Weekly Update: Talking about Climate Change

I’d originally planned to blog today about the books I’ve read this year and give an update on my projects. That was, of course, before I crawled out from under the rock I’ve made my home and heard about the Climate Change strikes happening around the world.

This morning I spent some time watching the clips of Greta Thunberg speaking to various organizations and groups. That girl is amazing. One, because she’s able to speak in front of large crowds (the mere idea makes me shake); and two, because she’s sparked a metaphorical fire as full of rage and power as the very real fires happening in the rainforest.

The difference of course being that the climate change “fire” seeks to improve and heal the earth, rather than destroy everything in its path.

“We need to get angry and understand what is at stake. And then we need to transform that anger into action and to stand together united and just never give up.” Greta Thunberg

Climate change is a thing. It’s real. I’ve read the science that backs it up… I originally wrote a long rant about some of the negative reactions I’ve seen online to the Climate Change strike. I decided to erase it because, well, you don’t want to read my rants. Instead, I’ll share this clip from when Bill Nye went on John Oliver a while back.

The frustration Bill Nye shows is what I feel.

Warning: strong language… if you don’t like swearing, maybe don’t watch. If you’re under the age of 16 and one of my nieces or nephews… maybe don’t watch. Or if you do, don’t tell your mom/dad you saw it here.

So what now?

What can WE do to make a difference?

I’ve asked myself that question a lot in the last decade and a bit – Climate Change isn’t a NEW issue and it’s frustrating to know that we’re still debating it.

I’ve made a few changes in my daily life… but nothing I’ve done feels like enough. And it isn’t. I, alone, cannot fix the climate. I can help, for sure! But I can’t fix it by myself.

We, individually, cannot fix the climate. The whole world, as a group, has to do it together. (Which is essentially the message of the Climate Change strikes).

Here’s why….

Let’s pretend for a moment that each country is a person, and the whole world is an apartment. If you’ve ever lived with other people, you know that everyone has to do their part to keep the space clean. To keep it livable.

So, the countries are roommates. If just one roommate is a messy disaster of a person, then the whole apartment is going to be a disaster – dishes in the sink, garbage overflowing and stinking up the space. In this scenario of mine, at least two, if not more, of the roommates are indoor smokers (so gross) so the apartment smells like stale cigarettes and ashtray. Over half of the roommates don’t care about the dishes in the sink… or the overflowing garbage.

That’s our world right now.

Sure, there’s one clean roommate who has kept their room tidy. They have an air purifier, roomba, compost heap in the backyard… they throw out their garbage on the correct days and recycle everything they can. But if one roommate decides to set fire to the Amazon rainforest to make more room for economic growth, and another decides that carbon emission reduction isn’t important because the “apartment is a mess” is a vast conspiracy…. And another roommate promises to clean up their garbage within the next 10 years, but you know, not right now because we need to expand the oil pipeline….

Then the whole damn apartment is going to go up in flames.

To Climate Change Deniers….

If you believe that climate change isn’t real, that it isn’t a problem… What I want to know is…

Where’s the harm in building a healthier planet?

Where’s the harm in supporting peoples, technologies, companies and organizations that want to help nature thrive?

Is there a downside to actively changing the world so that emphasis is placed on building up our natural resources?

Is there a loser in that scenario?

I don’t see one. If climate change isn’t real, the end result of all of this protesting and social change is still going to be a more beautiful, habitable world.

BUT, if climate change IS real… And we ignore that.

Well…

We’re forked.

Some Climate Change Articles to Read

• “The Most Important Thing You Can Do About the Climate Crisis” by Kelsey Miller
• “12 Things You Can Do Right Now on Climate Change” by Reset: Digital for Good
• “101 Ways to Fight Climate Change” by Patrick Sisson, Megan Barber, and Alissa Walker
• “Curbing Climate Change: 30 Solutions That Could Make an Impact” – Listen to the Podcast on this webpage
• “What Can You Do About Climate Change?” Video from The Rundown By HuffPost

I’m sure there are more articles out there, but these are the ones I read today.