‘We can do better’
I once heard someone say in a podcast that humans were like mould on a sandwich, spoiling the Earth without concern for the consequences. Another metaphor I read in an article compared human beings to a virus infecting the planet. Someone suggested to me that humanity is so damaging to itself and the planet, that we need to press the reset button. Let’s just say he wasn’t an optimist! This outlook on humanity lacks faith in our ability to change and get better. It’s quite concerning to think that so many people have either lost faith or just accepted how it is. They won’t change or act to heal our planet.
Earth is our only home in the universe. The only planet in our solar system with the unique conditions that allow life to thrive. Yet too many souls are comfortable with the idea that the health of their planet doesn’t concern them. “Who cares about saving the planet” was a scary statement I heard from a young guy wearing his trousers low, like he’d wet his nappy. Perhaps he believed there’s another planet we can move to once we have effed this one up? ‘Sure, maybe we can move to Venus…’
Earth is our only home in the universe. The only planet in our solar system with the unique conditions that allow life to thrive. Yet too many souls are comfortable with the idea that the health of their planet doesn’t concern them. “Who cares about saving the planet” was a scary statement I heard from a young guy wearing his trousers low, like he’d wet his nappy. Perhaps he believed there’s another planet we can move to once we have effed this one up? ‘Sure, maybe we can move to Venus…’
“The universe is about 14 billion years old, Earth is about 4.5 billion years old, and humans about 200,000 years old. We’ve been here such a small amount of time, and yet we’ve wrecked a good chunk of what nature has created. Are we such barbarians? Or, baboons in suits with smart phones? Having said that - there is hope!”
‘Our solar system and a little further’
The other planets in our solar system are hazardous to humans. There is no backup planet. Let’s take a look at them to be sure. First up we have Mercury, 427°c during the daytime, and -180°c at night. The atmosphere is so thin that without a space suit you won’t survive for two minutes! Then we have Venus, named after the goddess of love, but she won’t be loving you my friend, at 462°c, she’s hot enough to melt lead. Made mainly from carbon dioxide and sulfuric acid, with acid rain, it’s so hot the rain evaporates before hitting the ground! Sounds like Lucifer’s tavern - you will die instantly!
Now Mars, its gravity is so weak it can’t hold on to oxygen, it’s mostly carbon dioxide. It has an average temperature of -81°c. Matt Damon may have survived by growing potatoes with his poo but that was Hollywood make-believe! How about Jupiter? The Big Mama of our solar system. A gas giant with no firm surface to touch down on and a persistent high-pressure region producing an anticyclonic storm. If you enjoy feeling the ground beneath your feet and the wind out of your hair, you won’t vibe with Jupiter.
Next Saturn! A sphere made almost entirely from hydrogen & helium. Saturn doesn’t want you there. It’s so inhospitable, the gas surrounding it is poisonous to humans. It’s also -178°c, a little nippy, don’t you think? Here’s cheeky Uranus, the oddball of ice and gas which rotates on its side. It hasn’t got a surface. If you tried to land on Uranus you would just sink through the upper atmosphere of hydrogen and helium, and then into the liquid icy centre. And finally, we have Neptune with an atmosphere of hydrogen, helium, and methane. It also has storm systems that circulate around the planet with wind speeds of 1000 km/h and clouds of frozen methane. Sounds like Elsa’s old home before moving to Earth. Please no one piss her off again!
The nearest planet which may have earth-like potential is just 12 light years away. Astronomers have discovered a rocky planet in the habitable zone of Proxima Centauri. The only problem is it would take 137,000 years to get there. I’m sure Virgin Galactic will run out of peanuts and loo rolls within the first few days!
‘We are the problem
but also the solution’
We live in a world where money is almost everyone’s primary ambition. As without it life can be difficult, and limited. But, at what cost do we indulge the mentality of ‘profit first’? The costs have become blindingly obvious for people who can think for themselves. It’s unacceptable to poison and destroy our planet and damage people’s health in the process. We must do our utmost, with intelligence and compassion, to live in a way that’s friendly to the environment. It’s not too late, change has already begun, and we must persist and educate those who are oblivious. Yes, millions still throw their rubbish, cigarette ends, and chewing gum on the ground, in parks, forests, and oceans. We still kill animals for sport, overconsume meat and overfish our oceans. Dangerous substances are still added to our food and drinks despite the demand for healthier alternatives at a fair price. We are over farming resulting in land degradation. Deforestation has brought the loss of habitat for millions of species. Human slavery is still practiced to satisfy the demand of consumerism. And, city air pollution is on the rise worldwide.
‘Change can only come from us’
The way we treat our planet is the way we treat ourselves. Humans are famous for their self-destructive behaviour. Just take a look around hospital exits, you’ll see people fresh from surgery puffing away on a cigarette. Look at our diets, most of us know what junk food and excessive eating does to our bodies, yet we still indulge. We understand the damage that alcohol does to us, yet we still drink too much, just like an addict seeking their next fix. Our wellbeing is secondary. Enjoyment and escapism come first. We snub self-education and self-discipline because we don’t have the time or we don’t want to. Maybe out of laziness or impoverishment. Who knows! Our planet is a reflection of who we are and the consequences of our thoughts and actions.
The equation for capitalism doesn’t include social or environmental ethics. This is what we must make good. You have a heart, listen to it. You have common sense, use it. You have wisdom, share it. We need new ideas to improve the way we live. We need to keep loving life, our own and the life we see around us. We need to love our planet and embrace a new system that gives love value. Take care of our planet. Do it for you. Do it for our children and for future generations. It’s everyone’s right to live and flourish in this beautiful world. Let’s join our efforts and take care of mother nature like she has taken care of us. Her fauna, flora, and her magnificence is everywhere: in the structure of DNA, in our own complex biology, in the sound of people’s laughter, and in the diverse environments covering our planet's surface.
“Life can be tough at times, and the well-being of the planet isn’t on everyone’s priority list, but every day is a chance to do something good which will help us live a more sustainable way of life and restore balance to our planet. Everyone can do something, even if it’s just putting your rubbish in the bin”. (that’s in the bin, not next to it!)
