Climate change is beyond questioning
If you’re ever interested in what climate change is really doing to our planet, watch the National Geographic documentary, ‘Chasing Ice.” In 2005, photographer James Balog documented the effects climate change has on major glaciers.
This documentary is spectacular for many reasons, but there are two that I feel are important to point out. First, this documentary was a dangerous project. Balog, at the beginning of his expedition, was unaware of the important things he would capture on camera, and once he understood the history he was documenting, he went to great lengths to get the best footage possible. He climbed down steep glaciers and put up with harsh conditions just to get the best shot.
The second thing that I found particularly interesting was that the results were far more dramatic than anyone on the team expected them to be. I wanted to point this out because I felt this sliver of knowledge truly speaks to human nature altogether. We struggle to believe things we can not easily see or rationalize.
The concept of climate change is interesting because, to me, it’s one of the most straightforward concepts I will ever understand. It just makes sense to me. There are close to eight billion people on this planet and almost all of them are somehow using the Earth’s resources, while also sending most of the resources back into the Earth’s atmosphere. Of course, there would be side effects to that.
In previous years of learning about climate change, my question has always been the same: “How could anyone possibly not believe climate change is real?” There is solid evidence proving that these side effects are real and, more importantly, dangerous. How can people actively ignore it?
I eventually answered my own question when the COVID pandemic hit America. With as much sense as it made to me that this pandemic was killing people, there was still a gigantic group that didn’t so much as entertain the idea that this virus is real. Once the vaccines came out, the number of skeptics grew immensely. Human nature and how we, as individuals, deal with issues is so interesting. You can have all the evidence in the world that something is real, throw it at someone’s feet, and there is still a distinct possibility that they won’t believe you or understand.
Balog knew people would criticize his work. He knew of the mass amounts of skeptics that would question his evidence. That’s exactly why I find it so inspiring that he continued with his research despite it all. The evidence is impossible to misinterpret, even if it’s from 17 years ago.
Throughout the week of Sept. 11, President Biden and Vice President Harris took major steps in the fight against climate change. The most major step, on Sept. 13, was that President Biden passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which is determined to be the most forward action the United States has done to reduce climate change.
We all have a factor to play in this ever-changing planet. The question should no longer be, is climate change real? The question should now be, what can my generation do to fix it? What can I do to help my worldly community and save my planet?
