Climate change is not going away. It is more like half good news. We may avoid the worst case scenarios. It is still going to hurt a lot of people and play a big role in how the next hundred years or so unfold. We are still going to have to deal with climate refugees, changing weather patterns, resource wars and unknowns. Hopefully, these things will not spin out of control. And if ignored, put us right back in a very bad place. I'm cautiously optimistic for a few reasons; youth awareness, cars, rising consumer awareness and even corporations getting onboard.
The young people who stand to inherit the total mess of a world we have created are taking note and getting involved. It's all too easy for powerful people who run and profit from the status quo to shrug and think not my problem. They want to scare us into thinking solutions are not economically feasible, are too difficult or will not work. I think some people have misinterpreted Planet of The Humans as an attack on environmentalism and climate change solutions. It does point out some very real problems. I think the message is we need to change our behavior as consumers; less energy use, less stuff and less waste. I see this in young people basically disinterested in cars, buying big wasteful houses and career choices based on money alone. Young people are not going to just sit around and watch the planet become inhospitable to life as we know it. They are doing something about it. Will companies, and the rest of us follow their lead?
The combustion engine is dying. Auto manufacturers are adding more and more electric vehicle options. There are more than thirty options here in 2022 for electric vehicles. They are not doing this for fun or to save the planet, they want to keep making money. More and more charging stations are being added all of the time. Vehicle ranges are getting longer and charging times shorter. But remember there's never a free ride. While it is good to cut down on gas / diesel emissions, making electric cars is resource intensive. What new problems will come from this? What will the impact be on the environment be? What new problems will come up by solving our emissions problem? Our recent track record is pretty bad but at least we are making an effort to improve things.
Governments and big corporations are all (almost all) jumping on the Green Bandwagon! The Paris agreement and more recent climate talks in Scotland (COP26) fall well short of the problems but may be a starting point. Greta summed them up well, "blah, blah, blah." Can we get to a higher level with more decisive action? Maybe. People across the world see climate change as a threat and want action. Companies are falling all over each other getting out the message of how green they are. It is up to us to separate the green from the greenwash.
There's no more time for kicking the can down the road. The negative effects of warming the Earth are here right now; December tornados, sinking islands, wild fires, floods and scorching summers. Clearly, something is not right. It is never too late to start making better decisions. We know how to get out of this mess but can we find the collective will? I think so. Living in a prison-like bunker on a dead planet is a real buzz killer, even for billionaires.
Oh, and don't forget the role of agriculture in climate change. Industrial farming seems to get a free pass when their role in climate change is huge.
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