Climate change has become far more concerning than anyone could have ever anticipated (or maybe everyone anticipated but did not act). Ever since the 1900s, the climate has been on the fritz. Due to our reckless actions disregarding the health of our Earth, the detrimental effects can now be witnessed, one of them being climate change. Melting glaciers and rising sea levels, recurrent floods and typhoons, earthquakes of greater magnitude and frequency are only a few of the effects changes in the climate are causing. Is it just the tip of the iceberg?

While scanning through the news articles, a recent example that caught my attention was the flood that hit the district of Zhengzhou in China. The fury of the rains and floods caused irreparable losses to civilization. The overwhelming condition has thrown several lives in jeopardy. I was extremely grieved and terrified to see the images of people trapped in metros, schools, subways desperately seeking help. And what about the floods that swept through the parts of Germany and Belgium? It took the world by surprise. Blame it on the warning systems or human failures, the damage was already done.

Ironically, the human brain, considered to be the smartest and possessing the capabilities of unscrambling difficult situations is now struggling to decipher the magical code to protect our nature. Maybe there is a huge dilemma in deciding the priorities. I feel that a collective and conscious effort to amend our behavior and actions can help in some damage control, at least to tackle a few problems that our environment is now plagued with. We all read the remedies in textbooks, research articles, and newspapers but hardly do we implement them. The least we could do is implement those remedies as much as possible in our daily lives. If we want to save our dying Earth, we MUST put them into action immediately. A few easy remedies that I think we could follow could be:

Don’t waste food. Food that is discarded is burnt or thrown into landfills. This lets off toxic fumes that pollute the environment and generates more greenhouse gases, which eventually lead to climate change. I have decided to be more mindful of how much food I buy, taking just what I need. For example, instead of ordering 7 dishes in a restaurant, I will order one less dessert (I hate doing that, but it is worth it😊) or one less starter. Plus, it reduces my intake of unhealthy food😉.

Use lesser plastic. Plastic is a non-biodegradable substance and cannot be decomposed easily. This leads to pollution as it can remain for more than a million years. This pollution can be land or air. Burning plastics produces acidic gases leads to global warming which in turn causes climate change. When the land gets polluted, poisonous substances seep into the soil, destroying many useful nutrients and minerals.

Alternatives would be using paper bags, reusing plastic bags, or even using metal cutlery. A new invention of metal straws has also assisted in reducing pollution. This can greatly help reduce climate change, as pollution is one of its causes. If pollution is reduced, then climate change can also be reduced.

Switch to using bicycles or even walking when possible. Who doesn’t like a nice bicycle ride? Or a relaxing walk? For me, when I go shopping, sometimes I go walking to the store. We take a short walk of around 1 km. The walk is very refreshing, as, on the way, we may be able to spot beautiful flora and fauna. It is also a good exercise for my lazy self. I have decided to do it more often. Bicycles do not even emit carbon dioxide fumes, which is positive for the environment. I LOVE going for a bicycle or scooter ride.

I feel it is high time that we stop controlling nature and start controlling our actions.

What are your thoughts on climate change? And do you have any remedies which can help reduce climate change? Tell me in the comments below!

Signing off…