Time to change the climate

It's Earth Day. The first one was celebrated in 1970 and was actually meant to celebrate peace. But it was quickly modified to bring awareness to environmental issues and sustainability - can you imagine, we've been talking for over fifty years, and things only seem to be getting worse.

This is the classic case of all talk and no action - or waiting for someone else to make the first move. It's the selfishness of many nations, not wanting to sacrifice their perceived right to economic growth to look for greener alternatives (which are often more costly), that has pushed humankind to the brink of the environmental disaster unfolding before our very eyes.

Going back to our roots - No, this isn't the jungles of Vietnam, it is in  the Botanic Gardens

Although Singapore is minuscule in comparison to the giants of the world for absolute carbon emissions, we are still relatively high in terms of the per-capita numbers (i.e. divided by our population size) at 27 out of 142. This is one area where we definitely do not want to be high up there, given the link to warming, weather changes and all the other bad stuff.

It's Earth Day. What can one day of marketing campaigns, ads and seminars do? Increase the planet in our mindshare? Spark off viral memes? Get people using some buzzwords like the Green Plan, Net-Zero and Carbonomics? But beyond the media hype and the need for individuals, organisations and countries to get on board with the latest trends to go green and decarbonise, we need to develop a mindset of care, concern and courage.

Do you have a sincere respect and responsibility for our home in this solar system? Are you willing to take steps to make the changes that are needed, regardless of what others are doing?

Can you alter your lifestyle and behaviour to reflect these changes in an actionable and concrete way that makes a difference, at least in your own life - even if you think one person's efforts would hardly make an impact? This might be true, but Michael Jackson said that changes start with the Man/Woman in the Mirror.