‘Climate change is every nation and every citizen’s business’
Senator Loren Legarda yesterday cited the need for all nations to transcend territorial boundaries, political persuasions, and institutional affiliations to address climate change.
Legarda, who will join over 40 religious, political and environmental leaders from around the world at the Summit of the Consciences for the Climate on July 21 in Paris, France, said every citizen of the world should take action against climate change.
“Until we have taken it upon ourselves that the key to climate change adaptation and mitigation lies in each and every individual’s effort to be part of the solution, then the greatest challenge we will have to fight to combat the warming climate and its effects is our own indifference,” Legarda said.
Legarda, UN Champion for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation for Asia-Pacific pointed out that climate change is not only an environmental issue but also a phenomenon that affects our lives, livelihood and way of living.
Dire consequences “The world will continue to get warmer and with this comes long lasting changes in our climate system. Ordinary people have limited understanding of this, until they are painfully introduced to its impacts via extremely harsh weather events, flooding, declining fish catch, water scarcity, declining agricultural harvests, exacerbating health issues, extinction of animal and plant species, displacement of people, and even the demise of low-lying areas, among others,” she said.
Quoting the 2012 Climate Vulner- ability Monitor, each year, Legarda said five million lives are lost due to climate change and the health impacts of its chief driver, fossil fuels.
“These realities compel nations to work together in arresting the increase of global temperature from reaching four degrees Celsius. Every time a disaster strikes and devastates our communities, we realize the risks and the challenges. We seek for solutions, we seek the opinion of experts; but the greater challenge is heeding the advice and taking the necessary action,” she stressed.
Moving forward The senator said as climate change knows no boundaries, the only way forward is a united global action towards mitigation, adaptation, and resilience.
“Now is the time for all of us to unite on all these challenges, and to transcend territorial boundaries, political persuasions, and institutional affiliations. Let us all be champions of change for the future that we want. Let us all become victors instead of victims in this only living planet that we call home. The time to make that difference is now. Humanity’s future depends upon us. Let us be the change we seek,” Legarda said.
She noted, quoting the World Health Organization, the direct damage costs of climate change to health alone at between two and four billion dollars each year by 2030.