Denial still Reigns Supreme
Earlier this month, [link url=”http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/dec/12/paris-climate-deal-200-nations-sign-finish-fossil-fuel-era” title=”nearly 200 nations”] signed a historic agreement to regulate the burning of fossil fuels in order to keep the earth’s temperature from rising more than two degrees Celcius above pre-industrial levels. It will also usher in a new standard of renewable energy production that will eventually replace fossil fuel consumption as the norm. These are good things, and speak well of us as responsible stewards of our planet.
In judging the upcoming political choices to be made in the US, one would not know that anything even happend. The [link url=”http://mediamatters.org/blog/2015/12/16/cnn-debate-ignores-climate-change-does-not-ask/207539″ title=”Republicans”] held a debate on December 15th in which the issue was not mentioned; The [link url= “http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2015/12/19/climate_change_was_absent_from_abc_s_democratic_debate.html” title=”Democrats”] held a debate on December 19th in which the issue was not mentioned either.
What’s going on?
Clearly one answer is that we apparently will be picking from fields of candidates that do not believe it is their best political interest to address the greatest threat to our civilization that’s come about in our history. That’s pretty sad.
Another answer is that this can do real damage to our society–as the old adage goes, no problem was ever solved or made better by ignoring it. The longer we ignore the inevitable truths about what’s going on around us, the harder it will be to make the situation turn out right.
Leadership R Us!
To review, the ongoing impacts of climate change include: sea-level rise, which is already making parts of the Miami area uninhabitable; drought, which parched California, the Southwest, and parts of the Midwest for a number of years now; floods, which are only now receding from areas of the Pacific Northwest; and forest fires that sweep our Western forests at an ever-increasing rate each year.
Politicians could certainly help with this. We have every right to expect our President and Congress to enact visionary protective measures on our behalf; We also have every expectation that they will not.
So who leads? Well, for better or worse, that answer is probably that it’s going to be us–Emergency and Disaster Management professionals. When you get to the bottom line, there’s no other community with the knowlege, skills, and abilities to tackle the job, and no other community as motivated as ours to do so.
“Always do what is right, regardless of what you’re told. If you are told nothing, then you have unlimited license to do good.” (author unknown)
So as you make your New Year’s resolutions, give some consideration to the good that you can do for our beloved Spaceship Earth, and be prepared to lead the charge. The day when you will be needed is coming soon–if not already here.
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