“I want you to panic. I want you to act as if the house was on fire.” These are the words Greta Thunberg, a 16 year old Swedish climate activist and Nobel Peace Prize candidate, chose to open her speech to the European Parliament on April 16. She went on to say that politicians have told her that nothing good has ever come from panic, but she responded that if you are in an emergency, the only appropriate response is panic. Thunberg wants people to panic about the climate crisis we’re facing and she’s right.
In October 2018, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a report detailing the impacts of a 1.5 degree Celsius warming above pre-industrial levels versus a 2.0 degree warming. The latter has more disastrous consequences but both mean sea level rise, more instances of extreme heat, an increase in extreme weather events, biodiversity loss, ocean acidification, and more. We have already warmed the earth by 1.0 degree Celsius, so we are half-way to the more catastrophic scenario. If we continue on our current path, we will hit 2.0 degrees of warming by 2040, a mere 21 years from now. This would result in more risks to our health, food and water supply, and economic security.
If drastic changes are made, like reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 50% by 2030 and reaching net zero emissions by 2050, we may be able to limit warming to only 1.5 degrees. While this warming will still have negative effects, limiting warming to this level gives our civilization the opportunity to preserve a livable planet for future generations.
This situation may seem dire in part due to the actions and rhetoric of the- Trump Administration. A recent U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration report stated that if the administration’s practices continue, there will be four to seven degrees Celsius of global warming by 2100.
This disregard for the planet and the people and species who live on it has no place in a world where children are striking from school because they are scared for their futures. Greed and apathy have dominated this conversation for too long. Using Thunberg’s metaphor, if your house was on fire, you wouldn’t calculate the costs of putting the fire out, decide it was too expensive, let it burn, and then leave your children without a home. You would find the most efficient way to put out the fire and immediately start to rebuild.
There are ways that average people can get involved to slow down climate change. You can participate in climate marches, contact your federal legislators to urge them to support the Green New Deal, vote for candidates who care about environmental issues, persuade your state and local representatives to take actions that benefit the environment, take public transportation more often, walk or ride your bike to work if possible, and so much more.
One of the most important things you can do is have a conversation with someone who doesn’t understand the severity of the situation we have put ourselves in. Use scientific facts to explain how dire the state of the climate is and show them Greta Thunberg’s speech. Tell them that the planet is like a burning house. Ask them if they would watch their home be engulfed in flames or would they put the fire out and help their children rebuild?
Anna Eyler, Communications Intern, Spring 2019