The Climate Crisis: why it should concern us more – by Celesté Meintjies
It’s a scientifically proven fact the humans thrive off problems. We might not understand the chemistry behind this, but we do in fact need problems to survive. Problem solving keeps our minds active and gives purpose to our everyday life, but, for obvious reasons, we tend to shy away from major problems, problems that may cost us too much or that may destroy our habits.
Would you not rather have your biggest problem be the cobwebs hanging from your ceiling rather than a global economic crisis? Would you not rather have your problem be an unfinished puzzle on a diningroom table rather than a climate crisis that refuses to resolve itself?
I have always been aware of the fact that global warming is something worrisome and something that should concern me more than it normally does in my day-to-day life, but I never truly understood the magnitude of the problem until the day a 16-year-old Swedish girl’s words echoed through the world.
“You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words.”
By the time she finished her sentence, the world was listening intently enough for her to define a generation’s worries and anger clearly enough so that the world knew that we meant business.
“People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction, and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth.”
And then came the words which would shape her career as a climate change activist forever:
“How dare you!”
Greta Thunberg, a 17-year-old Swedish girl, suddenly became the face of climate change activism after her moving, yet factual speech at the United Nations Climate Action Summit on September 21, 2019. The world was left silent with shock after her 4 minute speech. Then came the frenzy about climate change and the use of anything plastic which was not reusable.
We are all aware that this problem exists and many of us follow and support climate change activists on their journeys to make others aware of this dilemma, which has the power to ultimately cost us our only home, the planet, and therefore our lives. But what is climate change and global warming?
Global warming is defined as an increase in global temperature or a change in global or regional climate patterns. These changes have become apparent from the mid to late 20th century and continue to this day. The result is an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels. Global warming occurs when carbon dioxide and greenhouse gasses collect in the atmosphere. These gasses absorb the sunlight and solar radiation that reflect off the surface of the earth and trap heat, which causes a rise in global temperature.
The most common form of pollution is that caused by the production of electricity. The burning of coal for electricity produces about 2 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year in the US alone, with the pollution caused by transportation not far behind, coming in at 1.7 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year. According to data recorded by NASA, carbon dioxide levels have increased by 413 parts per million and the global temperature has increased by 0.06°C since 1880. The sea level rises 3.3 millimetres per year and scientist predict that the sea level will rise a few meters in the next 50-150 years.
As global warming continues to be an issue, the global temperature keeps rising and we physically have to sweat it out. It’s proven that the earth’s rising temperatures are fuel on the fire for reoccurring droughts and is the cause of longer and hotter heat waves. Heat waves have become the cause of tens of thousands of deaths across the globe in recent years. The process goes both ways, since global warming causes heavier rainfall and increasingly catastrophic hurricanes. Hurricanes have become more common since the ocean’s temperature has risen by 0.09 to 0.13°C in the past 40 years. Tropical storms have also shown increased levels of energy which lead to increased damage to infrastructure and in some cases, the loss of human life.
Since 2002, Antarctica has lost approximately 134 billion metric tons of ice per year which causes the sea level to rise. This has the potential to become a major headache to governments across the globe, since the rising sea level means that infrastructure will be devoured and destroyed by the ocean.
The amount of plastic in the ocean has become a common point of discussion. The discovery of the Great Pacific garbage patch came as a big shock and initiated a trend of investing only in reusable items such as metal straws, bottles and shopping bags. The amount of plastic in the ocean contributes to the climate crisis, although in a significantly smaller share than the use of fossil fuels. It became a genuine concern when it was discovered that sea creatures consume these plastic products after mistaking it for food, which ultimately leads to their death.
Since this shocking discovery several companies have taken it upon themselves to find a sustainable solution to this problem, but not without major commercial success.
In January 2019 Adidas Tennis launched their clothing line in collaboration with Parley. In the first quarter of the year all the Adidas tennis players sported outfits in different shades of blue, all made of recycled plastic which was sourced from the ocean. This was their first major initiative and since then they have continued to source plastic from the ocean for the use of clothing production. The initiative has since been taken up by several other athletic brands, such as Nike. The initiative is extremely popular under the players of the ATP and WTA tours, as several players have spoken out about this climate crisis and the unnecessary use of plastic in everyday life. The current world No.3 on the ATP tour, Dominic Thiem, is very outspoken about the problem and always shows his support to the initiative by wearing three 4 Oceans bracelets during matches. 4 Oceans was specifically created to reduce the amount of plastic that ends up in the ocean. Since the creation of the company, they have hosted several beach clean-ups to collect plastic to produce their bracelets.
Lewis Hamilton, the world No.1 in Formula One, has recently collaborated with Puma and First Mile in an attempt to produce sustainable jackets made out of recycled plastic collected by local communities. Not only is this an excellent way to lessen the amount of plastic in the ocean and on beaches, but it is also a fantastic opportunity for job creation in rural areas.
In a time in which we are all calling for change, sustainability and solutions, we should look within ourselves for answers, no matter how minor they are. In the midst of the climate crisis it is important to not wait for change, but to adjust to the circumstances and change your habits as well as your mindset accordingly.
The responsibility to find solutions for this problem rests on our generation and our generation alone, which brings me to the conclusion that we must unite in our battle for a better, sustainable future. If we fail to do so, our future and time on earth will start ebbing away faster and faster, until we are left with nothing but regret.