Space view shows need to protect Earth
Our country recently marked the first time since 2011 that astronauts launched into space from American soil. Two astronauts are now orbiting Earth, perhaps looking down at their launch site here in Florida.
Ever since the first human spaceflight, astronauts viewing the Earth from space speak of overwhelming awe at our planet’s beauty, a spiritual recognition of unity and a shared destiny with all life below.
When they look at Earth, they may also see the melting ice caps and burning forests in a thin, rapidly heating atmosphere. These astronauts’ view shows us how immensely fragile our planet is.
That’s why I, a college student from Gainesville, have joined seven other young Floridians to sue State of Florida officials for their reckless actions that have accelerated the climate crisis. Our rights, daily lives, and futures depend on the foundation of a stable climate. We are asking our state government to stop violating our constitutional rights and endangering our future. We want the Courts to order the executive branch to create a “Climate Recovery Plan” that reduces fossil fuel emissions to a safe level that protects us.
After two years of waiting, on June 1 we finally had our day in court. Unfortunately, the Circuit Court judge “regretfully” dismissed our case saying climate change is a “political question” somehow up for debate. The judge felt we were asking him to legislate, but we are not. We want the judicial branch to hold government officials accountable for violating our constitutional rights to clean air, clean water
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RATES and a safe climate.
Imagine if courts had ruled that the kids in Brown v. Board of Education couldn’t pursue their claims in court. The judge did urge us to appeal to Florida’s First District Court of Appeals. And we will.
Floridians see our vulnerability in a state where millions of homes will literally be wiped off the map by sea level rise and intensifying storms. I saw it when Hurricane Irma flooded the road to my family’s house, and forced two of my fellow plaintiffs to leave Miami. We’re experiencing it in the extreme heat of recent years. By 2050, the average Floridian will experience over 130 days a year of dangerous heat, compared to 25 days a year historically.
Our state government has understood the causes and consequences of climate change since long before I was born. So why do they keep approving fossil fuel projects that lock us in for more warming? Why does the Sunshine State rank 48th nationally for renewable energy? Two-thirds of greenhouse gas emissions result from permits that the government hands out. They chose to create this crisis by promoting fossil fuel interests over the rights of young people.
Fortunately, our forefathers embedded a public trust doctrine in our state constitution, which charges the government with a duty to not destroy the land, water, and air that support us all. Florida’s constitution explicitly calls upon the Florida government to protect the state’s natural resources. The constitution also prevents the government from taking action that infringes upon our rights to life and liberty.
Courts around the world are already ruling in favor of similar lawsuits. I visited with young people from Colombia who sued their government for policies that destroyed the Amazon rainforest. The Colombian Supreme Court granted a sweeping victory to the plaintiffs. They granted legal personhood to the Amazon and future generations, and ordered the government to create a plan to stop deforestation. These young Colombians were inspired by efforts like ours in the United States.
A few years ago, my friend and I built a weather balloon with a camera and, standing beside Florida’s Suwannee River, released it into the edge of space. When we recovered our footage, we saw Florida in one frame. Our little emerald green peninsula studded by sparkling lakes, surrounded by ocean, a paper-thin atmosphere protecting us against the inky vastness of space.
Like the astronauts, we saw the beauty and vulnerability of our only home. After seeing Earth from the moon, astronaut Edgar Mitchell said, “You want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say, ‘Look at that’!”
We can’t all travel to space, but we all desperately need to respect the basic truth that a planet healthy enough to sustain life is our most basic human right.
I hope justice prevails in the courts and our rights are protected, for the good of us all.