It’s the middle of March, spring is finally here. Now that the weather is getting warmer and the second term is coming to an end, it is finally possible to go out for a walk without the need of covering ourselves in countless layers of sweaters and coats. But while doing all this, it might be worth to stop for a second and think about our relationship with nature and start to feel the life that surrounds us in all the trees and grass. And its fragility. And also our own.
Of course, this is the part where normally the author of an article like this would start to speak about climate change, the need for sustainability and preserving nature, all topics that are extremely important and popular nowadays, especially among younger audiences. We are all aware of the severity of such problems, so I won’t list the specific predictions and statistics about global warming, the ongoing mass extinction of species or the rising sea levels – you can hear about that in all the speeches of Greta Thunberg or thankfully, almost everywhere by now, thanks to challenges like Veganuary of Plastic Free July, the work of newspapers or organisations like the XR demonstrating effectively. However, both Veganuary and Plastic Free July focus on the decisions of the individual within society, similarly to what we can hear in awareness campaigns about turning the lights off, boycotting fast fashion or recycling our plastic waste. Of course, all of these initiatives are great, and the world is better off with them than without since they all focus on important aspects of a more sustainable future. But unfortunately, acknowledging such ideas doesn’t change the fact that they are essentially insufficient – even if the hip young professionals could be all convinced to not eat meat anymore on the basis of how much water is needed to produce it (or any other moral or environmental reason), we simply don’t have the time to persuade everyone. Even though it is easy to think that ‘everyone’ is vegan or at least vegetarian - if we spend all our time in a comfortably small and woke bubble -, it is important to remember that the majority of the world is located outside of this very limited personal perspective. And, of course, there are also reasons for that, partially awareness, but mostly the lack of easy-to-afford alternatives, the necessary knowledge about how to break with traditions while maintaining identity, and simply, in the case of older generations, habit and familiarity. In reality, above all the campaigning for awareness, it is crucial to keep in mind that most of these problems stem from the fact that the well-meaning individual is forced to live in a socio-economic system that is designed to assist the wants of the elites and those in power instead of focusing on what would be best for the many. This is what allows nature conservation aspects to be swept away by the needs of agriculture and this is what creates useful loopholes for big industries whenever possible – for example, with Brexit just three months ago. Another recent example is the February winter storm in Texas - since private power companies only focus on maximising their profit, they haven’t spent a dime on winterising their power plants, even though they knew the risks from history. They simply weren’t legally enforced to make changes, so at least 57 people died in hypothermia. These are only two examples, but there are countless others that all point in the same direction. Persuasion, taxes or offsets are not enough: the only way forward is with clear and strict bans. But those only come if there is political will; if the societal pressure is strong enough to make it impossible for leading politicians to get away with secret deals and empty promises instead of taking action, and if we elect parties and politicians who are willing to stand up against corporate forces and lobbying powers. So here is the most important takeaway of this short article I wrote on a Wednesday morning: if you want to have the chance to enjoy spring (or even to just _have_ spring and not only winter and summer) in the future as well, if you want to grow old, if you want to go on walks and be able to take a deep breath from the clean air, if you really want to have Earth as a shared home in the future as well, then we must push for constant change and innovative actions. Ban fossil fuels, try to eat less animal products, be mindful of your presence in this world – unlike the generations before us, we just cannot afford to turn a blind eye to these threats any longer.
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10/8/2022 08:43:23 pm
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