Desperate Plea To Save The Planet; 15,000 Scientists Write A Letter To Warn People

Almost 15,000 environmental scientists from 184 countries have signed a letter called “World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity: A second notice” to attract attention towards climate change. This second notice came 25 years after the first letter in 1992.

The second letter is a desperate plea by the scientists’ to save the earth, as their first warning fell on deaf ears and the situation has further exacerbated. In the list of ecological threat featured in the first letter, other than the repair of the ozone layer, all the other predictions were ignored.

Signs of ecological damage in the letter:

The uncontrollable growth of population is the primary factor for ecological imbalance and various societal threats. Humanity is fast consuming the limited yet bountiful resources that nature has to offer due to exploding population, they warned in the letter. They express concern as media, scientists and influential individuals are not doing enough to gather attention to the problem.

Another major issue is the constant rise in global temperature. One of the arguments against climate change that climate change deniers have is that there is no substantial rise in global temperature since 1998, but that has been debunked by the data provided by NASA.

NASA reported that we have been breaking global temperature record every year. In 2016, the temperature increased by 0.12°C more than the previous record of the hottest year. That record was set in 2015, which broke 2014’s record by 0.13°C. The rise in temperature has serious implications as the polar ice caps are melting at an alarming rate.

Other factors:

The signs of ecological damage can also be seen in the depleting forest area, increase in CO2 emission, a significant decrease in freshwater resources, increase in dead zones.

The letter states that since 1992, CO2 emission increased by 62 percent, the overall temperature increased by 29 percent and wildlife decreased by 29 percent.

Prediction:

The years before and after 1992 talks are denoted by grey and black lines, respectively. Other than ozone layer depletion, none of the other aspects look promising. According to the letter, marine catch has been significantly going down as fishing efforts are increasing.

With the increase of population, cars have been increasing which shows the increase of CO2 emission. Population increase is also the reason for depletion of forest, as land is being cleared to make them habitable areas.

How can we help?

The letter offers solutions to the problems too. It says that necessary reservations and responsible funding can be done to cater to the needs of both aquatic and terrestrial animals. Preservation of forest can be done by halting the transformation of forest land into habitable environment.

By ensuring education to both men and women, food waste can be decreased. People can adopt a more plant-based diet. Education will also help in the reduction of fertility rates, thus bring the population down. Children can be taught from the very beginning about the usefulness of nature and the need to protect it.

Hope for the best:

Substantial progress has been made by humanity previously. Due to investment in the education of the girl child and their subsequent rehabilitation, UN reports there is a decline in fertility rates in various regions. The rate of deforestation has decreased slightly. The growing use of renewable energy is also a welcome change. The Second Notice hopes to bring attention to the fundamental and urgent needs of nature for the future of the earth and the coming generations.

Kadvi Hawa, a film scheduled to release on November 24, articulates the truth about the reality of climate change like a stinging slap—in the 2:44 minutes long trailer it has managed to successfully shake people to their core. The dangers looming upon us are easy to ignore when not visualized. It shows the scariest of scenarios already existing so close – the farmers committing suicide, nature devastating the coastlines in retaliation. Here children, born with a burden of debt, ask the elders about the seasons that appear mythical to them. The film got a special mention at the 64th National Film Awards, and we can only hope for it to create deep impression among the masses. It is essential that we become aware and stay aware enough to make a change by ourselves.

Watch the trailer here: