The explosive United Nations global climate report’s key conclusion is that humans have only a 12-year window if this planet is to remain a comfortable place to live. Reaching that goal requires net-zero emissions by 2050. Unfortunately, even New York’s relatively ambitious plans won’t reach that goal.
So we need to be more aggressive. Primarily, that means pushing politicians who would prefer not to think about frightening issues with often unpopular solutions. Food and Water Watch (I’m a member) protests where politicians are meeting, submits petitions, places calls to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office to remind him of his promises and basically is a thorn in the side of politicians with short memories.
But not everyone wants to or has time for activism. Fortunately, individual actions matter. The critical first step is to vote for candidates who will make hard choices. The second step is to avoid eating beef and lamb. (Fun fact in a serious letter: One of the big problems with livestock is their continuous methane gas-filled farts.) A third step is to reduce the energy impact of travel by doing less of it, switching to public transportation or even placing less frequent, slower speed, orders on Amazon. The fourth step is to avoid plastic. That includes reusing, recycling and repairing.
It’s easy to assume someone else will do what’s required to keep our planet habitable. Yes, we need to push our politicians. But we also need to change small details of how we live. It’s possible.
Ann H. Logan
New York City
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