While more people are now convinced that Climate Change and extreme weather are caused by human activities especially after the Industrial Revolution, ironically, not all are aware that literally every single woe and every single problem encountered by the human race today is caused by Climate Change, from mental health to global economy, and every uncertainty you can imagine.
Read the global news, if they are fortunate enough to be still in print, all the disasters unfolding before us every second of the day, 365 /366 days a year.
It is, I could confidently say, mankind is in the darkest and most unsought period in the entire history of the universe!
What is considered the worst in our existence, we have it today. The very worst imaginable!
Scorching-oven -heat temperature or Arctic- like cold is no longer something a novelty.
Droughts, famines, torrential rains, uncontrollable floods and wild fires are reported everywhere. Then typhoons, hurricane and tsunami.
The people who bear the brunt are our loved ones, the innocent young children, who will end up getting CANCER, pregnant mothers, the medically vulnerable, those with underlying medical conditions and problems, the vulnerable senior citizens.
All in the dirtiest polluted countries have their lifespan shortened by at least 5 years and will be burdened by a lifelong lung related diseases and premature death.
The medical bills are something even the rich may not afford!
It is worse than a convict serving a life sentence, because the notorious convict can still be helped .
Then we have the small countries gradually sinking, in the Pacific Ocean. Most polluted Bangkok and Djakarta are sinking. The latter has been relocated to Borneo, care must be taken that the environment is protected in this monumental exercise.
It is rather sad to note that we have the expected ‘adventurers’ like those who leave their countries to seek fortune! This group is not helping at this most critical and challenging time in the entire human history.
A million Climate Summits can be arranged, but if there is no genuine desire to gradually phase out coal and fossil fuels, and to go green resorting to renewable energy such as solar and wind, things will continue to get worse to a point when human beings will find that the planet is no longer habitable. But where can we go?
Meanwhile, every attempt must be made to cut down on emission of toxic gases.
Electric vehicles should help. A sustainable solution is needed.
Then we have the natural disasters like earthquakes.
To make things worse, the COVID-19 is still around.
Then the 100% man- made turmoil, wars, conflicts of all descriptions are making life absolutely unbearable for everyone in those troubled spots of the world.
The people who suffer the most across the globe are the lower income groups as they simply do not have the means to relocate.
Earth Day is not just a day for you to do anything that is environmentally correct for one day, but for all to realise that we are at the crossroads, take the right direction to save not only ourselves, but more importantly, our future generations to come.
Ang Lai Soon.
