In 2011 while working on a documentary, I learned that our oceans and therefore, the planet, is non-stop moving toward the verge of collapse, that our natural resources were in decline, and we, humans, are responsible. Then, I made a personal commitment and adopted it as my personal purpose in life, to try to make an impact raising awareness as well as creating ways to reverse the course and save ourselves from the inevitable consequences.
In the 21st Century, scientists are telling us that our planet is suffering the consequences of our actions for the last 200 years: Deforestation, greenhouse gas emissions, ocean overfishing, plastic pollution, ocean acidification, warmer oceans, polluting our rivers and waterways, the garbage crisis, etc. All these issues combine plus the depleting of our natural resources is causing global problems. Global Warming is one of these issues which are altering our water cycle causing natural disasters – wildfires and flooding – threatening our very survival as species.
By now, we should all be aware of the consequences. Global warming is changing the water cycle which means we will experience less rain therefore droughts, wildfires, and freshwater scarcity. On the other hand, stronger storms which are causing already more floodings around the world; more heatwaves that will diminish our food supply; Increase fires and droughts will accelerate many species extinction. The lack of water and food will force people relocation, which will increase national security uncertainty and potential economic distress around the world. All these problems have collateral and ripple effects on the threats of our “normal” ways of life.
How are we going to solve these problems? There is no single magic wand that can solve these problems. We have to use all the means available, including innovations, technologies, new policies, regulations, organizing communities, habits, and behavior changes, etc. But most of all, we have to get united around the world, to agree on making changes. Only then, we can dream of minimizing and reducing the negative impact on our lives, and the lives of our future generations. We have to recognize our stewardship over our children and our only home, planet Earth.
In the 21st Century, the word sustainable will become an important word. Today, there are entire industries that are not sustainable. We have no choice but to evolve into a new way of collaboration, business, and government. We need to evolve into a sustainable society that learned how to coexist with the environment and how to preserve our natural resources. All this means organized and self-sufficient communities, local sustainable businesses. Entire industries that need to change or simply disappear. But we are responsible for forging these changes, otherway, it will not happen. We need to get involved in this process.
The 21st Century must be very different for all of us. We need to finally recognize the importance of preserving our ecosystems and biodiversity. I have made a personal commitment to change my habits and to help others in this process of change. I hope we can all quickly understand what sustainability is and how we will all benefit from it. Planet Earth is our only home, let’s take care of it. We have no other option but to evolve into a sustainable society.
