A major change that I’ve noticed in New York are the temperature trends, and how hectic the correlation for our weekly forecasts are currently. What I mean by this is that it can literally be 90 degrees Fahrenheit outside one day, but immediately drop to 50 degrees and below within twenty-four hours. Last winter, it barely felt like winter because it was actually very warm and there were barely any days of snow. And in the summer, the days are much hotter than usual and there’s constant heat waves as well. Thankfully, it’s still not extremely hot in New York, and we haven’t really suffered from droughts and extreme floods even though we’re right on the East Coast. I’ve never suffered from a storm or famine either, so I’m grateful since so many other parts of the U.S. have it so much worse. For instance, it was so hot in Texas this past summer, they literally banned outdoor barbecuing in the major cities, and banned lighters and fireworks temporarily. So I’m glad that I don’t have it as bad as others.
As for the Paris Climate Change Agreement, the United States of America was a part of the agreement when it was first made in 2015, along with China and other major countries. However, our despicable President Donald Trump despises it greatly, and he ceased America’s participation under the Agreement until they could officially pull out in 2020. Our President does not believe in climate change and believes that trying to tackle such a life-threatening cause will damage America’s economy. It is very disappointing, but the general public throughout the country is aware of the rising epidemic and are trying various ways to tackle the issue. I’m majoring in Computer Systems/Technology, so I’m not too aware of how my major could help me tackle climate change. However, I try to do my part by recycling and using my bike to travel large distances rather than Ubering and littering in New York. And there are a lot of people that care about the city, so I can confidently say that most New Yorkers are doing their part when it comes to creating a much more cleaner and healthy environment.
Sadly, I can’t say the same for my country of origin, Bangladesh. Bangladesh is a very small country between India and Burma, and it is heavily overpopulated. The people there are very poor in most parts of the country, and therefore lack resources to further improve their environment and living conditions. There’s a lot of speculation that the entire country should literally be underwater within the next 10-20 years from sea level rise and subsequent flooding. It’s sad to think about because I was born there and have great memories there. But the long droughts and constant monsoon climate, followed by many earthquakes within the country don’t give the nation much time. As stated before, it is overpopulated and most people are poor farmers. There are barely any tourists, but everyone there uses diesel and other harmful fossil fuels whose exhaust fluids damage the atmosphere greatly and add to greenhouse gases. The sea level is constantly rising all around Bangladesh, but no one is trying to improve the general life there. Thankfully, most of my family members have all come to America, but it breaks my heart that our homeland is going to be destroyed because the people there are too stubborn to care about the environment and about climate change, and further pollute the air and further destroy the little hope the nation had left.
As stated before, I’m not too aware of how my major and career could tackle climate change. But I do hope that I can further my knowledge of solar powers, and implement them with computers and other tech that heavily require the use of electricity, and overall open up a window for alternative sources of energy. A source of innovative technology that I wish New Yorkers adopted more are hybrid and electric cars. They’re just as powerful as regular cars that run on fuel, and they even have better designs. I actually do think that in ten or twenty years in the future, major cities across the nation will have electric and hybrid cars, and implement solar panels on all of their towering skyscrapers. I also hope that there’s a higher demand for LED lighting since they’re a bit more aesthetically pleasing, which most people care more about rather than function. Rooftop gardening could also be a big thing for New York, and it can change so much in so little time. I wish millennials would take this issue much more seriously, since we [and they] are the people of the future, and have more faith that the climate and the environment literally lies in our hands.
Link: https://www.dec.ny.gov/energy/44992.html
