As long as I can remember I have always enjoyed a superhero movie where they are able to save the day. Whether it be fighting aliens or just stopping the new villain in town from going through with their diabolical plan. Seeing superheroes on screen saving the day for the greater good of society always had me leaving the theater as if I could accomplish anything. Only thing is I have no superhero abilities or aliens to fight outside of the theater. So I took a look around me and saw the issues that plague our world and environmentalism felt like an issue that needed a friendly neighborhood environmentalist.
Since I was younger I would always fuss with my family about littering, recycling, and even cutting up those little plastic rings that hold drinks together in the supermarket so animals won’t unintentionally choke themselves. Some of my favorite superheroes to watch on screen were Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Black Panther seeing how they were always doing everything they could to protect the people, the people they loved and even people they did not know. Knowing and seeing people who are a part of my community who are less fortunate but will get hit hardest by the effects of climate change prompted me to suit up and go to school for Environmental Studies.
Climate Change is the change in climate patterns as a result of increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels. The effects of climate change are causing severe drought, extreme flooding, and rising sea levels with an array of other problems we face as the years go on. I honestly feel like I am taking on a superhero role because the planet needs to be saved. The only thing is, it needs to be saved from us. It’s crazy to think that people still think climate change is not real when we are seeing and living the effects of global warming. From the wildfires in Australia to the droughts that have plagued the West Coast trends are showing that these types of events will continue to get worse and cause people to leave their homes and further resource scarcity. With an Environmental Studies degree I want to educate communities on sustainable development and how they can urge their politicians to make meaningful changes to our future.
I think it is time to pick out my superhero name and what spandex color suits me best because the world is my oyster even though their habits are shrinking just like the time we have to address climate change. I have always loved nature whether I am just looking at a tree or working in my backyard garden. We are already living on borrowed resources from the future so instead of time traveling to warn people I want to take action now so that we can keep our coastal communities and our biodiversity on this planet because this is the only planet we’ve got. As we all know “with great power comes great responsibility” and it is our responsibility to make sure we have a future to plan for.