“In nature, nothing exists alone,” said Rachel Carson [1]. But are humans really keeping this in mind?
People love the happiness of living in the present, enjoying what they already have without thinking about the future. But in this era, the philosophy of “we only live once” is being widely used as an excuse towards an inconvenient truth. It is the truth about our shared homeland, about the dire consequences caused by people’s incessant desire for fast economic development and high–level, perhaps even luxurious, living conditions. When people exclaim “carpe diem,” our future is sold. The next generation’s future is sold. They will be forced to carry the enormous burden that their parents and grandparents leave for them.
Those who possess the most are not the biggest victims of their own irresponsibility; the victims are those who benefit the least or nothing from the skyrocketing economic development made possible by the sacrifices of our environment and climate. Among the most hapless victims are vulnerable children, various animal species, and small island dwellers.
The inconvenient truth is that our climate is gradually approaching its tipping point. When the tipping point is crossed, we will face unimaginable catastrophes that can end civilization. Some may argue that climate change is too abstract to be discussed and taken seriously, but climate change is not just a word. It’s tangible, and it’s everywhere — after all, climate change is global. Extreme weather events, including droughts, forest fires, and hurricanes, are causing direct damage to property and taking numerous lives away, and the frequency and intensity of such events are increasing at an alarming rate. Unfortunately, these issues associated with climate change are usually ignored. In brief, adults are enjoying their lives while the next generations’ futures are being dismantled one piece at a time; when the day finally comes when the kids grow up and can enjoy lives as their parents do, some of them may have already lost the opportunity to do so because their health or lives have been damaged or taken away by the clearly negative impacts of climate change.
To the climate deniers who still think our lives cannot be affected by the “so-called climate change:” first, empirical data gathered by reliable sources such as NASA exhibits the exponential increase of greenhouse gas emissions after the Industrial Revolution and how the earth’s climate (factors include the temperature, the number of extreme weather events, etc.) is getting more uncontrollable along with it. As proven by science, the obvious correlation concerning climate change directly relates to causation in this scenario [2]. Second, the Earth is currently not functioning in a normal way. Climate change is going to be irreversible, and after the threshold is crossed, no one can imagine how horrifying the consequences can be — maybe, we won’t have time for imagination at that point. In addition, the argument, “if we don’t burn fossil fuels and boost economic development, then we won’t have money to develop technology for and invest in combating climate change,” is also based on falsehoods. According to the UK government-commissioned Stern Report on The Economics of Climate Change in 2006, if the international community does nothing, then the impacts of climate change could cost between 5% and 20% of world GDP annually. On the other hand, it will cost us only 2% of world GDP every year if we do everything we can to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions [3]. Therefore, we already have the capacity to save our warming planet. Unfortunately, the majority of nations are still investing most of their money in industries and military affairs, competing in purportedly important areas like this to gain a favorable position in international politics rather than focusing on saving the planet.
The consequences of our irresponsibility are also impacting other species in the world. Although humanity seems to disregard other species whenever it favors them, when the other species all disappear, the last day of our civilization arrives as the natural world will be fully disrupted. The ice coverage of the Arctic continues to shrink every year, and the situation is so severe that we can easily see the drastic change when comparing photos of the Arctic in the 20th century and the Arctic in the 21st century. Towards the other end of our planet, the temperature in Antarctica is also getting warmer, which results in thousands of animals losing their homes. What will happen to the polar bears clinging on a small piece of ice floating on tan ocean that is supposed to be covered by solid ice? Why should thousands of baby emperor penguins drown because of severe weather caused by the change in temperature? We are experiencing the sixth mass extinction, and the species living around the globe, whether it be near us or in remote areas, are suffering from the direct consequences of our decisions.
Sadly, this shameful irresponsibility is prevalent in media:
“Climate change is not only the catalyst of the melting of the glacier in the Arctic but is also the catalyst of countries entering the geopolitics of the Arctic” [4].
“The natural resources and the value of geopolitics of the Arctic are unique in the world, and the natural gas in the Arctic accounts for over 30% of global natural gas storage!” [5].
“The Arctic region provides routes for countries to transport nuclear weapons…” [6].
These journalists continue to write about the political and economic benefits that an Arctic ravaged by the effects of climate change can bring without even giving a tiny bit of concern over the environmental and ecological crisis looming there and how countries are happily using the dire situation to their advantage in order to make a profit. The source of this oxymoronic excitement lies in countries who are investing an incredible amount of money in the development and resource extraction in the Arctic region. For example, Russia plans to invest about 5.5 trillion rubles (about $85 billion) in the construction of infrastructure and the development of natural resources in the Arctic [7]. While some countries try to justify their actions by stating, “We are putting money into the environmental protection of the Arctic region and redressing the damage we have caused there,” the money is not at all comparable to those invested in exploitation [8]. They view Arctic’s loss not as a serious concern but more as a business. Ask yourself, the so-called world leaders: what is more important, your short-term profits or the long-term wellbeing of the species living in the Arctic for centuries and the future of all people in the world? A sad fact of today’s society is that the people who have the most power, and thus can help prevent climate change, usually refuse to help because of political or economic reasons.
But there is still hope. Although politicians have been proven time and time again that climate change is a secondary issue, what if the citizens decide to act? Small actions, when added up, can greatly slow the process of climate change, and even affect future policy.
Nothing is meaningful if the issue of climate change becomes so severe that it is impossible to sustain society. At that time, will you still use “carpe diem” as an excuse to pursue your short-term goals?
“I have read that some parties do not even want me standing here today, because they so desperately do not want to talk about climate breakdown. Our house is falling apart. The future as well as what we have achieved in the past is literally in your hands now. But it’s still not too late to act. It will take a far-reaching vision. It will take courage” [9]. As shown through this speech of 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg at the European Parliament in April, even children have taken up the fight against climate change despite having to sacrifice their education as they are desperate to save our only home. Ms. Thunberg’s clear and simple message can be summed up in one phrase: wake up, and stop being short-sighted. Then, we can finally face the inconvenient truth of our climate breakdown together.
[1] Rachel Carson, Silent Spring (Penguin Books, 1962).
[2] “The Causes of Climate Change,” NASA, 2019, climate.nasa.gov/causes/.
[3] Mark Maslin, Global Warming: a Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, 2009).
[4] Shelly Goodman, Marisol Maddox, “China's Growing Arctic Presence,” China-US Focus, November 26, 2018, cn.chinausfocus.com/finance-economy/20181126/34612.html.
[5] “China and Russia Cooperate with Each Other to Exploit the Arctic,” baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1593470035967589462&wfr=spider&for=pc.
[6] “The Arctic Is No Longer Quiet: Russia Has Put More than 400 Nuclear Warhead Here,” Sohu, May 12, 2017, www.sohu.com/a/139988707_600483.
[7] Atle Staalesen, “Russia Presents an Ambitious 5-Year Plan for Arctic Investment,” Arctic Today, December 14, 2018, www.arctictoday.com/russia-presents-ambitious-5-year-plan-arctic-investment/.
[8] “Russian Officer: We Should Pay Attention to the Ecological Risks of Exploiting the Arctic, and We Look Forward to Cooperating with China,” China National Radio, September 25, 2013, news.cnr.cn/gjxw/list/20130925/t20130925_513688353.shtml.
[9] Greta Thunberg, “Greta Thunberg: 'Our House Is Falling Apart, and We Are Rapidly Running Out of Time', Speech to EU Parliament,” Speakola, April 16, 2019, https://speakola.com/ideas/greta-thunberg-speech-to-eu-parliament-2019.