A Scorching Summer Highlights The Need For Climate Activism

Will our generation ever get to see a planet with normal temperatures?

Global warming has always been a cautionary tale of an apocalyptic future. However, the recent heat wave has shown us that soon, we may not have a world for our children to enjoy. 

This summer has been a cycle of scorching high temperatures followed by daily torrential rain storms that cause frequent floods that disrupt everything from traffic to agriculture.  

Nearly every day, local meteorologists have issued excessive heat warnings which indicate temperatures are so high that it’s dangerous to be outside. 

With the warnings being so common, it’s easy to ignore them. That’s exactly what happened to my aunt, Mabel. 

A few weeks ago, she called me to inform me the paramedics were on their way to help her since she collapsed from a heat stroke. 

This was a warning sign for me. 

We live in an advanced country with air conditioning and a plethora of resources to combat high temperatures. Can you imagine how people in developing countries fare, combatting this endless heat?

Despite being an obvious problem, the climate crisis continues to be a contentious issue between politicians because of money. 

That is why the United States withdrew from the Paris Agreement—an international treaty on climate change—to relieve economic burdens in 2017, only to rejoin four years after Biden’s election as president. 

Americans are also divided. According to a poll from Vice news, nearly half of Americans don’t think climate change is caused by human activity.  

It can’t take another record-breaking hot summer for us to care about our planet’s climate. 

We need to act now to decelerate this climate crisis and ensure future generations can have a planet to inherit and live on. 

A way to help from the comfort of your home is by utilizing Ecosia, a search engine that plants trees around the world depending on how often the platform is used. I’ve personally used the engine since the catastrophic California and Australia wildfires of 2019. 

If we all used Ecosia instead of Google or Safari, they could plant 300 billion trees yearly. 

Educators can also help by working with the Dream in Green, a non-profit organization that provides teachers in Miami-Dade County with a free curriculum promoting sustainability. 

The time for observation is over. If this scorching summer taught us anything, it’s that we need to act now and ensure we save the planet we call home.