As I’ve mentioned several times in this book now, one of the key elements we are missing today is political will. Luckily for us, it’s a renewable resource!
Today, more than ever, we need your vote. Being politically engaged is probably one of the most important, most impactful actions you can take for the climate. We need as many politicians as possible at the city, regional, state, and national levels to be engaged in climate issues and with a clear vision of the solutions that we can implement today to combat climate change.
If you want to go one step further, support these candidates. Support their campaigns to the best of your abilities. Donate your time and money if you can. Find out what organizations are involved in climate action. Attend their meetings and go to demonstrations and marches. Be inspired by this like-minded community.
Who should you vote for? Decision-makers who propose climate actions that will create tipping points. The good kind this time. We have the technology we need to stop our carbon dioxide emissions. Solar and wind energy provide the cheapest sources of electricity in two-thirds of the world.
Some of you might be skeptical about our current technological knowledge to reduce our carbon footprint. Rest assured that we have the tools in our hands to do more than that. We can even drawdown the carbon dioxide we have spewed into the atmosphere for so many years. That’s right! Check out the Drawdown Project, listing one hundred solutions to reverse global warming by 2050.
I believe history will look back at this period in time and look at how the events unraveled. I know which side I want to be on. I believe that we can, and we will change the status quo. After the ravages of the pandemic and the lurking economic recession, many of us have realized that the climate emergency is real and have decided to speak up and act. We must continue to voice our opinions and show up when it matters.
I chose to be a stubborn optimist. It was a conscious decision for my own mental sanity. But it’s also a choice I made when I looked at the current event and state of affairs. The millennials and younger generations have shown an incredible desire to take action and have framed this issue as the defining challenge of our time.