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If not us, who will act on this?

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Chapter 16-

Can You Help A Brother (Planet) Out?

     

With great wisdom comes great responsibility.

                                                                      -Proverbs

You have arrived at the final chapter of this book, possibly the most important chapter in my opinion. I hope you have gotten some new information; maybe even had some epiphanies along the way. I wrote the kind of book I like to read; light on fluff, rich with information.

In non-fiction works, authors often use the end of a book to summarize ideas from earlier chapters, ramp the reader down toward a conclusion and maybe present them with some final profundity. Instead of providing closure, I am using the last chapter to challenge the reader to do something with what they have learned.

I have passed on, via this work, a collection of facts and insights that if you were to dedicate half a lifetime to discovery as I have, you may have been able to accumulate what you found in this book through your own efforts. If I have earned your trust that I am a credible source and the information rings true then you now possess a valuable gift. It is my privilege to give it all away. After all, what good is knowledge that is not shared?

I handed this off to you with the anticipation that you may be moved to use it in some way that benefits others. Those with an expanded understanding about the true nature of reality and human experience have the opportunity to do great things what they have learned.

Earth, our fellow human beings and all the lifeforms that populate this beautiful planet need awakened people to take action and to do it right now. Many of us walk around thinking that if we show our concern about a problem, talk about it and maybe read some material pertaining to the issue that we are doing something about it. That is a delusion.

All our gifts really belong to others if you think about it. By choosing to read this book and take in these words right now, some part of you may be ready to participate.

 

Just as the character of Neo in the movie The Matrix could have rejected the opportunity to gain the truth, you also have a choice. You can take the “blue pill”, put the book down and go back to the life you are leading as if nothing has changed in you. You can pull down the cloak of amnesia and reclaim the illusion that you are less than you really are, or assume the belief that there is not much you can personally do to make a difference in the world.  The other option is to take the “red pill” and see just how deep the rabbit hole goes.

If you look at our lives as a story, there comes a time in almost everyone’s life where something happens that presents an opportunity for the main character to step in to the hero role; to leave the ordinary comforts and take action that extends beyond their personal interests.

Joseph Campbell identified this stage of the hero’s journey as “the call to adventure”.  If heeded, personal qualities of unwavering commitment, perseverance and courage are needed; while adopting what Henry Thoreau deemed essential to personal fulfillment, “to live independently of the good opinion of others”.  

You would need to be ready to accept this mission with the full understanding that nothing is guaranteed. The hero could lose it all and maybe even may die in the process, however the drive to proceed is so strong that none of this matters.

Right now humanity faces its greatest challenge, climate change. How can we answer to future generations that we knew it was happening and did nothing? Our children and grandchildren look to us to take action. All life on the planet is waiting for us to stop destroying their world and killing them in numbers not seen in 65 million years. 

If you feel moved to do something about it, to summon your gifts and talents for an important cause, this could be your time to answer the call to adventure, to be the hero.

Climate Challenges Facing Planet Earth

  • Global Temperature Rise

  • Mass Species Die-Off

  • Warming Oceans

  • Shrinking Ice Sheets

  • Glacial Retreat

  • Sea Level Rise

  • Extreme Weather Events

  • Ocean Acidification

  • Decreased Snow Cover

  • Population Resettlement

  • Social and Economic Destabilization

  • Drought and Flooding

  • Food and Water Shortages

 

"Scientific evidence for warming of the climate system is unequivocal"

-Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

 

All major global surface temperature reconstructions show that Earth has warmed since 1880. Most of the warming occurred in the past 35 years, with 15 of the 16 warmest years on record occurring since 2001. The year 2015 was the first time the global average temperatures were 1 degree Celsius or more above the 1880-1899 average. Source: NASA

Ninety-eight percent of climate scientists agree that climate-warming trends over the past century are very likely due to human activities, and most of the leading scientific organizations worldwide have issued public statements endorsing this position. Source: NASA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Extra carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases the greenhouse effect. More thermal energy is trapped by the atmosphere, causing the planet to become warmer than it would be naturally. This increase in the Earth’s temperature is called Global Warming. Source: BBC

Source of Climate Images: British Broadcasting Company (BBC)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Climate Change Facts

  • 2016 was the hottest year on record, and that heat-trapping greenhouse gases hit their highest concentration ever, surpassing 400 parts per million for the first time in nearly 1 million years. Source: NASA

  •  Arctic sea ice coverage has shrunk every decade since 1979 by 3.5 to 4.1 percent. Glaciers have also been in retreat almost everywhere in the world, including major mountain ranges like the Alps, Himalayas and Rockies. In 2017, arctic sea ice reached a record low for the third straight running, according to scientists. Source: National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) and NASA

  • Rising sea levels is caused primarily by the added water from melting ice sheets and glaciers, as well as the expansion of sea water as it warms. Levels are currently rising at their fastest rate for more than 2,000 years and the current rate of change is 3.4mm a year. In July 2016, a massive crack in the Larson C ice shelf finally gave way sending a 5,800 square km section of ice into the ocean. The newly formed iceberg is nearly four times the size of London. Source: Wired

  • The ocean is 26 percent more acidic than before the Industrial Revolution. The waters are more acidic now that at any other point in the last 300,000 years. The ocean has absorbed about 30 percent of the carbon dioxide humans have sent into the atmosphere since the start of the Industrial Revolution. Estimated at 150 billion tons. Source: NASA

  • More greenhouse gases are present in our atmosphere than at any point in human history. The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere reached the milestone of 400 parts per million for the first time in 2015 and surged again to new records in 2016, according to the Source: World Meteorological Organization's annual Greenhouse Gas Bulletin

  •  More than a million species face potential extinction as a result of disappearing habitats, changing ecosystems, and acidifying oceans.

      The current pace of global average temperature rise puts-Source: CNN

  • The Arctic region may have its first completely ice-free summer by 2040.

  • The United States is the second largest contributor to CO2 in the atmosphere, though it is home to just 4.4 percent of the world’s population. 

  • Average sea level is expected to rise 1-6 feet before the end of this century. Source: NASA

  • In 1910 Glacier National Park was home to more an estimated 150 glaciers. That number has now shrunk to 25 as of December 2016.

  • The world’s coral reefs are in the midst of a global mass die off. As of 2015, coral bleaching is impacted 40% of the world's coral reefs, killing over 4,630 square miles of reefs. Source: NASA

  • Climate change is now considered the greatest single threat to the global economy. Source: World Economic Forum

  • Based on current trends and needs, the demand for water will be 40 percent more than what can be sustained in 2030.

  • A coalition of 25 military and national security experts, including former advisers to Ronald Reagan and George W Bush, has warned climate change poses a “significant risk to US national security and international security” that requires more attention from the US federal government. Source: The Guardian

  • Studies are now presenting data that the combination of increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, rising temperatures and changes to precipitation are significantly affecting yields for staple crops such as corn and wheat. This particularly evident in tropical areas, where food production is normally high.

  • Areas that are experience increasing temperatures due to climate change will see an increase attrition due to insects and other pests. Currently the crop predators are responsible for 25 to 40 percent of all crop loss.

 

What can I do?

  • Educate Yourself About Climate Science

  • Promote Awareness-Newsletters and Social Media

  • Present At Conferences, Events and Local Library

  • Support/Donate To Organizations Involved With Climate Change

  • Start Grass Roots Organizations In Your Community

  • Peaceful Citizen Activism-Contact Your Representatives

  • Make Your Home Green (Solar)

 

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