Watching the antics of Ethicalman on this week’s Newsnight programmes as he journeys across the USA on his mission against global warming, I found myself wondering how the American government can feel happy to be taking minimal steps to reduce the nation’s carbon footprint. Although there have been claims that America will lead the world in tackling climate change and setting the example for reducing carbon emissions, one interviewee that Ethicalman, Justin Rowlatt, was speaking to advised that the steps America takes may not be quite what December’s Copenhagen Climate Summit may be looking to impose. How can a nation as rich and with as many resources as the USA even contemplate such a poor response? So ok, the Environmental Protection Agency have committed that if the government doesn’t act, they will, declaring climate change to be a threat to human health, which does give some hope. But it shouldn’t have to be that way.
At the end of the day, it is in the interest of the planet and future generations that will be living upon it that we do everything in our power as a collective population to reduce our environmental impact and the effects that climate change is going to have while we still have the opportunity to do so. Many developing countries feel it is the actions of the Western world that has led to climate change being such an issue anyway, and while this is true, this is another excuse that should not be able to be used to justify the building of more carbon emitting coal fired power stations and infrastructures that dictate energy intensive ways of life.
Instead, I feel that developed countries should be using their knowledge and technology to help developments in China, India and other developing nations to be green developments and utilise clean energy and green technologies. However with the reluctance to push on with such projects in their own countries, could Western civilisation really do that without being the biggest hypocrites of all? And is that the reason why things are as they are and the likes of Ed Miliband, although making more progress towards tackling climate change than a number of his predecessors, still justify a dirty fossil fuel dependant foundation as OK for developing countries because it is their right to grow as we did?
The outlook can seem bleak when you think about these things, but to me it shows that although awareness is growing and people are starting to take steps, there is still much work to be done to make the real change that matters. On with the campaigning!
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Tags: carbon emissions, developing countries, ethicalman, usa