I have had friends say things like, "Well, I think the Earth is just going through its normal cycles, climate change isn't real." We are facing a time of great challenge as the world around us is impacted by our actions. We need to change and to put resources towards solving these issues that will impact future generations. We need to do it now. Where do we begin when we can't even agree that there *is* a problem?
I have been fortunate enough to be surrounded by people who have studied and worked on environmental issues. I hear about their academic research and their fieldwork and I understand how delicate the balance of our world is.
One example is a geologist friend that I have known for years. She has tirelessly traveled the globe to help communities understand the impact that climate change and human activity have on water supplies. Most people she encounters have no idea the impact their actions have. She educates them. Then they return to doing exactly what they were doing before. She continues her research and continues to educate people about these issues. She does not give up. Like her, we should not give up.
Another friend of mine wrote his thesis about the impact that changes in rainfall frequency and intensity from climate change in South Africa have had on local vegetation and animals. What surprised me about his research was how one seemingly small change trickles down to impact so many things. This is in one concentrated area. Think about how this is happening in so many small places. Think about what the world will look like ten years from now after all these trickles become an ocean.
There are many published works about climate change. I'm not sure how many friends who "don't believe in climate change" have researched the evidence. I will put a few links below, but if you just take the time to dig into this topic you will find a lot of resources. I am not going to cite scholarly research here. The evidence is overwhelming. My concern isn't a lack of information. It is that climate change is not a matter of faith, it is a matter of data. How can we transform data into action?
Many types of people have been looking at climate change. Cross-discipline scientists have been writing about it. This is not surprising because of all the systems impacted by these changes. Greta Thunberg made the cover of Time magazine for her efforts. Celebrities from Keith Richards to Lizzo have been raising awareness about climate change. This is not a hot topic because it's trendy, it's everywhere because it impacts everything.
One of my favorite climate change influencers is photographer James Balog. He has produced several documentaries. The best, in my opinion, is 'Chasing Ice'. In that movie, he documents how rapidly our glaciers are melting. If you are about to tell me that it is "just a natural progression" please note the rate of change before and after the industrial era.
Let's say my skeptical friends are right and humans have had no impact on climate change. What harm would it do to adopt more environmentally friendly practices? None.
No matter what the identified issues are in climate change, the largest issue will always be human nature. People, yes myself included, are selfish. We do what serves us and we find ways to defend our choices. Few people are willing to think outside of themselves. This is like my plea to adopt a plant-based diet. I can provide mountains of evidence supporting it and everyone around me will ignore the evidence. They like their lifestyles too much. "I don't want to give up xyz." I admittedly have things that I don't want to give up, like my paper towels. In the end, we have to ask if it's more important to get what we want or if it's more important to build a world that future generations will want to inherit.
Until we can transform the way people think about change, we are lost.
https://www.igi-global.com/chapter/climate-change-impact-on-agriculture-and-food-security/195197
https://www.pnas.org/content/115/16/4015?etoc=
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0175402
https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/eg/article-abstract/13/1/31/138036/Sorption-of-methyl-tert-butyl-ether-and-benzene-in?redirectedFrom=fulltext
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