By Zoë Caron
Sierra Youth Coalition of Canada
Sometimes it’s hard to realize that you are on the verge of something. Often it’s difficult to understand that you are balancing on the edge. And most of the time it’s hard to predict that one specific issue will define a period in your lifetime.
But today – as an avid student politician and youth environmentalist – these are all clear to me: climate change is quickly becoming, and will be, the defining issue of our generation.
It may be hard to see, simply because we are smack-dab in the middle of it. I have only recently been convinced, by talking to activists that have been involved in climate change issues for over 20 years, that this issue has never, been this big before. Climate Change has never before been scientifically understood to this depth. And never has there ever been this much scientific consensus on the issue - or most any other issue for that matter. All of this is happening now, and all of this is still developing and expanding.
Climate change is the ultimate symptom and warning bell of the strains we have put on the planet. It is so serious that it is more of a human-survival issue than an environmental issue. It is bringing to light that all the pollution we create and all the waste we produce is finally having a larger impact than we ever expected. And none of the "typical" environmental issues have gone away - such as water pollution, air pollution, loss of natural areas, etc.
Climate change is, perhaps above all, a social justice issue. We must recognize that, at the root of the problem, it is the wealthy Western population that is genuinely responsible for the vast majority of the emissions fueling climate change. Similarly, it is largely the developing world that is feeling the brunt of climate effects. This is the peak of injustice: when actions from one are harming another, and it isn’t being acknowledged. Even in your very own community, there are people more responsible than others for climate change. Yet we will all bear the brunt of climate change in our community equally, whether you are a rabid conservationist or drive a 4-door SUV.
Unlike many in the Western world, people in eastern Africa who have experienced severe droughts for the last 5 years are very familiar with the hardships of climate change. And those hardships only make other problems more difficult to deal with, whether it’s putting food on the table or dealing with illnesses such as HIV/AIDS. And this is by no means only happening in far-off foreign places.
Much like the poor families who lived on the “wrong side of the tracks” (the industrial side of town, where the noise, smell and filth of factories made housing cheap), those in the developing world live with the negative effects of our “progress” while reaping few of the benefits.
Is this blunt? Perhaps.
Is this reality? Yes.
Have things changed? Not really.
What we are seeing now is that climate change has become a gathering point of an array of local and global issues, and is also becoming a process that will exacerbate all these issues. It is not a pretty cycle to think about. But, the issues must be acknowledged, the problems must be made clear, and the many solutions that exist must be embraced.
When I say "our generation," I refer to those of us alive right now - and who will likely be around for the next 40-plus years to see the evolution of climate changes. When I say "our generation," I think of young adults around the world - each of whom is going to experience a different aspect of climate change (for better or for worse). When I say "our generation," I feel the collective will of good people around the world who understand that changes need to be made to correct the problem and adapt to the consequences.
When I sit back and look at the hundreds of thousands of students and communities across Canada, the US and Australia rising up and demanding institutional change, and see the rising up of empowered youth across the developing world, such as those in southern and eastern Africa creating the African Youth Initiative on Climate Change, I can’t help but feel a surge of a movement. I can’t help but feel that surge every time I email organizers in Kenya, Switzerland, Brazil and New Zealand. Our generation is rising up everywhere because we get it – or at least a part of it. We know the issue and we feel the issue. We feel the issue together, and we are going to change this issue together.
Climate change may be defining us - but we are also defining climate change. Every light switch we flick, every policy we vote for, and every constructive word that we say is shaping how we deal and cope with each other, and ultimately, climate change.
So let it define us. And let it make history. But let’s make it a happy ending.
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Here are five ways you can Act Locally to combat climate change: from planting trees to changing light bulbs.
San Francisco Conservation Corps Give something back to the community — work for the Conservation Corps. The Corps is a non-profit job and academic training organization serving young people ages 18-26. Corps members develop their job and academic skills, leadership abilities and environmental awareness by completing outreach, conservation and community service projects throughout the city. Very cool.
PlantSF Improve our air and the city landscape by adding some green. Volunteer with PlantSF to spruce up your neighborhood or other parts of SF. You can also propose tree planting projects.
511 If you must drive in the Bay Area — share the ride. The 511 Regional Rideshare Program helps connect people looking for somebody to drive with. As part of the service, 511 shows cars with empty or available seats online and on the phone. You can help reduce greenhouse gases and who knows maybe make a new friend. Win! Win!
One Billion Bulbs Replace your regular incandescent light bulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs. According to the Department of Energy, if every American home changed out just five high-use bulbs with ones that have earned the ENERGY STAR, each family would save about $60 every year in energy costs. Together if we did this we’d save about $6.5 billion each year in energy costs and prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions from more than 8 million cars. Good deal. Track your light bulb changing ways at One Billion Bulbs.
Bay Area Green Business Program Shop only at "green" Bay Area businesses. To be certified "green," participants must be in compliance with all regulations and meet program standards for conserving resources, reducing pollution and minimizing waste. To find an official green business in your area check out the Bay Area Green Business Program. The power of the purse will force others to go green as well.
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Zoë Caron has been an environmentalist since age 5. She now works for the Sierra Youth Coalition of Canada as the Atlantic Coordinator for the Sustainable Campuses program. An Honours student of Environmental Science and International Development & Politics at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, she is also involved in making her own campus sustainable and is an avid student politician. Zoë is a past recipient of the Provincial Canadian Merit Scholarship and Columbia Basin Trust Scholarship for academic excellence and community leadership. Zoë is also a founding member of the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition. You can find her blogging at It’s Getting Hot In Here.
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