Nature’s message amidst the pandemic.
By: Shivam Garg
Tags: Coronavirus, Human Behavior, Global Warming, Climate Change, Nature

Nature’s message amidst the pandemic.

“We need nature for our survival and not vice-versa. A shift in approach to deal with climate change is long overdue.”

The world is currently witnessing a global pandemic which has affected almost every aspect of our life. Businesses are going through tough times, traveling/tourism has come to a halt, the supply chain has been disrupted, people are in constant fear of job losses and laborers/workers are struggling for life. The pandemic has taken everyone through hell and is making it increasingly hard for humans to cope up with the situation. In times like this, it is important to remember that the worst experiences teach us the best lessons and tough times make us more resilient and prepared for the future. One such major learning opportunity lies in the human perception of Climate Change.

Climate change has been a hot discussion topic at the most prominent global platforms in the last decade. We have seen world leaders gather to discuss several ways to mitigate the effects of human interference in nature and to save the planet. One such instance is of the Paris Agreement, adopted in 2015. It aims to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping the rise in global temperature this century well below 2 degrees Celsius (above pre-industrial levels). The agreement also aims to strengthen the ability of countries to deal with the impacts of climate change, through appropriate financial flows, a new technology framework, and an enhanced capacity-building framework. Many approaches and technology like sustainable development, use of renewable energy, reducing and recycling waste, electric vehicles, etc are in progress and are providing aid in terms of achieving the target. We are trying our best to solve this problem but the solution seems to be nowhere in sight. 2019 was the second warmest year on record and the end of the warmest decade (2010- 2019) ever recorded. Carbon dioxide (CO2) levels and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere rose to new records in 2019. It is time to reevaluate and I believe, that the problem might be in the approach we are taking to tackle this crisis. The narrative which our leaders bestow us with is essentially this — “We have to save our planet.”

With the global pandemic bringing our fast, capitalistic lives to a sudden halt, we have seen a massive improvement in climate instantaneously. With all the major economies being forced into lockdown for almost a quarter of the year; the average temperatures have reduced drastically. Signs of recovery of the ozone layer near the South pole have also been encouraging news. Greenhouse emissions have been at a record low in this quarter. One main reason for this stream of positive news is the behavioral changes in human beings. People are now refraining from extra expenses and relying more on basic necessities. Travelling and tourism have come to a halt, both because of government regulations and fear in people’s minds regarding the virus. Due to this shift, oil demand has been at a record-low and ultimately it has led to fewer pollutants in our environment.

Greenhouse gas emissions are projected to drop about 6 percent in 2020 due to travel bans and economic slowdowns resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. It is interesting how a global pandemic has mitigated climate change in such a small duration, which otherwise would have taken years. However, our history suggests that these changes are temporary which happen after major events and affect people globally. The world rebounds back from it and starts running at the same pace and sometimes at a higher pace than before. See the graph below –

It is obvious that humans are repeating the same mistake again, arrogantly ignoring the reminders nature is throwing at us. We are missing an important clue of the puzzle to solve this grave problem. Here, I want to suggest some changes in the narrative on how we are dealing with the problem of climate change by reminding ourselves that, “Humans are part of nature.”

Human egoism has led us to believe that we are masters of everything. We always take every problem in our hands and try to solve it with the mindset that we are the only ones who can solve this. We forget that we are just one species out of millions on the planet, worth just as much as a drop in the ocean, of our universe. We should remember that our planet started when we were not around. Earth has seen many cycles of death and birth and she has always survived; irrespective of whether we were there or not. In the last 500 million years, life has had to recover from five catastrophic blows and we might be approaching the sixth one.

We need nature for our survival and not vice-versa. So, the best approach would be to leave aside our egoism and go with the flow of nature. If we foolishly try to control nature then we have to get ready for more such punishments which nature can impart on us in future.

It is peak time to introspect and humbly change the narrative from “We have to save Nature” TO “We have to live and learn with Nature.”