Putting up a fight

THERE are some things that are universally known, things that are of utmost importance.

Things that should be taken care of, but are overlooked because they do not have an immediate impact on us. One such thing is climate change.
We hear about climate change so often that even talking about it seems clichéd.

However, I wish to reiterate. The planet's temperature is rising, and it is rising at an accelerated pace that most scientists say is due to man-made factors. There is an intense debate and a wide range of competing ideas on how to tackle what could be the most important issue of our time. Instead of concentrating on debates, what we should fear most is what will happen 50 years from now.

We forget that it is not the policy makers who need to take a decision. Even we need to decide what we want our future to be. We need to make a decision on the kind of world we want our children to live in.

For that we need to make basic alterations in our everyday lives. Using CFL bulbs that use 60 per cent less energy than a regular bulb. This simple switch will save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Buying appliances with energy star labels and not leaving appliances on standby are a few more ways to conserve energy.

Using pressure cookers while cooking will save us our precious LPG. Around three per cent of the greenhouse gas emissions through methane is released by decomposing bio-degradable waste. By recycling organic waste or composting it if you have a garden, you can help eliminate this problem. Instead of driving individual cars, car-pooling helps reduce carbon emissions drastically.

These are some of the basic things that can be altered without much difficulty.

There are numerous such ways to fight climate change. However, it is up to us to put up a fight.

Ankur Singh