Climate Change is happening, here and now.

WWF’s Climate Witness campaign (for whom we produced some conference and protest banners) has been demonstrating that the effects of climate change are happening here and now. The symptoms of climate change are not just something our kids will have to deal with, but something we are starting to deal with now.

The reality of climate change is now accepted by the majority of the electorate and of politicians in Australia. The questions we are now facing are the degree of urgency with which we must address it’s causes, and flowing from that, what is an appropriate response?

Given the risk of catastrophe, I would err on the side of high for the first of these questions.

In relation to the second, there are two major channels for reducing the impact of global warming: structural and personal. Governments can design a framework for an economy that is intended to minimise greenhouse gas emissions and reduce their concentration in the atmosphere. Individuals can make changes to their their own lifestyles reduce their own carbon footprint too.

Both are essential.

Without structural change, personal decisions have little impact while the majority of the population make no effort (just as many argue Australia’s response to climate change is useless without a global compact). But actions performed by people demonstrate to those around them that such change is possible, if not easy. The greatest benefit to those who adapt now is that changes forced on them in the future will be minimised, as they will already have made the adjustment in their own time and in their own way.

Without personal change there cannot be appropriate pressure on governments to create structural change. When I met with my local MP to talk about this issue recently, he expressed the view that Australians say that they want action on climate change, but are not willing to accept the costs of such action. While individuals avoid the cost of the necessary transition to a low carbon economy they show all politicians that his thesis is true. As Members of Parliament they are elected to represent you and so they do, and subsequently avoid imposing these costs on their electorate.

Sadly, what’s rarely discussed is the probable cost of inaction, which is greater by a magnitude that makes the cost of action insignificant.

Each of us needs to act personally as well as to publicly support structural change in order to avoid the worst threats of climate change by public campaigns (Blog Action Day has a great compilation of options).

To promote structural change there are any number of campaigns to which you can sign up in support. Better still you can contact your local MP and write to your senators to communicate the need for action and your willingness to pay for it.

As for the personal, psychologists tell us that, for most of us, CHANGE = PAIN. We are not under the illusion that change is easy. But change we make ourselves is much easier to cope with than that forced on us.

Now is the time to design our own change, both large and small. Our lives and our economy can be redesigned so that our quality of life improves and lifestyle is climate friendly.

The best first step is to change your mind.

Consider what redesigned life might look like, and what path leads from where you are to what you imagine. If you are not sure what a sustainable life looks like, it’s easy to learn about it. Do some reading – there are plenty of people who have done this already (at worldchanging, for example).

Discuss this new life with those around you, or if they are unwilling, with others online who are.

Take some concrete steps. Change is best managed incrementally, so take one step at a time. From little things, big things grow.

Before you know it you’ll be different. Hopefully we’ll all be. And better for it.

AN INVITATION:
Recently I was trained by the Climate Project, with local partners ACF, to give Al Gore’s well known presentation on climate change, which covers the science and evidence of climate change. If you’d like to understand it better, as well as discuss what might be an appropriate response, I’d be happy to present it to you and your colleagues, or teammates, congregation, community group, knitting circle or extended family and friends.

Please contact me at du ‘at’ digitaleskimo.net if you’d like to take up this invitation.

Related posts:

1. Take action now for a safe future climate
2. WWF International – Global Climate Change Program
3. Are you Climate Friendly?