The Climate is changing… Are You?

 

Global climate change is the single biggest environmental threat facing the planet. Burning coal, oil and gas, but also intensive agriculture or cutting forests pollute the atmosphere with greenhouse gases that heat up the planet. There is much that can be done to stop catastrophic climate change but immediate and decisive action is required now.

 

Climate change impacts are already affecting people and the planet. And the science shows that things will not be improving anytime soon. The biggest impacts will be on the lives and livelihoods of the poor and developing countries, especially small island states. The biggest culprits are the rich and the developed countries.

 

Climate change is a phenomenon that cannot be properly addressed without action from politicians and decision-makers in all parts of the world. Scientific research provides data that policymakers can use in order to take action on national and international levels. This policymaking in turn can determine what scientific research is carried out and how.

It appears that the targets agreed in Kyoto will not save the global climate. They are environmentally inadequate and represent a political deal rather than an equitable solution to climate change. Even if Parties achieved their targets fully, this would only slow the projected rise in global temperatures by a fraction of 1 °C.

 

On a more practical and local scale one will discover that to make a substantial change one does not need to invest thousands of Euros to save energy and that one should not underestimate the results brought about by more efficient use of resources.

 

If we fail to creatively adapt, the human and environmental systems on which we depend will collapse. What is needed is a third revolution of equal magnitude to the agrarian and industrial revolutions, a sustainability revolution.

 

The good news is that all we need to save the climate is in our hands.

 

Friends of the Earth Malta seeks to influence government to make changes in policies in favour of people and planet. Our challenge is to lobby the Maltese government to commit to renewable energy and energy efficiency as a tangible means not only to meet Malta’s international emission targets but to ensure a healthier planet and a better way of life for future generations.