LetTheEarthBreathe! // NBYRM

#LetTheEarthBreathe!

NBYRM // Ben Nivera

"We’re heading towards a F****** catastrophe” were some of the words scientist Peter Kalmus said as he tearfully delivered his speech in front of a JPMorgan-Chase building in LA. He and his group were later arrested by the LAPD for chaining themselves to the bank in protest of its financing of fossil fuels. During his speech, he mentioned that we only have 3-5 years left to save the earth, if we fail to do so, he says “we lose everything.” Kalmus wants everyone to stop ignoring scientists, since they’ve always been ignored whenever they speak about topics like climate change.

According to NOAA's 2020 Annual Climate Report, the combined land and ocean temperature has increased at an average rate of 0.08 degrees Celsius per decade since 1880; however, the average rate of increase since 1981 (0.18°C) has been more than twice that rate. Based on NOAA's global analysis, the 10 warmest years on record have all occurred since 2005, and 7 of the 10 have occurred just since 2014. Looking back to 1988, a pattern emerges(excluding 2011), as each new year is added to the historical record, it becomes one of the top 10 warmest on record at that time, but it is ultimately replaced as the “top ten” window shifts forward in time. Sorry to say the obvious, but climate change is NOT a joke. Every year, we step closer and closer to destruction. There’s no doubt that climate change has been already affecting our lives for years and will most likely continue to do so in the coming decades; if not stopped or at least mitigated. But despite this issue being VERY evident, some people still choose to believe that climate change is a hoax; What!?

Some people just ignore the fact that the world is dying, and that’s not okay. People really need to open their eyes on the current state of our planet. Earth isn’t the safe and clean abode it once was, and who were the ones who ruined it? Us, Humans; in fact, scientists claim that 100% of global warming is caused by human activity. We’re the ones who caused it and we’re the ones who suffer from it, which means that we’re also the ones who should strive to solve it. We destroyed the earth, we should be the ones who will fix it.

Following Kalmus’ speech and arrest, the hashtag “#LettheEarthBreathe” became trending in several social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Reddit. Famous celebrities, icons, and millions of users online endorsed the hashtag along with news articles, infographics, and photographs showing the effects of pollution. Raising awareness, giving information on actions to do, starting pro-environment groups and movements, planting trees, and encouraging others to act are only some of the things attached to this trend. It’s a great hashtag to go viral considering the people who just do not care are not informed about the current state of the planet.

People, we really need to step up now. This time, it’s quite literally “now or never”. The sake of our future is in our hands, the people of tomorrow depend on us. It’s time to wake up to reality and act; People are dying, glaciers are melting, and ecosystems are being destroyed! Today, it’s time to finally “Let the Earth Breathe.” Even simple acts like putting trash in their respective bins, preserving energy, and planting trees can also help our planet! So, let me ask you this; are you willing to save the earth for the good of all?

"People, we really need to step up now. This time, it’s quite literally “now or never”. The sake of our future is in our hands, the people of tomorrow depend on us."