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By NJ So, global warming. The ever present member of the “We are here to end humanity” squad that has been around for decades. Yet there seems to be an alarmingly large number of people who believe it’s a myth. It’s not their fault. The subject of global warming is one that everyone talks about. From politicians during their campaigning to Philanthropists writing books; but shockingly little has been done to combat it. We talk, write and complain about it but it's extremely difficult to fight against it. This is due to the fact that in order to combat global warming, we need to make changes. Not little changes. We would have to make massive changes. Changes to our daily lifestyle. And this is a daunting task. Particularly since these changes would also have to be done in all aspects of humanity. There would be economic and social changes that would have to be made and we are running out of time. To quote directly from climate.nasa.gov - “In the absence of major action to reduce emissions, global temperature is on track to rise by 2.5°C to 4.5°C (4.5°F to 8°F) by 2100, according to the latest estimates.”.
Now, 2100 may seem decades away (and you aren’t wrong), the fact is the changes we make won’t stop global warming in its tracks. It isn’t something we can switch on and off. The changes we make now might take years to come into fruition, but ultimately prevention is always better than the cure. We have failed at the former. So it's time to find a cure. While I won’t be going over any of the cures here (I am not an environmental scientist), I want to use an example, a personal example, to show people global warming is very real and very dangerous. I hope these will perhaps change the opinion of some of the people who might be on the fence about the severity of global warming. I live in India and we border two major water bodies. The bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. Now, the bay of Bengal has always been a hotbed for cyclones and storms. Infact, the bay is perfect for the formation of a cyclonic storm. However, the arabian sea is largely considered the calmer of the two. Until recently, that is. The temperature has risen in the Arabian sea and scientists directly blame climate change for it, and this has resulted in more and more cyclones emerging out of the region. I have lived a relatively short life, just 16 years, but the changes have been large enough for me to notice. The amount of storms and cyclones have gone up since 2018 (infact, where I live, flooding is now a real danger, something we didn’t experience on a large scale, as storms bring in torrents of rain that cause extreme damage, sometimes submerging entire houses). In the last 4 years, I have seen around 3 to 4 significant cyclonic storms. In the first 12 years of my life, I can’t remember experiencing any. Many of these severe cyclonic storms left dozens and sometimes hundreds of people dead or missing and caused billions of dollars worth of property damage. To give a few specific examples-
*The name of the countries and states are arranged in order of severity of damages/fatalities sustained. I remember Cyclone Okhi. Everything was normal until it wasn’t. What ensued after that was months of flooding, heavy rain with thousands of people displaced or affected by the rain and flooding. And Tauktae was of course very recent so I remember it well. The flooding was intense in many parts of India with hundreds dead. The fact remains that these events are devastating and climate change is responsible for it. While it is true that India experiences a large amount of cyclones from the bay of Bengal, now the Arabian sea is also adding to it. And that is due to the rising temperatures which is caused by climate changes. These articles give more specifics to what I have detailed above -
Even as I sit here writing this article now, there is a cyclone brewing in the Bay of Bengal. That's 2 cyclones in the span of 2 weeks. And this isn’t limited to just the Indian Subcontinent and its surrounding areas. Similar changes have happened around the globe and we need to start acting on it. It won’t be easy. But nothing worth doing ever is.
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By Josh The fashion industry is one of the major contributors of carbon, second only to oil. So many of us have started to become more ECOncious, especially when it comes to choosing our clothes, including celebrities like Emma Watson using their social media platforms to spread awareness There is this idea that it is wrong to wear the same piece of clothing twice but, this disposable fashion needs to stop! Some small changes Watson suggests are; ‘thrifting instead of buying new, supporting sustainable brands, and air-drying your clothes’ all of these added up can make a huge difference.
Thrifting is becoming increasingly popular. Not just because it is cheap but also because the vintage style is in right now and not to mention how it helps to cut back on pollution so much. The fashion industry is said to be the second most C02 intensive industry after agriculture. Most of the time when I go thrifting I find some great pieces for a low price. So it is a real win-win situation. However, I don’t always find the buried treasure. It is really a matter of really going to know what you are looking for. Fortunately there are lots of great tutorials online to help out! If you are anything like me, you may be unsure what is meant by a sustainable brand. They are brands that make a conscious effort to limit their effect on the environment. Some sustainable brands to know about are; Dr Martens, LUSH and Everlane. When looking for a sustainable brand, you’ve really got to look as brands tend not to use their ethical choices, as a form of advertising. Rather they do it as they see the importance of it. I think it is just a given that we all need to wash our clothes regularly, or we will just end up smelling! It is also a lot more environmentally friendly to reuse clothes than to go out and buy new ones, but there is this fast fashion idea that you buy something for the trend. You're supposed to buy something once and then never again, which I think is an awful way of looking at our clothes. You should buy pieces you like and then mix and match them with the help of a washing machine. With a family of five we seem to have a near enough never ending stream of washing, so I realise how hard it can be for some of us to limit our laundry. It is also particularly hard for us to air dry stuff in the winter, it is more likely for them to turn into pieces of ice!! But as long as we all try our best, every little bit adds up for a better environment. Check out Thred Up’s fashion footprint calculator - made in partnership with Watson - to find out how dirty your closet is: thredup.com/quiz. My fashion habits contribute to about 631lbs of carbon emissions annually, so I’ll definitely be working to reduce this myself, and I encourage you to as well! Thank you for reading, I hope that if we all change our fashion habits a little bit we will be able to cut the carbon emissions. Our environment is changing as well as the planet’s climate. In fact, the planet’s climate problem is being fuelled by how fast our environment is worsening. Just like my last article, the definition for environmental change is as follows:
‘a change or disturbance of the environment most often caused by human influences’ (Google) What are some examples of environmental change caused by humans? You might’ve already heard of them:
These are only a few factors to our rapidly worsening environment. Some countries such as China and India are becoming overwhelmingly concerned as litter and waste is piling the streets, land and oceans, getting in the way of wildlife and marine life. As the climate crisis comes more and more into light, we now have to look at differences we can make as a society. Again, like in my last article, what could you do to do your part?:
Do you want to live in a world surrounded by rubbish and trash? Nobody has to be a ‘hippie’ to do their part in securing a clean future, so act now.
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Teenagers With Experience is an online organisation created to provide teenagers worldwide with an online platform to share their own experiences to be able to help, inform and educate others on a variety of different topics. We aim to provide a safe space to all young people.
Please note that the content on this website is created by teenagers. While we strive to provide accurate and helpful information, it is important to remember that we are not professional experts. If you are experiencing a crisis or need professional advice, please reach out to a qualified mental health professional or a helpline. |