We Are the Problem!
Now let’s start being the solution.
The United States Global Change Research Program, a collaboration between 13 different government agencies including the US Department of Agriculture, US Department of Defense, Environmental Protection Agency, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the National Science Foundation, released the second volume of its Fourth National Climate Assessment in 2018. While Volume I of the Assessment contains the physical science and data, Volume II is a discussion of the climate impacts and risks that the United States is facing, as well as adaptations to the situation. Words are not minced as the first two sentences of the introduction lay it all on the line:
“Earth’s climate is now changing faster than at any point in the history of modern civilization, primarily as a result of human activities. The impacts of global climate change are already being felt in the United States and are projected to intensify in the future — but the severity of future impacts will depend largely on actions taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to the changes that will occur” (USGRCP, 2018).
As written in the Assessment — and as we are seeing on a daily basis — there are areas in the United States that are subject to droughts, intense heat waves, rapidly growing fires, catastrophic storm surge, heavy rains and flooding, and more. These events are growing, in size and intensity, at a pace higher than we had previously anticipated. State and local governments are doing what they can to mitigate some of these local threats, but we do not seem to currently have a unified, national plan to distribute resources for mitigation in an equitable way. This is similar to the cut-throat, competitive, and racially disproportionate nature of distributing resources and supplies that we’ve seen during this current pandemic.
What You Should Take Away From This
If you don’t read the Assessment at all, you should take these key points with you:
1. Nowhere in the United States (or the world, for that matter) is immune to the effects of climate change.
2. Most places are susceptible to multiple impacts at once.
3. Events, even the ones that are not in your area, can have a detrimental effect on the resources and economics of your region.
4. We need to all work collectively for long-term goals and national/global solutions, not be thinking about short-sighted, local solutions alone.
What You Should Do About It
It is important to keep those points in mind as we work to come up with solutions. Innovation, motivation, and participation are all going to be necessary, and while some of us can do more, everything matters.
So call or write your legislative members (If you don’t know who they are, find out here.) and tell them you want to hold major corporations and the fossil fuel industry to account for their roles. They’ve known for decades.
Do a personal inventory on your contributions to climate stressors (e.g., plastics, energy, waste) and see where you can make a change. Be a volunteer and help clean up a park or beach. Join a local climate activism group and get connected with people who can help you hold yourself accountable too.
Remember, we only have one world. We all need to make some changes if we want to keep it. Will, it cost us? Of course, it will. But we are already spending billions of dollars every year to deal with climate-related crises after they happen. The argument against improving our habits and ways of life to better improve our chances of having a comfortable and habitable world is folly.
Learn more about the author:
