The State of the planet
The forecast is anything but positive – global warming is a hazardous threat to the human race, and as stupid as it may seem we are extinguishing ourselves. The levels of CO2 are extremely high, and expected to increase, and it is a fact that if we continue to cause damage to our planet, it will die. We see the numbers on the news every day, but the interesting question is – Do we care?

I am embarassed to admit that I have lived my life moderately aware and only a bit interested in environmental problems. But last year I really understood the poor state our planet is in. We are running towards disaster, without thinking twice about it – or? During 2006 I was forced to take a course called “Environmental chemistry”. Before this course I had always thought of environmental issues as something extremeley boring, but knowledge changed my mind. First I felt ashamed of my own behaviour. How could I have been so ignorant? What could I have done differently? But the answers were difficult to find. I think it is a common problem that we find it hard to see our own role in this context. When I thought about what I could have done to improve the situation I felt very helpless. In contrast to the huge global issue concerning our future I felt really small. And that is probably how many people reason when they think abot theese problems. “I can not do anything myself”. But that is wrong – we can improve our planets health little by little – especially if we work as a team! Secondly I must say that is pretty devistating when you realize that even though the United Nations has a plan for our environmental future, China on the other hand is developing their industry at a high rate thinking very little about environmental effects. Knowledge is probably the key to awareness in this subject. The more we know, the more we want to make a difference!

It is an intimidating thought that in a way it has already gotten out of hand. We see changes in our climate, effects from CO2-emissions maybe 30 years ago. Theese are hard evidence that something is happening.
- Winters have become longer
- The sea leavels are rising
- The Earth’s ice cover is shrinking
- We are experiencing more extreme weather
As for the weather, we have seen hurricanes destroying entire cities in Northern America. Blizzards and storms are stronger and in 2005 the shivering ground destroyed thousands of homes and families in Thailand during the Tsunami. Extreme happenings like theese have opened our eyes and the awareness concerning environmental problems has increased. It may seem hopeless sometimes, but we need to keep faith in ourselves and fight to make a difference. In the end – we, and generations to come, will benefit from the effort!


(The assignment is avaliable at http://engt20s07.blogspot.com)