Metousiosis

The United Nations Climate Change conference in Copenhagen started yesterday and there has been a lot of pressure on world leaders to reach an agreement that will adequately address the climate crisis. The majority of experts agree that we are approaching the tipping point when we will not be able to abate our impact on the environment and therefore will jeopardize the survival of our species and others. Ultimately, this issue is not about saving the Earth, it is about saving ourselves; for life will continue without us and the Earth will be here far beyond the extinction of homo sapiens. Maybe when the world frames the issue in those terms, there will be significant action. Let’s be honest about the situation and stop anthropomorphizing the planet.

We have reached a point when we are forced to recognize that solving the climate change crisis is no longer a personal obligation, but rather a governmental and world responsibility. Changing your light bulbs and driving less are not going to manifest the change needed. We, the world populous, should be assembling to demand that governments across the globe make the drastic transformation required to stave off our extinction.

From YouTube:

“Please Help the World”, film from the opening ceremony of the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009 (COP15) in Copenhagen from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. Shown on December 7, 2009 at COP15.

For those seeking more information, The Copenhagen News Collaborative is a great resource for staying current on the progress of the summit.

In order to help bring attention to the conference and provide perspective on just how critical this meeting is, Greenpeace has started a provocative ad campaign, in which they depict depressed world leaders in 2020 apologizing for their lack of action on climate change, as exemplified below with US president Barack Obama. Click through for more.