‘To put it simply, “business-as-usual” will have but one result – the end of human civilization on earth by 2100’

Philippines is being battered by several typhoons with Typhoon Lupit heading towards Asia Pacific as well. One side of India is dehydrated due to a drought while the other side has continuous floods. Australia has not yet seen the end of dust storms and Bangladesh is eternally underwater.

New diseases keep appearing each day. We had SARS in 2004, followed by Avian Flu and now a pandemic which is projected to affect 2/3 of the world’s population: H1N1 virus (commonly known as swine flu).

The horrors do not end there. At the current production rate, oil should run out in another 42 years, global average temperature will in crease by 5.5 degrees Celsius and the tropics and temperate zones of the world will be too hot to be inhabited by humans.

Ultimately, the world is said to end in an apocalyptic fashion with thunderstorms, hail storms, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.

Events that have no inter relationship?

Think again.

4.5 billion years of history. 4.5 billion years of evolution. 4.5 billion years of life and us, mankind, manage to bring the earth to the brink of destruction in a mere 100 years.

What right do we have to destroy what’s natural?

So now, Nature is fighting back. Fighting back against the injustice that she has been subjected to and we, we simply stare at our own destruction and yet stay idle.

This capitalist life that we lead has to end. We need to start thinking of what we have been doing all this time. Remaining inactive as the world around us degenerated rapidly. It has come to the point where it cannot be ignored. The Kyoto Protocol has come and gone. The IPCC has been doing all that they can. Numerous UN conferences and Climate change conferences and what is the result? Increasing human wastage, increased levels of greenhouse gases and increased levels of crass ignorance of the cavern that we are rapidly running towards.

The truth of the matter is, by 2050 we will all either die of yet another new epidemic or a natural disaster and even if we survive, we’ll simply even starve to death. So by the end of 2100, mankind will possibly be eradicated from the earth. This isn’t exaggeration, these are facts with evidence to support them and these are things that will take place if extreme action isn’t taken.

The Conference on Climate Change at Copenhagen this December maybe our only chance for survival. If our world leaders are not going to take immediate action, its time to show them that WE do. With the Conference drawing closer, it is the perfect time to get the message across.

The 24^th of October has been declared International Day for Climate Action and the fact that it is also World UN day simply adds to the significance. So far different countries are taking different measures and actions to show that the world demands effective action. The best example for this is the Maldivian Cabinet Meeting that was held under water.

On the 24^th of October 2009, the largest program for action against global climate change called “350” will take place in 169 countries with 3769 actions for the cause. The story behind “350” is that it refers to the safer upper limit for carbon dioxide measured in ppm (parts per million). It is the safe limit for humanity and higher levels could lead to dangerous and disastrous results. Currently, the level is at 387ppm and it is projected by the IPCC that it will rise by 132% by 2100. This itself, shows the severity of our situation and the time for action has come and is fast leaving us. If we do not act now, we might be too late.

I for one do not wish to be responsible for this disaster for I already feel guilty about the percentage of greenhouse gases that I as an individual have contributed which have lead to this problem.

So today I make a pledge. A pledge to reduce my carbon footprint and contribute towards a greener Sri Lanka and a greener world…

I pledge to work towards 350.

Do you?

Remember…. Your life may depend upon it.

Global warming (aka climate change) is probably the most important issue to face our generation, and quite possibly any generation in history. The worldwide scientific community is virtually unanimous in its agreement that global warming is happening, that that it’s our fault. If we let it get out of our control, the consequences – which will already begin occurring in most of our lifetimes – will be catastrophic. Just some of the consequences that can be reasonably expected are rising sea levels, more frequent and more severe natural disasters, large-scale food shortages, plagues, massive species extinctions, unprecedented numbers of refugees, intensified ethnic and political tensions, and a global economic depression the likes of which no one has ever seen.

Breathing Earth is a real time simulation with the latest footprints on CO2 emissions that displays the CO2 emissions of every country in the world, as well as their birth and death rates.

The fact of the matter, however, is that what is most important is how many c02 emissions there are from the perspective of Planet Earth. Although some countries are clearly much worse polluters than others, the problem is ultimately a global one that humans of various nationalities have caused, and that humans of various nationalities must work together to solve.

One thing must surely be obvious though: The problem is largely a Western one. It is the Western countries who are leading the way in CO2 emissions, and when non-Western countries have high CO2 emission rates themselves, it’s usually because they are adopting Western habits. Since we, the West, have been a leading cause of the CO2 emissions problem, surely it is we who must step up and be the leaders in the solution.