This year, spring semester started off with two days of canceled classes because of snow accumulations in the Oxford and Atlanta areas. Although having the two extra days off was relaxing, it was hard to look past the fact that just one month ago, we had another day of canceled classes as well as a late opening due to snow. Georgia is a state that is commonly associated with for its warm weather, yet in the span of less than a month, it had snowed more than it ever has in years.
This change in climate is not something that is unique to Georgia. When I was in New York over the winter break, the Northeast was suffering severely from the Bomb Cyclone. Temperatures had gone as far down as -6 degrees with windchill making it feel even colder. This year, multiple states reached a record low for temperatures and a record high for snowfall.
The Bomb Cyclone has become a joke among climate change deniers because it showed that temperatures are getting colder, not hotter, therefore not supporting the presence of global warming. However, global warming and climate change are not terms that can be used interchangeably. Climate change is a term used to describe the terrible effects global warming has on the environment, including the combination of both incredibly warm and freezing cold temperatures. The Bomb Cyclone was just an example of the severity global warming can have and that the situation is not becoming any better.
There have been numerous scientists and data to demonstrate that global warming is a real thing and that action must be taken to reverse its effects on the environment. However, we are living in a country that has such polarizing views on virtually every single issue that exists. Currently, global warming is not a priority for the current government, resulting in many companies, independently, voicing their goal to become a more eco-friendly corporation and to lessen their carbon footprint.
Fortunately, we live in a day and age where people have easy access to information and it is up to us to use this privilege for good. By voicing your support to enact political change into our country to lessen the negative impact America has on the environment, by attending protests supporting change, or simply by raising awareness to those you know, it is up to us to make change happen. If we don’t there is a good chance that certain cities that we grew up having, certain animals, and certain plants will forever cease to exist, because climate change is a real thing with real consequences.