Ignoring Reality: The Realness of Climate Change
By: Karen Trejo Villegas
Tags: Climate Change, Reality, Impact, Enviornment, Environmental Issues

Many Americans today are trying to live their lives. With the advancing technology, more people believe we have a higher chance of living a good future life. Just the thought that everyone in your family will be okay makes one think the world is not walking to its doom but evolving. Maybe a healthy family is not important to some people, but money, business, and power might be. Let’s not forget, with great power comes great responsibility. But what if this power and change are abused? Who will truly deal with the mistakes caused by the citizens of today? Definitely not us, it won’t be our problem. Let the future generation deal with it. These are just some of the thoughts many of us hold.

A wildlife photographer took this starving polar bear picture. Polar ice caps are melting away, and food is scarce. With the rising temperatures caused by greenhouse gases and fossil fuels, some people are beginning to question our actions. Many have claimed that this bear could have been sick or old. This was not proven. But we know for a fact that this bear was taken closer to death because of the difficulty of finding food in their changing environment. Our ignorance has stopped us from thinking about the true future of our younger generations. We are too busy worrying about ourselves, working, and finding out more ways to make easy money. It's tough to talk about this topic when your work is at stake. Below is a quote by the journal article Nursing in an Era of Climate Change. (2019)

“ it will cause global havoc, cause extinctions, and put all populations under severe stress.”(Pocock)

Why should we care about extinctions?

It is effortless to say something when you believe it won't happen to you. There have been debates for the past years on whether we should deal with climate change or let the future people deal with it themselves. The sad truth is, many won't be alive to see the terrible change happening right before their eyes. They won't see that humans will also be greatly affected. Even their children or grandchildren. with the removal of certain species, food chains will be destroyed, causing our own food sources to be difficult to obtain. “… from devastated agriculture, imbalance in the ecosystem, increasing vulnerability to natural disasters”(Naz). This was told by the Department of Rural Sociology in the research article An Assessment of Effects of Climate Change. (2020)

What is stopping us from making a change?

Warming Temperatures are causing abnormal rainfalls, floods, hurricanes, and other catastrophes that people believe to be normal. The people dealing with these conditions are the ones living in islands or other poor places. The economy is growing fast in well-developed countries; dealing with a problem that many believe has nothing to do with them is the last thing we need. Source below by said by Saurab Babu on Eco-Intelligent(2016),

“Accepting climate change would mean bringing huge changes to how we live. This change is expensive, uncomfortable, and we may not see the results of our change for many years.”(Saurab)

Let's admit it; we all feel better ignoring this crisis; worrying about our own problems and political issues seem more important. Big businesses would have to lose money trying to keep environmental rules, and our lifestyles may have to change whether we like it or not. Despite these changes, no one will be happy. The recent pandemic has caused millions to stay home. With fewer machines and cars being used, fewer greenhouse gases have been emitted into our atmosphere. The environment was bouncing back, but at what cost? Are people willing to sacrifice hardships for a problem they won't be alive to see? Unfortunately, our own children will have to deal with our mistakes; some won't even get to see certain animals like elephants and rhinos. Sure, there are many ways people are switching to renewable energy, but again, at what cost?

The picture above demonstrates how unnormal our temperatures are changing. Another reason for the denial of Climate Change is that the Earth has been changing its carbon dioxide levels in the past years. When the human economy started increasing, the atmospheric carbon dioxide has never been at the level it is today in all of history.

What does this mean for our future?

We expect diseases like cholera (like the image above), ebola, and tuberculosis to increase. With rising temperatures, it will be easier to become infected since many viruses can survive better in warmer environments. People might say that some viruses can live in cold weather, but let's not forget about the ancient bacteria that will slowly be released. The website titled Melting Arctic ice could unleash deadly waves(2020) states,

“Scientists say that melting permafrost has the potential to unleash viruses and bacteria that have been dormant for tens or even hundreds of thousands of years.”(Wehner)

Bacteria from thousands of years ago is exposing itself. Places that have kept these viruses frozen in place for years are finally melting away. This is overwhelming. Another reason people choose to ignore is that many of us are scared, which causes us to stop communicating.

What can we do? Where do we start?

Our president chose to ignore the Climate Change crisis; he eliminated many environmental regulations claiming we have nothing to worry about. In the last presidential debate, he even claimed that “Air and water are the cleanest they've ever been in the U.S” This was then proven false. Like President Trump, many people share his ideologies, people who have the power to make a change but choose not to because they are afraid it will ruin their business. Communication is key. However, instead of adding regulations, we must educate ourselves, but how? Environmental sciences are no required courses, but government and politics sure are. The Journal article An Analysis of the International Climate Change Adaptation Regime(2019) states, “The health organizations, advocates, and experts that make up the global health community have recognized the problems caused by climate change and have begun to take necessary steps to integrate the regimes of international climate change and public health.”(Cullum) This shows how we have to be educated first before we make a change. How are governments supposed to enforce regulations when they have no idea what they are signing? There are so many biology and science teachers who don't believe climate change exists. Education of Climate Change is crucial, and many great minds are not aware of it.

Works Cited

Babu, Saurab. “7 reasons why people don’t believe in climate change.” ECO INTELLIGENT, Oct. 2016, https://eco-intelligent.com/2016/10/16/why-dont-people-believe-in-climate-change/

Cullum, Lauren. “An Analysis of the International Climate Change Adaptation Regime and Its Response to Global Public Health Concerns.” UCLA Journal of Environmental Law & Policy, vol. 37, no. 2, July 2019, p. 191. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edb&AN=141224459&site=eds-live.

Naz, Rahat, et al. “An Assessment of Effects of Climate Change on Human Lives in Context of Local Response to Agricultural Production in District Buner.” Wissenschaftliche Berichte Des Instituts Für Meteorologie Und Klimaforschung Des Karlsruher Instituts Für Technologie, vol. 82, Oct. 2019, pp. 110–119. EBSCOhost, doi:10.17582/journal.sja/2020/36.1.110.119.

Pocock, Lesley. “Nursing in an Era of Climate Change.” Middle East Journal of Nursing, vol. 14, no. 2, Nov. 2020, pp. 18–21. EBSCOhost, doi:10.5742MEJN.2019.93699.

Wehner, Mike. “Melting Arctic ice could unleash deadly waves of ancient viruses.” BGR July. 2020, https://bgr.com/2020/07/07/ancient-viruses-permafrost-thawing-climate-change/