Sir and Rumi Carter, did. However, this should come as no surprise as it resonates with what the public are more interested in. It is no wonder that the first man to travel to both Poles, Robert Swan, stated that, "The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it."

I was doing some research and stumbled upon appalling facts on climate change. We cannot deny climate change as the evidence is too overwhelming. Global temperature is rising to alarming levels and this is the warming of the oceans. In fact, the recent devastating hurricanes, Irma and Harvey, are said to be caused by this calamity. In the North and South pole, ice sheets are shrinking and glaciers are retreating. According to researchers, from a 150, we are not left with barely 25 glaciers.

Snow cover is also declining, which is contributing to the rising sea levels. As shocking as this may sound, we may have to bid farewell to our favourite vacation destinations such as the Netherlands, a country which is below sea level and is one of the most vulnerable countries in the North. Adding to the list is yet another problem of ocean acidification which is threatening marine life. Let's not forget that Earth is 70% water.

Although climate change is immense, the root cause isn't. Experts have reduced it to the Greenhouse Effect. As I see it, the culprit is none other than you and I.

We need to act fast and snap out of the illusion that the effect of climate change will take generations to unfold. This is not true because its impact is already affecting food sources. Longer droughts and erratic weather is causing food shortage.

In China, the pollution level has reached such atrocious levels that Canada is selling clean air in canisters. Was I the only one who saw a cartoon like that in the newspapers just a few years ago?

For young people like us, this problem seems out of our hands, but this shouldn't stop us from doing what we can from where we are. For a start, how about we switch off our electrical appliances when they are not in use? Why not we start a recycling campaign? If you can cycle or walk to school or to the shopping mall, why not avoid driving for a change? In this digital age that we live in, social media is a potent platform right at our fingertips and perhaps we could actively participate in raising awareness of climate change.

Climate change is happening right now, and as citizens of this Earth, I suggest we do something about it.