The real world threat
What is scarier than aliens invading our planet? Climate change, that’s what. movies. And climate change isn’t an temperature by this amount in change was actually a thing. Most than that. And it’s not just China. alien invasion that can be punched such a short period of time means of the debate was between oil comThe United States, Canada, and in the face. And that’s too bad. species cannot adapt fast enough pany funded organisations that many other nations are not prior
Because if it was, maybe world and might go extinct. For example, published studies to counter repuitising climate change and are only leaders would take it more serioustake those beautiful coral reefs table scientific sources. Gore’s film thinking short term. ly. Just because climate change isn’t everyone loves to vacation by; helped to change some of that. He Prof Thebarge once said, the best as dramatic as an ominous asteroid they’re notoriously fickle. They can got the world to stop the ridiculousthing the world can do for the envior a zombie apocalypse, make no only handle a couple degrees of ness of discussing whether or not ronment is shut down all the mistake, it is the real- world version fluctuation either way or they die. climate change was happening and schools of economics. He’s not of those flashier big screen threats. And this happens to many other got us focused on making a change. wrong. But that’s a huge shift. And I
Al Gore’s 2006 documentary An species. Except, we still haven’t made understand why it’s difficult for Inconvenient Truth And then there’s the feedback one. Not anything vastly significant. governments to commit but it has did more to loop of melting One of my instructors, Prof Theto happen sooner rather than later. raise awareice caps barge at Canada’s University of I hope something concrete comes ness about would Waterloo, said that climate change out of COP21 ( it ended on Dec 11, climate raise globis a runaway locomotive. Even if after I’d written this). Humans are change al sea levwe stop all carbon emissions tomornothing if not flexible, if the politithan all the els and row, the train keeps going on. The cal willpower is there. And it will scientific put many carbon dioxide in the atmosphere be difficult because we are talking studies in the coastal cities will continue to raise temperatures about shifting an entire paradigm. world. at risk. for generations to come. Prof went But maybe if we start viewing cli
Ever since the 1980s, climate Places like the Maldives would on to say we needed to make a mate change as the real world change – led largely by increased simply cease to exist. And increased change now. That was in 1999. equivalent of a runaway asteroid or carbon dioxide in the atmosphere heating could lead to droughts in It’s 16 years later and all we’re an alien invasion – complete with causing a global increase in tempermany already drought- ridden placgetting is rhetoric. Promises like lasers and everything – we can start ature – has been seen as a legities. This is the real world threat China will peak its emissions by making the small changes that will mate global threat. An increase of we’re facing. This is scarier than 2030. That’s really just a promise lead to the big ones. even a few degrees – which is what aliens invading our world; it’s scarithat things will only get worse for many scientists predict – sounds er because this is real. the next 15 years but then we’ll try easy to shrug off, but it’s potentially Before Al Gore’s film, there was to make it better. catastrophic. A change in global debate over whether climate Well, the world has to do better
But that doesn’t happen in real life.
Take the recent 21st Conference of the Parties ( COP21) in Paris where more than 190 nations gathered to discuss a new agreement on “Climate Change”. It was covered in depth in the news while protestors around the world said climate change is a threat and, for the future of humanity, something must be done. But so far, the news out of Paris is more of the same we’ve heard from previous climate talks in Bali and Copenhagen, where leaders agree to do something at some point in the future.
Why are we not being presented with a dynamic team of charismatic individuals that will save the world?
Well, simply put, this isn’t the Catch Jason Godfrey on The Link on Life Inspired ( Astro B. yond Ch 728).