I know everyone has been very busy with class, graduate school applications, and work in their labs. To the extent it may seems as if there is little time to consider changing our daily decision that do not cause an immediate and direct negative impact. But, in the wake of the devastating typhoon haiyan and other recent natural disasters, I think we all need to be taking the extra moment out of our day to consider our decisions and their long term impact on our environment and the consequential destruction of the planet we share. In addition to make small efforts to engage in a more proactive role rather than a bystander role.
If you get the chance you should take a look at the article linked below and watch the video of Naderev Sano speech at the UN climate talks which is currently taking place in Warsaw, Poland. Sano is a member of the Philippines Climate Change Commissions.
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/12/typhoon-haiyan-climate-change-blame-philippines
Thank you for posting this article and sustainability in general. It makes sense especially as psychologists in training. We study the impact of people’s actions (or in this case, inactions) and yet in this specific area, it always seems like it takes a disaster to get people to think about the repercussions and consequences of what they do. I spent two summers in the Philippines and my family actually just moved back after 2.5 years there, so the situation certainly hits close to home.
Yes, I agree it is really sad it seems to take a disaster to get people to take action and consider the repercussions of behavior. Also, I am sorry you have family there I can only only imagine how frightening that is. I do hope they are okay.
Thank you so much for this post! I just donated to the American Red Cross. I had no idea about the devastating 24 typhoons that have hit the Philippines in the past year, especially the most powerful one: Haiyan. It’s true that we are all very busy at the moment. We tend to get lost inside our own worlds as we focus on the things that are directly affecting us or requiring us to have our full attention on them. But sometimes, the environment speaks for itself when we have blindly done so much damage to it through our “manmade climate change.” And the sad thing is that the reason for us having made the planet the way it is is for our own benefits, like faster transportation, shorter means of production, and pieces of technology that make our lives much easier to live. Although the beauty of creation is in our hands, we all need to consider the impact our creations make on our mother nature. If not, man-caused disasters like this will continue and we will not only lose our loved ones, but the Earth itself. So, thank you again for this post. If I hadn’t read this online article, I probably would still be continuing on my busy life like many in this side of the world and have no idea what is going on on the other side. It was not only an informative article, but a wake-up call and sudden reminder of my love for this world and need to protect it with every action I make.
I am glad you found the article insightful and motivational. I agree, it is scary that Haiyan was only 1 of the 24 typhoons that has hit the Philippines so far this year. It is very worrisome how the severity of the storms has increased and will increase with the years to come.