In Al Gore’s speech “Where do We Go from Here”, featured on TED.com, he makes it clear that being optimistic to the situation of global warming is not enough. Some statistics he shares are that 68% of America’s population does believe that human activity is responsible for global warming, however when provided with a list of issues and things the President along with Congress need to address, global warming is at the bottom of the list. He also provides us with a mental picture when he explains how most of the carbon on Earth has been leached out of the atmosphere into the ground over thousands of years in forms of plant life and fossil fuels. With this being said the Earth’s average temperature is 59°F and Venus, Earth’s neighbor containing an equal amount of carbon, has an average temperature of 855°F. This is because on Venus all of the carbon is in the atmosphere. Isn’t it ironic that in our current situation people are consuming and pumping more CO2 from the ground into the atmosphere than ever?
As important of a matter as this is, something that could affect humanity, how come it has not become a more urgent matter on the list of the government’s agendas? The problem is that people are all talk. Actions speak louder than words, thus apart from just being optimistic; we need to drastically change our behavior as well as the laws that tend to dictate our lives. Gore says, “In order to solve the climate crisis, we need to solve the democracy crisis.”
“We need world-wide mobilization for renewable energy, conservation, efficiency, and global transition to low a low carbon economy” (Gore). Along with the massive amounts of CO2 emissions from America and developed countries, what is scary is that developing countries are quickly catching up. Gore’s suggested a very helpful solution to the problem is put a tax on carbon. This along with more active participation in government, people with unity will have the voice and power they need to make their government do more.
Gore mentions how we are always learning in history about the great men and women who sacrificed so much and are responsible for everything America is today. Maybe it’s our time to step up to the plate and be a ‘hero’ as he calls it. We have had all the warning and information we could possibly need; we are aware of our problem, however rather than avoiding it and dreading facing it perhaps we need to look at it in a different light as Gore suggests. He asks, “How many generations in all of human history had the opportunity to rise to a challenge that is worthy of our best efforts?” We should be happy and honored to have been granted with the opportunity to be remembered and immortalized for paving the way for a better future for humanity. It’s time to take action. We now have a chance to do something great, it would be the biggest mistake of our lives should we let it pass by, literally, all of humanity may be at stake.
In the short yet very moving animation “The Man Who Planted Trees” the farmer was living proof that “Man could be as effective as God in things other than destruction.” A single man was responsible for revitalizing once dead land, creating an entire forest out of nothing. We can no longer afford to for granted the great deal of change one person can have.
Resources
Gore, Al . "Al Gore's new thinking on the climate crisis." TED Conferences, LLC. Monterey, California. Feb. 2008. Web. 8 Dec. 2009. <http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/al_gore_s_new_thinking_on_the_climate_crisis.html>.
Animated Movie
“The Man Who Planted Trees”
Picture
Industrial Smog. 2008. Teachengineering.org National Science Digital Library . Web. Web. 8 Dec. 2009. <http://www.teachengineering.org/collection/cub_/lessons/cub_images/cub_air_lesson02_fig4.jpg>.
As important of a matter as this is, something that could affect humanity, how come it has not become a more urgent matter on the list of the government’s agendas? The problem is that people are all talk. Actions speak louder than words, thus apart from just being optimistic; we need to drastically change our behavior as well as the laws that tend to dictate our lives. Gore says, “In order to solve the climate crisis, we need to solve the democracy crisis.”
“We need world-wide mobilization for renewable energy, conservation, efficiency, and global transition to low a low carbon economy” (Gore). Along with the massive amounts of CO2 emissions from America and developed countries, what is scary is that developing countries are quickly catching up. Gore’s suggested a very helpful solution to the problem is put a tax on carbon. This along with more active participation in government, people with unity will have the voice and power they need to make their government do more.
Gore mentions how we are always learning in history about the great men and women who sacrificed so much and are responsible for everything America is today. Maybe it’s our time to step up to the plate and be a ‘hero’ as he calls it. We have had all the warning and information we could possibly need; we are aware of our problem, however rather than avoiding it and dreading facing it perhaps we need to look at it in a different light as Gore suggests. He asks, “How many generations in all of human history had the opportunity to rise to a challenge that is worthy of our best efforts?” We should be happy and honored to have been granted with the opportunity to be remembered and immortalized for paving the way for a better future for humanity. It’s time to take action. We now have a chance to do something great, it would be the biggest mistake of our lives should we let it pass by, literally, all of humanity may be at stake.
In the short yet very moving animation “The Man Who Planted Trees” the farmer was living proof that “Man could be as effective as God in things other than destruction.” A single man was responsible for revitalizing once dead land, creating an entire forest out of nothing. We can no longer afford to for granted the great deal of change one person can have.
Resources
Gore, Al . "Al Gore's new thinking on the climate crisis." TED Conferences, LLC. Monterey, California. Feb. 2008. Web. 8 Dec. 2009. <http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/al_gore_s_new_thinking_on_the_climate_crisis.html>
Animated Movie
“The Man Who Planted Trees”
Picture
Industrial Smog. 2008. Teachengineering.org National Science Digital Library . Web. Web. 8 Dec. 2009. <http://www.teachengineering.org/collection/cub_/lessons/cub_images/cub_air_lesson02_fig4.jpg>
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