Although the world has experienced much worse, recent events involving inclement weather conditions have caused much consternation, particularly last Friday’s earthquake and tsunami in eastern Indonesia. Even scientists were initially baffled by the height of the waves and ensuing destruction, which, so far, have claimed over 1,300 lives.
Meanwhile, other parts of the world are in the throes of the hurricane seasons. In the Atlantic, this runs from June to November. And while none of this year’s storms have been as terrible as last year’s major trio—Harvey, Irma and Maria—areas that tend to be affected are storm weary. So much so that Barbados’s Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley put aside her prepared speech when she addressed the 73rd United Nations General Assembly last week to speak from the heart, making an impassioned appeal for action on climate change.
Ms Mottley, Barbados’s first woman PM, left the UN meeting early to return to her homeland where there was severe flooding wreaked by Tropical Storm Kirk. She noted that while the storm was obviously less devastating than a hurricane would have been, the damage was still costly for her country and others, both from a financial/physical and mental standpoint.
As Ms Mottley is no doubt poignantly aware, there are still some ten storms left before this season ends, any one of which has the potential to become dangerous, dramatic and deadly. Hurricanes are the result of a combination of heat and water so that the warmer the Atlantic (or Pacific for that matter), the more likely it is that the storms formed there will transition to hurricanes that may hit landfall in various areas that are prone to this type of weather.
The effect of climate change on oceans has seen temperatures rise by 0.3 degrees Fahrenheit between 2000 and last year. This also affects the oceans’ ecosystems as it causes acidification, which repels radiation resulting in even more global warming – it is a very vicious cycle that scientists say can have even more damaging consequences for the entire world.
Ms Mottley and other leaders of small island states in the Caribbean, the Pacific and Indian oceans, had preceded their UN appearances with attendance at the One Planet Summit, which also convened in New York. The summit put into perspective what the leaders of Barbados, St Lucia, the Bahamas, St Kitts and Nevis, Vanuatu, Fiji, Mauritius, Samoa and other island nations already know – that things are going to become much worse unless there is decisive action. A 1.5 degree tipping point looms ominously, disaster is not strong enough a word to describe the occurrences if it climbs to 2 degrees.
Expounding on issues addressed by her peers, Ms Mottley posited that while the smaller nations have been stepping up in addressing the causes of climate change, there was a limit to what could be achieved as they were faced with annual damage costing billions of dollars, as a result of the same issue. Yet, there is that perverse formula which precludes countries trying to pull themselves up by the bootstraps from accessing funding once their per capita income reaches a certain level.
This is another vicious cycle that saw her raise questions as to whether the world was any different today than it was 100 years ago, and if it was the case, that the mighty were manouvreing to make the majority minions. These are questions that we should all ponder. Rich and poor, mighty and meek, we all have to share the same atmosphere. As has been profoundly elucidated by scientists and activists alike, there is no Planet B. It is therefore mindboggling that in one corner of the earth, humankind could be going all out to save it, while in another, coal mines are determinedly being dug and fossil fuels exploited – all in the name of profits.
While the solutions to what ails the planet need finances to be properly executed, it does not take a genius to know that it is impossible to heal the earth and rape it at the same time. So even though geniuses are in short supply, particularly when one looks at the leaders of world nations, there really is no excuse.
Climate change is upon us and wreaking havoc. Another type of change is necessary, and quickly. PM Mottley called it when she exhorted those who hold the world’s purse strings to be caring. If not, we risk leaving a very different kind of world for posterity.
