“Climate change is no longer some far-off problem; it is happening here; it is happening now.” – Barack Obama
It may seem insignificant, distant, or less critical than many of the other issues we face. It does not seem to be an immediate risk particularly today, when we face a global pandemic. Climate change, however, has effects that are inescapable, urgent, and threaten our health and safety.We can not afford to wait to respond any longer. If you care about your health, you should care about climate change, too. Climate change has become a reality much sooner than all the expected possibilities. Climate change is not, as so many people already assume, simply an environmental crisis. It is an incomprehensible threat to the world economy, to health, to agriculture, to stability and protection, to the very land that billions of individuals live on.
Climate change affects all of us. No nation, whether large or small, developed or underdeveloped, rich or poor, can avoid the consequences of climate change. People worldwide will encounter the effects, from more severe weather and rising food costs, to recreation and decreased opportunities to enjoy the natural environment. People will feel the many changes to the weather that it triggers including changes in extreme weather events such as heat waves and droughts. There will be more frequent hot days and fewer cold days; longer and more intense heat waves; stroms, floods, and droughts will be more severe. Global information concludes that there is an increase of water vapour in our atmosphere.
The high moisture can lead to heavier rainfalls. Climate change also leads to an increase in the average global temperature. If it’s a 1.5 degree or 2 degree change, such degrees of warming aren’t unnoticeable thresholds. For the planet, any increasing change is worse than the previous one. In both direct and indirect forms, climate change will lead to detrimental health effects. Extreme heat waves and hurricanes are unexpected and can be dangerous. It is more difficult to understand longer-term consequences, such as elevated heart disease, respiratory problems from impaired air quality, and diminished access to clean water and nutritious food. The true magnitude of the health effects of climate change cannot be limited to a single statistic. The world is already a fragile place. We have already been provided all the statistics. What we need to do is wake up and change. Adapting to these impacts in the future would be more complicated and expensive without drastic action now.
“Our problems are man-made, so they may be solved by man,” John F. Kennedy put it rather accurately. Although it is evident that society has not been keen to react or even acknowledge the severity of climate change, it is not too late. We can’t sit back and be quiet anymore, climate change is happening and our world is demolishing quicker than we think. As citizens of the earth, we are obligated to move the wheel of effort to make our world a healthier and cleaner place to live. It is not challenging to do, we are just required to remain vigilant and motivated.
If the present generation struggles to address this challenge as firmly and efficiently as possible, then we will risk our coming generations to an irreversible crisis. We are blessed to live in a beautiful, vibrant, healthy, awe-inspiring world. Our children, and all generations to come, deserve the same. In order to create a world where humans and ecosystems flourish, fighting climate change is fundamental. All individuals can contribute to this cause whether it be big or small, it still counts. As long as we move now, it’s not too late to slow down the rate of climate change. The future of the planet is on the line. We can and we will save it.