Like everything else in the universe, the earth has its limits, and unfortunately, society is seven years away from reaching those irreversible boundaries. Among other things, climate change has been at the forefront of political and environmental activism for decades, and every day that passes by yields more data revealing the deadly human footprint on Mother Nature.
An installation by climate change activists and artists Gan Golan and Andrew Boyd was exhibited in Manhattan, sporting a pulsing time bomb that ticks further every second to remind people that the actions of today produce the realities of tomorrow. Called the ‘Metronome,’ the clock displayed under seven years and 100 days of time before society enters irreversibility. Unlike the drama in Hollywood, some claim that these events actually matter and determine not just the future’s quality of life, but the existence of life itself. The clock recently altered its display to show not the current time, but the alarming period of time society has to clean up the human footprint and reverse climate change before the compounding damage is absolute and irrecoverable. Golan and Boyd press humanity to take the installation seriously, and make small but imperative changes to everyday life so that there is viable earth for coming generations to enjoy.
In an article by Express UK, Sebastian Kettley uncovers knowledge from Professor Piotr Skubała of the University of Silesia’s Institute of Biology, Biotechnology and Environmental Protection that unveils some disheartening facts. According to Skubala, if humanity takes action right now, he sees at the horizon a viable human civilization that can “still be preserved.” However, Skubala unfortunately cannot say the same for copious species of wildlife. Skubala state, “Given the attitude, I fear it’s too late and many species will die out and millions will suffer. If we change our approach, then we will survive as a civilization, but we will have to learn to live differently. But it does not mean live worse. Differently, smarter, directing our attention to other, immaterial spheres of life.”
Environmentalists and climate activists alike are imploring society to take the necessary steps to prevent quite literally, the end of the world. Scientists confirm that many commonplace items are to blame for the climate change phenomenon, one of the most prominent among the list being single-use plastic items. The World Wide Fund for Nature stated, “Almost all plastic is derived from materials (like ethylene and propylene) made from fossil fuels (mostly oil and gas). The process of extracting and transporting those fuels, then manufacturing plastic creates billions of tonnes of greenhouse gases. For example, [four percent] of the world’s annual petroleum production is diverted to making plastic, and another [four percent] gets burned in the refining process.” It is also warned that the usage of fossil fuels should be heavily diminished and quickly extinguished because the greenhouse gasses and carbon emissions that are a consequence of these discharges are amounting to a fatal culmination.
Society has exemplified a colossal and complete lack of urgency surrounding these matters, and scientists warn of the effects that exercising ignorance has, with a subject that will affect the entire population of the earth. Not only will forthcoming generations feel the effects of today’s actions, but it may mean that society will look completely different in 2027 to 2028, which is when the Metronome Clock’s time will have run out, signaling the true beginning of the end.
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