Meanwhile the earth is burning

vegansrock

Those who point the finger at China and India must realise we are enablers of their polluting activities- we import tons of plastic tat and cheap clothing from them which we chuck away and add to the destruction of the planet. We have to curb our consuming whether it’s inconvenient it not.

Indeed but it is difficult to buy anything that doesn't come from them these days. I do my best to buy things with less of a footprint but even if they are assembled nearby, the components come from much further afield. Globalisation is something that successive Governments have been happy to promote at the cost of the planet.

I think Op you are being to a certain extent at least, unduly pessimistic.

It is not quite true that no-one cares.

The EU is doing a lot to promote green energy, recycling and many businesses are now reducing their carbon emissions, and concerning themselves with sourcing materials that are as "green" as possible.

In Denmark we (private householders, housing associations and businesses ) are required to sort our waste into nine different categories when we throw it into our bins, so that recycling becomes easier and cheaper, and only things that are too worn out or dirty to be reused are being incinerated.

Similar systems are in place in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium.

Plastic goods for sale new are clearly marked so we can choose ones made of recycled plastic rather than newly produced plastic.

The hole in the ozone layer is closing or has closed faster than anticipated and the war in Ukraine has reduced European countries' dependence on Russian gas and oil to a very large extent. Even more positive in the long term, the same war has accelerated discussions about the advisability of countries being able and willing to produce most of their own food instead of importing it,

Unfortunately, the ice caps are melting , sea levels and temperatures rising, but at long last the misuse of the rain forests is being taken seriously, and a discussion has recently been started as to the need for changing the attitude of the western world away from believing that happiness and success can be measured mainly by our number of possessions.

I cannot agree with posters who feel that discussions about AI should take second place to climate change. Do you not realise that AI is the perfect way to facilitate the rise of new dictators to power, as the frequently wrong or at best narrow-minded opinions that AI is capable of producing are taken as gospel truth by those too lazy or too poorly educated to think for themselves?

Both climate change, AI and the rising poverty all over the world are topics we cannot afford to disregard, or to prioritise one above the others.

Siope many thanks for the link to the Royal Society's website, which is extremely informative.

Whitewavemark2 thank you for your OP, and comments about my last post. I think it's common to get 'climate change fatigue' and feel completely overwhelmed by the subject; but I appreciate your having raised the subject again as we need to be frequently reminded of the importance of the issue.

I wonder what the outcome would be if people put as much energy into researching how they can make a difference as they put into researching which air fryer to buy (I wish there was a tongue-in-cheek emoji!). Interesting that our sons' research similar areas!

About rainforest regeneration, I think this link (World Economic Forum) indicates that it doesn't just 'happen':

www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/01/beyond-
conservation-we-need-to-restore-the-amazon-forests/

And this will educate those interested in energy consumption figures:

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1110483/Energy_Consumption_in_the_UK_2022_10102022.pdf

40 odd years ago we were told that The Maldives would disappear into the Indian Ocean

Pleased to say that didn't happen

5 years ago Greta Thunberg forecast great climate catastrophe would occur on this date.

She's deleted her Tweet

Louella12

40 odd years ago we were told that The Maldives would disappear into the Indian Ocean

Pleased to say that didn't happen

5 years ago Greta Thunberg forecast great climate catastrophe would occur on this date.

She's deleted her Tweet

When we were in the Maldives we were startled to see a number of islands that were gradually disappearing under the sea. Some now completely submerged at high tide, some with the odd palm tree hanging on but make no mistake, the Maldives are disappearing.

“I cannot agree with posters who feel that discussions about AI should take second place to climate change. Do you not realise that AI is the perfect way to facilitate the rise of new dictators to power, as the frequently wrong or at best narrow-minded opinions that AI is capable of producing are taken as gospel truth by those too lazy or too poorly educated to think for themselves?”

AI is just another computer programme it can be trained to do whatever the originator wants, make no mistake they have to be trained just like humans are, we can be trained to obey orders or to have emotions or to make pure logical decisions.

So the threat from rouge AI is no more than from rouge humans

My 13 year old g.daughter cares, very very much about all eco issues. Afer all, it her future she is contemplating,. Does remind me somewhat as to how I felt back in the 1950's about CND and the bomb.

Here is a poem that she wrote - from the heart====

There is no Plan et B

There’s a fire burning inside of me,
It won't go away.
But I keep it inside,
Wait for another day.
People don’t understand it,
But when I try to explain,
They refuse to listen,
No matter what I say.

There’s a fire burning inside of me,
I want to shout and scream.
It makes me so angry,
And things are getting too extreme.
It's easier to think,
That everything is fine.
Than change what you are doing,
Than change your mind.

There’s a fire burning inside of me,
But I can’t let it out.
If I did it would consume me,
There is no way out.
You say you care about the planet,
But then go about your life.
Not changing what you do,
Even though it's killing wildlife.

There’s a fire burning inside of me,
You say it’s just one little thing.
But all of these small things add up.
Until they destroy everything.
I know some very nice people,
Who think everything is fine.
Not realising that what they are doing,
Might make their children die.

There’s a fire burning inside of me,
It's hard to speak out.
When people don’t want to change,
Don’t want to bring themselves to account.
How can you laugh and joke?
When you hear that people are dying.
How can you do nothing?
And say that you’re not lying.

There’s a fire burning in the world,
It’s destroying everything.
And it is our fault,
But still people don’t do anything.

Franbern I find your granddaughter's poem incredibly touching. And she's encompassed exactly how I feel. My hope is that we can sort out the planet for her and any descendents she may have.
Please thank her for me.

It's a bit alarming that this thread only has 3 pages; and there's one about Weddings of yesterday and today that has 6 pages...

Franbern your granddaughter's poem hits the nail right on the head! It is very much how I feel too, and it is THEIR future we are threatening with our lack of concern for the environment. We won't be here to see the catastrophes occurring here, but even more so in the poorer parts of the world where they are not as responsible as we are for damaging the climate. How is it that a thirteen year old can see and express so eloquently what is happening and our wealthy Prime Minister and government cannot?