“The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing non-competitive.” -Donald Trump. 

A huge problem in today’s world is global warming and it’s detrimental effect on the environment, and all who inhabit it. A majority of it is caused by humans, so what are we doing about it? Most importantly, what are our world leaders doing about it?

To understand global warming, you first must know and understand greenhouse gases. Planet Earth is warm enough to sustain life thanks to gases in the planet’s atmosphere that hold heat. They are termed greenhouse gases because they act just like a greenhouse- trapping the heat inside the planet’s atmosphere, making the average temperature on Earth 59 degrees Fahrenheit (15 degrees Celsius). Greenhouse gases are effectively harmless at this point, it’s what makes Earth inhabitable. However, humans have increased the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere by about 35%. The more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the warmer the average temperature gets; that is where the gases become more harmful. So how do humans produce so many greenhouse gases? The two main sources of these gases are energy use, and land use. This would be like burning fossil fuels, and removing forests. If world leaders know this is hurting us, why is it still happening?

“We are witnessing the severe impacts of climate change throughout the world. Every credible scientific source is telling us that these impacts will only get worse if we do not address climate change and it also tells us that our window of time for addressing it is closing very soon…We need to dramatically increase our ambitions.” — Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), at an April 2018 press conference on the Paris agreement negotiations. “We don’t know the exact timing or the magnitude of the global warming threat. We know it’s a problem. We know it’s huge. We know we can’t stop it. We have to wake up Europe, and wake up America, and wake up the whole world to realize that we have a common destiny and what’s at stake. Let’s lead the whole world to realize this is not your normal political challenge. This is much bigger. This is life itself. It requires courage and imagination.” — Jerry Brown, Governor of California in a speech at the United Nations conference on climate change in Bonn, Germany in 2017. If these leaders, with many more on their side, are aware of the deadly impacts of global warming and the overall climate disaster, what are we actually doing about it other than occasionally talking?

U.S President, Donald Trump, does not believe global warming is a big problem, or even a problem at all. In tweets he has said “It’s really cold outside, they are calling it a major freeze, weeks ahead of normal. Man, we could use a big fat dose of global warming!” and “NBC News just called it the great freeze – coldest weather in years. Is our country still spending money on the GLOBAL WARMING HOAX?”. How is America, a country that heavily produces greenhouse gases, supposed to help end this disaster if the leader doesn’t even believe in it?

If nothing gets done about global warming and climate change, America will suffer alongside the world. Scientists all over the world have agreed that by 2100, we’ll face mass extinctions, a dramatic increase in wildfires, dead fish, and limited fresh water to drink. Not only that, but by 2030, crop yields will drop in many places, including North America. By 2040, more species will face extinction, and both flooding and drought will increase varying on geographic location. Malnutrition and disease will increase in places like Africa, and most coral reefs will disappear. By 2060, more New Yorkers will be dying in extreme coastal storms. Invasive species will spread in Europe, while lack of snow starts to affect the Alps. Coastal communities in New Zealand and Australia will begin to flood from rising seas by the 2080’s. By 2090, average temperatures in Africa could be as much as six degrees hotter. These are only some of the deadly and detrimental effects of global warming. Why aren’t our world leaders accepting this as facts and doing something about it?

There are things we can do now to avoid things from becoming this bad. Research says that if our world leaders were to do a better job of enforcing mitigating climate change, adjust global energy use and renewable energy production, we would see more positive results. With decades of scientific evidence backing these claims, it’s only logical that the world’s leaders would find ways to ensure the safety of future citizenship. Some nations around the world, however, are doing small things to fight climate change. They are doing this by educating themselves, and speaking up! You can do this too by educating yourself and the people around you, and encourage Congress to enact new laws that limit carbon emissions and require polluters to pay for the emissions they produce. They are also powering their house with renewable energy. Just one household doing this is making a huge difference, and it is encouraged that you do so! They are also doing things such as reducing water waste, buying better bulbs, investing in energy-efficient appliances, driving fuel-efficient vehicles, and limiting the use of planes, trains, and automobiles as their mode of transportation.

Global warming is life-threatening, and if some of our world leaders fail to realize this, it is up to us as civilians to ensure a healthy planet for future generations. Educate yourself, educate others, and give back to the planet that gives you everything.