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September 5, 2018
#3 Fear – February, 2018
One thing I’ve learned from my experience with learning about and speaking about climate change is how to cope with fear. When I started doing research about climate change, I learned how devastating its effects are and will be. We have a few years to take drastic action before climate change becomes irreversible. And my generation will be hit the hardest. Having to comprehend and come to terms with these things scared me a lot, and I think it scares other people too. I believe that fear is part of the reason why people are not taking part in climate activism. Adults are afraid to admit to kids that they’re in real danger, and might be afraid to admit it to themselves. Especially with an issue like climate change, that happens so slowly and quietly, it can be easy to convince yourself that nothing is happening, that it’s no big deal. I understand that notion, but it’s important to understand and to try to fix the issues that bother you.
I was really scared for a while, and got sad every time we experienced erratic or unusually warm weather. Until I wrote my petition and started working with 350NYC, I was pretty miserable, scared to read the news or look at the weather report. I also read about other organizations who were doing amazing work as well and visited their websites. There are dozens of other communities around the country who are fighting for the environment that deserve recognition and support. Knowing that I was making a difference made me feel hopeful, and seeing all the progress being made by other people who cared just as much as I did was really inspiring. In life, you can always turn fear and sadness into action and passion. I suggest that everyone find organizations that are doing work that really inspires them, and volunteer, sign petitions, go to marches. People facing their fears and turning them into action will, no doubt, change the world.
