To be stressed by climate change

When I ask 'why has this happened over the millennia' it does not mean that I think we should carry on blithely and not do our utmost.

Understanding why it happened in the past could help us now and in the future.

I feel sick deep inside when I read anyone doubting the science and the seriousness. When there is an American president who does not see it as urgent and vital, it is so discouraging. When I was 20 I didn’t know about climate change but did know about pollution

The evidence is that educating girls / women has a better effect on family size and on family health than educating men

Did anyone watch the Attenborough programme last night? It ought to be compulsory.

We HAVE to care, do what we personally can, and elect leaders who care too and will act on behalf of us and the planet.

In the near future, when our grandchildren are struggling for actual survival, could you live with yourself if they ask why the hell we didn't we do something while there was still time?

If history is to be believed (and I'm just reading about a mini Ice Age in the 1600's) then this is, to a certain extent, a natural, recurring cycle and there is little we can do to stop it.
BradfordLass - indeed and this is a question to which there does not seem to be an answer. What caused climate change over the millennia?

What does cause me stress is pollution - traffic pollution and the dreadful plastic polluting rivers and oceans around the world.

FYI
We are "homo sapiens"
The "s" belongs there, it's a Latin word ending, not an English plural form.

Not to mention the business that have no customers coming! It seems ok to protest and party in the London streets, but they have no consideration for the people they are DIRECTLY affecting. How would ambulances get through for example! This is NOT Glastonbury -there are people busking for money at this protest!

jaylucy
You are so perspicacious! That sentence:
Our whole lives, to some extent have been determined by supermarkets really resounded in me!

I remember my mother writing an order in her order book and the Grocer delivering the simple box of groceries that lasted the family of 4 for a week. If she forgot something we were sent to collect it and told to ask the Grocer to "Add it to the order." I can remember going in and asking for "4 medium sliced back rashers". Milk of course was delivered in re-used bottles. We ate a large amount of organic veg from the garden. I think we were unaware of how healthily we lived.

When one of my daughter's French Exchange child came to stay she begged to be taken to our Supermarket. She absolutely loved the English (she said) supermarkets and English white sliced wrapped bread! There was I telling her how well people in France ate! Buying their veg fresh daily, decent bread, not over-eating, enjoying family meals.... no TV dinners..
Now I live alone apart from my dogs and I wish I could find a ready made complete food like I feed to the dogs so that I could just pour it into a bowl and eat it without having to think of what to have tonight. I really have lost all interest in food. Does anyone know of a complete food I can live on please?

In the 1960/70s everyone banged on about World overpopulation. The Chinese I know made a big mistake over that with their one child policy.
For many years it was politically incorrect to mention over population, maybe we are too late to solve that one without a huge war or disaster.

As the world warms there will be an inevitable migration to more temperate regions. That will spell catastrophe. Little people have to do their bit and politicians and industry have a huge burden to reverse centuries of earth's neglect.

Do we have the will and the answer? Worrying future for our grandchildren.

I try not to let it make me ill with anxiety. It makes me so worried for my Grand children. But getting into a state of anxiety does not help. I do my bit in my small way but know this is minuscule and only major word-wide changes can make a difference.

I am not entirely convinced that there are too many people in the world. It is a problem of management and a problem of wars and the use of fossil fuels. I wish too that we were not so addicted to a meat-based diet.

I admire my children, as they hardly ever buy new clothes and lead very simple lives, eating wholesome food and trying to avoid air travel if they can.

We should have taken notice of what certain people were saying back in the 70s and 80s.
Our whole lives, to some extent have been determined by supermarkets - when I was a child, we only really ate what was grown or produced locally. Nowadays it's "you want strawberries at Christmas? No problem, we'll just fly some in from Israel" etc and it goes on.
We can all do a bit - use our own shopping bags, recycle, try not to buy things in plastic (that's nearly impossible!) , use public transport etc

I cant say I 'stress' about it Alexa but that might be because I don't stress about much and certainly not things I cant change.

That's not to say it doesn't concern me and that's not to say I don't do what I can within reason - but stress? no .

In the long term governments need to make serious efforts to prevent climate change and to end poverty and provide every child in the world with a good education.

I'm afraid I don't see any of that coming about in our lifetime.

We can and should do our bit and try to influence politicians to do their bit.

Part of the climate change is natural, but sadly probably only a little bit of it. So we all have to try to think of ways of saving our environment.

" Karan Singh, a former minister of population in India, illustrated this trend by stating "Development is the best contraceptive " (Wikipedia)

Affluent nations have lower birthrates. Getting rid of poverty worldwide would benefit all.

It's hard to realise, but this is serous. The science is real and the forecasts are devastating if we continue burning fossil fuels and the government is 're-arranging chairs on the Titanic'. I am preparing my grandson for a very different life from ours - luckily I still have the 'waste not, want not' mind-set of the fifties and have never driven a car but I do believe in the 'butterfly effect' so I will do all I can (little too old to get arrested!).

Quite simply if your aren't stressed by climate change you aren't paying attention. It is the biggest, most significant issue of the 21st century, everything else pales into insignificance besides the enormity of climate change.

Most of us of a certain age will be fine and probably our children will be, but our precious grandchildren and all the other precious grandchildren around the world are the ones who will have to have to deal with the consequences and pay the price of the folly, stupidity, denial and greed of earlier generations. And that includes all of us Grans. All we can do is the very best we can in our own lives, keep the issue on the political agenda, support local and national initiatives etc. We can all play our own small part. I'd rather be remembered for having tried than for living in a bubble of self indulgence and denial.

And believe me I do know how appalling Australia's record is on this issue and I work actively to try to change that.

Silvercollie totally agree with you

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/12322266/
“The education of girls is a critical area for stabilizing population. Hence, inadequate education is a powerful determinant of high fertility and ensures that individuals do not live up to their potential. The Program of Action adopted at the 1994 ICPD held in Cairo showed that when women have control over their lives, they are better able to contribute to a society that presents them with choices.”

Maybe the danger is so bad that putting the fingers in the ears is only natural. When you cannot do anything about it accept it.

I don't agree so . I think we humans deserve to rage against our extinction after 11 or twelve years time.

Not sex education paddyann.
Giving them a general education to give them a wider view of the world and the confidence to think for themselves.
In many third world countries boys receive an education but girls stay at home.

I try to do my bit but I don't go OTT. Nor do I worry. I now definitely resolve not to have any more children. Lots of practises frustrate me but that's probably because I was brought up in frugal circumstances and so many modern habits come under the heading of waste for me.

only educating "girls" janeainsworth ? I was under the impression that men have as much to do with reproduction as women..There are still those that think men "sowing wild oats" is the norm ...yet are judgemental about the women left holding the baby!!

Is was brutal I agree and I’m not advocating it.

Just making the point (I think) that nothing is actually going to solve the problem except bringing down the number of people using the worlds resources.

While the human population continues to grow everything else will have little effect.

But very few people would make the decision not to have a family in order to save the planet.

If people stopped flying it would help. Planes are the biggest cause of pollution to our air. This was proved, when after 9/11 every aircraft was grounded Co2 plummeted.

I agree with whitewave.

Personally, I think the Extinction Rebellion movement is fantastic and it isn’t solely for young people! I’ve thought of joining myself and support them on Facebook. They are raising the issue GLOBALLY and putting concern for the climate/species extinction on the News, on social media and in the papers. Many Politicians worldwide won’t do anything because they know they won’t win the popular vote and all that appears to really matter in this world is the accumulation of money and power. They certainly know that enforcing any sort of human birth control would be grossly unpopular.

I feel sorry for the people inconvenienced, but if the activists weren’t causing disruption, it wouldn’t make the news.