Over the last few decades, our planet’s temperature has been significantly fluctuating. Geological evidence suggests this has sometimes created a ‘global snowball’ and at other times warming the world. However, the global warming we are facing nowadays has been dismissed by most scientists as one of these naturally occurring fluctuations. It is not a coincidence that shortly after the industrial revolution, global temperatures started increasing.
Six Degrees Could Change the World is a documentary aired by National Geographic, which visualizes the devastating ecological impact each single degree increase in temperature could have on our planet over the next century. However, the ‘doomsday scenario’ is not our written and unchangeable destiny. It is the result of a path we chose to take. We can choose another path to lead us to a different result. On the contrary, leaving the task of tackling global warming to governments and corporations would be a death sentence. This is a problem we have to start solving by ourselves.
Not taking your car for every five-minute errand would both decrease CO2 emissions and knock off the extra pounds you have been waiting to lose. Another unrecognized product is the energy efficient light bulb. In a normal light bulb, only 5 percent of the energy that flows is emitted as light, while the remaining 95 percent is wasted in the form of heat. On the other hand, energy efficient light bulb converts as much as 80 percent of the electricity into light. It also lasts up to 25 times longer. Perhaps another step would be collecting used paper forwarding the same to a local NGO, who will in turn sell it to recycling firms and use the money to fund their charity programs – a recycling for a noble cause. It thus becomes imperative that we at least join an environmental group as a form of moral support.
You are probably thinking ‘joining Greenpeace is not going to solve anything.’ But imagine if millions of people did all these little things. The effect would be huge. Not only that, it would pressure governments and corporations into investing in more radical solutions that could kick global warming in the grain. These include solar thermal power plants, wind farms as well as an eco-friendly transport system.
So as you can see, there is still hope. Either way, our actions are what define our future. Let us all act wisely.
About the Author
Dina Tarek is pursuing a master in gender and development. She is keen on contributing with others on so many research subjects. Dina is collaborating with some NGOs to help advance the rights of refugees and migrants through client-centered programs.
