04/09/2019
"The human race is currently at a checkpoint. Fires have been attacking forests, Antarctica has started to melt, weather has become more volatile... You know the rest. It's terrifying, and I can't shake off how helpless I feel in a seemingly hopeless situation. The worst part is that my lifestyle has contributed to the exploitation of our home.
I know many of us are in a similar boat; we've all bought clothes made in Asian countries, consumed an excess of animal products, gone on flights to exciting locations, put a single use plastic in the recycling thinking that doing so makes us eco conscious... In a developed country doing all these things is so convenient we barely give a second thought to the supply chains and processes that bring us our basic commodities. Finding information on how businesses bring us what we want can also be difficult as many businesses are not transparent.
Realising this has made me appreciate that although we can "vote with our purchases", businesses have a duty to be more sustainable and that ultimately it is the government's duty to enforce this. Currently a "climate emergency" has been declared in our nation, but legislation and targets are not being formed with anywhere near enough urgency. When I wrote a letter to a local MP, I was essentially told that the situation is being dealt with appropriately. This is an absolute farce when considering that the UK is not on track to meet its goals set out in the Paris Agreement (which does not have radical enough aims regardless when you look at the IPCC report).
For these reasons I've decided that I want to get involved with Extinction Rebellion. I went for my first action on Tuesday at the Offshore Europe Conference. The energy of the protestors was fantastic. Although there will be people criticising the impact of our protest whilst claiming to care about the situation, all I can say is that if impact is what you care about, I encourage you to join a movement, which you share principles with, to save our future. Transition to making a political impact, not an environmental one. We have 11 years left." @ Aberdeen Arts Centre
