The 45th World Earth Day took place on Wednesday of this
week, with this year’s theme “It’s Our Turn To Lead” encouraging people ahead
of the Climate Change Summit in Paris to “redefine progress” and lead in the
combat against climate change at a community level. My Instagram feed was full of
photos of picturesque places around the world, with the captions commenting
mainly on the beauty of nature and wishing all a #happyearthday. This was great
to see – it truly is a breath-taking place, this world of ours, and we ought to
stop and appreciate it more. I shared a similar photo myself. But as I did, I
felt a pang of guilt. I recalled the words of Meghan Markle, speaking at the One Young
World conference in Dublin last October about
the “Bring Back Our Girls” photo campaign that began in response to the kidnapping
of over 270 Nigerian school girls by Boko Haram in April 2014. Without
criticising the campaign, she made the point that it’s all too easy for us these
days to jump onto social media, share a photo or a video and then feel like we’ve
done our part to help that cause. As I flicked through those photos, I wondered
how many of those sharing them had heard of, read or signed the Earth Statement
that launched that same day (http://earthstatement.org/),
or whether many would feel that they had played a role in Earth Day just by
sharing a photo. I’m not casting judgement on anyone – I’ve certainly been
guilty of doing the same in the past – but this day, like John Cage faced with
a life predicament, I was troubled.
As some of you may know, a couple of months ago I reverted
back to an old habit of mine – vegetarianism. Not for health reasons, as you
might assume - #eatclean #cleanliving #instahun - but because I’d been reading
a lot about how reducing your meat intake vastly reduces your carbon footprint.
I’ve always had some sort of an environmental conscience. I recycle. I walk
when I can. I wash my clothes at 30 degrees. But I’ve been doing these things
just because I know I should be. Global warming, and the ice caps melting, and
all that jazz. Global warming is a bit like the wooden spoon of the Irish
childhood. We’re cautioned that if we don’t stop what we are doing this instant,
it will materialize and we shall suffer its wrath – but yet, we never actually
see it, it’s not fully tangible, and therefore we question whether it really
exists. I didn’t really believe in those seemingly insignificant actions, nor
in the difference that they could make. It is only this year that the message about
global warming, and our individual culpability and responsibility, hit home for
me.
This is predominantly attributable to the monthly delivery
of my subscription to the National Geographic, a birthday gift from an astute
amigo of mine. This magazine is fantastic. I have learned more about the world from
reading it over the past 6 months than I have over the last four years of college.
I also took advantage of some great events that took place throughout this college
year; the One Young World conference, as mentioned above, and smaller events organised
by Trinity societies like Law Soc, TCD Environmental Society and Global
Development Society, such as a panel discussion on Climate Justice and a talk
from leader of the UN World Food Programme, Ertharin Cousins. The net result of
all of this was the activation of my antennae of atmospheric awareness. Things are bad. Things do need to change. And we do need to act on an individual level. One
of the ways I felt that I could improve my own carbon footprint was to become a
vegetarian again. These are some pretty convincing results to be fair:
From the National Geographic, obvs.
I’m not going to sit here and preach facts about climate
change to you – I probably can’t tell you anything you haven’t heard already,
and besides I know from experience that it takes more than reading a few
statistics to inspire people to action. The point I really want to make is that
we are window-shopping our way through life’s calamities and injustices. We see
a cause, maybe we’re slightly moved by it, or maybe we think it’s absolutely awful
– but most of the time, that’s as far as it goes. We might write a status on
it. We might share a photo. Yes, this raises awareness and that’s always great –
but are we doing it purely because we care or in part because it alleviates the
guilt we feel that we aren’t doing anything more? I am sick to the teeth with
myself for feeling passionately about something and yet doing nothing proactive
about it, except ruminating on it from time to time. Apathy is an affliction I
am choosing to elude from now on.
As great as it would be if we all became vegetarians, I’m
not going to come around snatching burgers out of your hands and stuffing my
aubergines down your throat (unless I make a really good moussaka. Then y’all gonna
want me to put that in your mouths). But if you have a passion about something,
please – do something about it. Our mothers told us to pick our battles,
but they left out the second half of the sentence. Pick your battles - and fight
them. Whether it’s the environment, animal rights, refugees in Syria, the plight of the
endangered Yangtze finless porpoise, whatever your passion may be – just don’t be the person left wishing they had
done something more.
Cmon, who wouldn't want to fight for this guy? He's fecking adorable.
