Op-Ed: Climate change is a big problem. Citizens must demand many small solutions
In the face of unprecedented drought, heatwaves, sea level rise, and other consequences of our unchecked climate change, many of us are wondering how we can do our small part to help fix the problem.
“If we, as citizens, don’t do anything to tackle it, then it will just get worse and worse,” says Australian actress and environmental advocate Rosario Dawson, a leading voice for the climate change movement.
“It’s a very personal and spiritual act to take a stand and do something about climate change.”
The climate emergency requires a multitude of small and personal actions on many levels to combat it. We all have to reduce our water use by 1 percent, and then make our household, office and vehicle emissions even smaller. There are a variety of other measures we can take – from shifting to solar power, switching to electric cars, and installing a new solar water heater – to reduce our carbon footprint for a more sustainable life.
The urgency for us to take these small actions is that we are facing an unprecedented climate crisis. We have to start doing something now to mitigate the damage and prepare for our future.
However, before we do, we need to understand that we are facing a climate emergency, that it is human-caused and that we have a responsibility to act. Climate change is a very deep-seated issue, and we can’t expect to combat it if we are not willing to make a real effort.
But why is climate a big problem?
Climate change is the result of our actions and inactions. The earth is getting hotter and this has led to longer and longer heatwaves and more frequent flooding, along with other consequences of rising sea levels and sea creatures’ inability to adapt.
It’s a problem that’s been growing over the past 100 years, and it’s the reason all of us have our skin exposed to the sun and have been drinking, bathing, playing and working in the heat.
“People think that climate change is a problem about air pollution, weather, drought, but it’s a