Climate change is a phenomenon caused by humans. As a matter of fact, humans are responsible for most of the global Green House Gas Emissions and the Earth is most effected by the impacts of climate change. This challenge is immense; it requires global awareness and action by the activists and many others. As an example, activist leaders should travel across the world in order to witness first hand some environmental issues while also meeting with professors, scientists, and world leaders to discuss the incoming dangers resulting from the climate change. Despite the effects and consequences, climate change impacts are visible in almost every part of the world. Since the world leaders are aware about the causes responsible for climate change, what’s preventing them from acting and do the right thing?
When analyzing the actions of leaders we can say that the challenge is first and foremost economical. Leaders of developing countries do not really have the financial means to face climate change and all its facets. These countries are in a financial deficit. They do not even have enough money to fully finance their educational and healthcare systems. They only have a subsistence economy. Developed countries, on the other side, have too much to lose. The fossil fuel industry generates lots of money and has tremendous political power, they will never agree to give up their investment; they prefer to get involved in corruption and shady things, such as: lobbyist and cover up. They inject lots of money into the political environment in order to protect their investment.
Furthermore, take a look at the challenge at the social level. People are always reluctant to change, they’d rather ask for more instead of giving up what they have. When we consider the standard of living, people living in the developed countries and how they live, for most of them, they are not aware (or care) about climate change. As proof, they don’t believe in the “3 R’s” concept, which means reduce, reuse, and recycle. People should change their mentality towards the environment. Some people are addicted to their vehicles, responsible for 28 % in carbon emission, ignoring other means of transportation.
In sum, the problem of climate change is real, and it is urgent to act. Political leaders have to put the interest of the majority first before anything else. To be generous to the next generations, governments, civilians, entrepreneurs, and every single person of this present generation have to work together to stop the climate change. Governments should stop subsidizing fossil fuel industries, invest more money in renewable energy, educate and make people aware of the danger, and create law to reinforce decisions. Fossil fuel plant owners, on their side, must start to invest in other alternative energies, reduce the daily quantity of fossil fuel extracted from the earth and buy carbon footprint offsets in order to compensate damages caused by their activities. Civilians must make changes in their lifestyle; what they buy, what they eat, and the way they use electric power. People should buy what they really need, remove meat from their diet, (particularly beef), use mass transit as means of transportation, use their cars only for emergencies or buy an electric one. By working together, we will achieve our goal which is tackling the global climate change and make the planet earth a more sustainable, resilient, and energy efficient place for all.
References:
https://archive.org/details/youtube-90CkXVF-Q8M#
William McDonough and Michael Braungart. Cradle to Cradle: Remarking the Way We Make Things. NY, 2002.
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/jun/04/
https://www.humansandnature.org/sustainability-well-being-and-economic-growth
