Introduction
Sustainability is among the fastest-growing ethical concerns for individuals, businesses, and governments. According to Mason (2022), “sustainability takes into account how we might live in harmony with the natural world around us, protecting it from damage and destruction.” This means that sustainability is where people can sustain themselves without harming the planet. As a result, the sustainability concept that resonates with me is reducing the impact of climate change. The concept relates to my desire to be a climate change advocate. It also relates to my goal of becoming an environmentalist. Therefore, everyone has a role in promoting sustainability to make the planet a better place for everyone, including future generations.
Sustainability
Sustainability is a contemporary concept that encourages consideration of ways to live in harmony with nature. It can be defined as attaining our needs without jeopardizing future generations’ ability to meet their own (Mason, 2022). In my view, sustainability is concerned with how we should live in harmony with our natural world and safeguard it against damage and destruction for future generations. In other words, it involves existing and developing without depleting the available natural resources for posterity. It also means operating in effective ways for everyone because all the actions we carry out affect the future. For example, persistent organic pollutants can have adverse impacts such as an extension of species and damage to the ecosystem. This means that the environment will not be conducive to the incoming generations.
The primary things that sustain me are air, water, and food in the natural world. Although human beings can go without food for some days, death is possible if it is prolonged. Food is necessary for human survival because it is the source of nutrients that provides energy for activity, growth, and all body operations. Water is also an important element for human survival. It is impossible for humans to survive without water. However, polluted water is harmful to humans and can be a source of illness. Apart from water and food, I also need quality air to survive. This means that the air I breathe should be free from pollutants. Therefore, I require quality air, water, and food to live on Earth.
Personal Understanding of Sustainability in My Life
The sustainability component that is relevant to me is reducing climate change impacts. According to United Nations (2021), sustainable Development Goal 13 aims to “take urgent action to combat climate change and its impact.” It is about developing ways or solutions to reduce the planet’s climate effect. Minimizing the impact of climate change, also called climate change mitigation, involves avoiding and lowering greenhouse gas gases into the environment to keep the planet from heating up to high temperatures (Ahmed et al., 2019). In addition, it necessitates a shift away from fossil fuels and toward clean, renewable energy. This is crucial because it helps prevent deforestation and restore natural habitats until carbon emissions are reduced to zero. As a result, reducing the impact of climate change involves engaging in activities that prevent climate change from happening.
The sustainability component of reducing the impact of climate change is important because it assists in alleviating the effects of climate change on the planet. Climate change is a significant issue because it has the potential to cause dangerous transitions in climate and weather (Ahmed et al., 2019). For example, many areas have seen changes in rainfall, resulting in an increase in floods, droughts, and intense rain and an increase in the frequency and severity of heatwaves. Based on this, this component provides important strategies to help lower the adverse effects of climate change. In addition, it offers different ways of reducing climate change at an individual, family, community, organization, country, and world level. For example, an individual is advised to monitor their carbon footprint.
Reducing the impacts of climate change like other components of sustainability intends to achieve sustainability. The main purpose is to make the planet a better place for everyone, including future generations. As people reduce the impacts of climate change, they create a conducive environment for all. For example, lowering our carbon footprint minimizes the amount of pollutants in the environment. The component also relates with others, like creating affordable and clean energy. For example, when people shift from fossil fuel vehicles to electric ones, they reduce harmful emissions to the environment. In addition, creating sustainable cities, which is about investment in public transport, creating green public spaces have a common goal of making the world a better place.
This concept is directly applicable to my life and my vision of becoming an environmentalist. I understand that everyone on Earth is vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Despite the impact of climate change, people are slow at adopting the recommended climate change mitigations. We can begin to make changes by looking at ourselves and seeing what we can do to change, such as not littering and attempting to reduce our use of pollutants. We can also begin to encourage others to do the same in order to keep the environment healthy. These actions are all part of the great turning point, as we encourage others to assist in protecting our citizens and the future of our planet. Therefore, reducing the effects of climate change relates to my long-life goal of becoming an environmentalist.
During childhood, I developed a desire to participate in the protection of the environment after a news report. One day, while watching the news together as a family, there was horrifying news of heatwaves in Europe. It claimed the life of thousands of people in Europe. This was the time I directly linked climate change to the death of people. From that moment, I developed a desire to learn more and talk about climate change to reduce deaths and diseases caused by climate change. As a result, the concept of reducing the impact of climate change resonates with my ambition of protecting the environment. In addition, the concept informs me that I can change the way I live and reduce the impacts of climate change. Thus, I reinforced my desire to help protect the environment when I learned more about climate change mitigation strategies.
Connections to Active Hope
After looking through the Earth Charter, sustainable development goals and sustainability definitions, I found that I connect most with reducing the impact of climate change. I resonate most with this concept because I believe that the main enemy of sustainability is climate change. People are suffering due to the shifts in temperature and weather patterns caused by climate change. I also believe that it is impossible to achieve anticipated sustainability if we are still experiencing climate change. Therefore, the importance of this concept is to open everyone’s eyes that we need to decide to implement the proposed ways of reducing climate change. This includes changing our mindset about our environment and making the right decisions.
A Connection to the Great Turning
The Great Turning can be incorporated into my daily life by adopting the proposed climate change mitigation strategies. Macy and Johnstone (2012) posits “right now a shift of comparable scope and magnitude is occurring. It’s been called the Ecological Revolution, the Sustainability Revolution, even the Necessary Revolution” (39). This means that people should be ready for a revolution to achieve sustainability. Therefore, the concept of reducing climate change demands that I shift from the status quo and embrace the new order of sustainable operations.
A Connection to Seeing with New Eyes
Seeing with New Eyes is an integral concept in the promotion of sustainability. It presents a view that I can derive new strength by understanding that I am part of a flow of life that started billions of years ago. Macy and Johnstone (2012) state, “He experienced himself to be part of something larger” (92). The concept informs me that I am a product of our ancestors, likely to continue. As a result, this indicates that I should protect the environment to make sure that the next generations find a better place.
A Connection to Going Forth
Going Forth provides direction on how we can act to heal the world. The concept acknowledges a problem and gives us hope that we can find a solution. Macy and Johnstone says, “our dreams and visions for the future are essential for navigating through life because they give us a direction to move in” (155). Based on this, reducing the impact of climate change is part of the solution for healing the world. As part of a society, I can start an initiative to protect the environment by working on ways of reducing the impact of climate change.
Conclusion
Sustainability is an important aspect because it helps protect the environment and make the planet conducive to all. Sustainability is where individuals are able to sustain themselves without harming the environment. The growing impact of factors such as climate change is causing people to reconsider their actions and advocate for sustainability. Based on this, the concept of sustainability that appeals to me is reducing the impact of climate change. The idea is related to my desire to be a climate change advocate. It also relates to my ambition to become an environmentalist. As a result, it is crucial for us to change their mind and be part of a sustainable revolution.
References
Ahmed, N., Thompson, S., & Glaser, M. (2019). Global aquaculture productivity, environmental sustainability, and climate change adaptability.Environmental Management, 63(2), 159-172.
Macy, J., & Johnstone, C. (2012). Active hope: How to face the mess we’re in without going crazy. New World Library.
Mason, M. (2022). What is sustainability and why is it important?Environmental Science.
United Nations. (2021). Climate change: Sustainable development knowledge platform.