"Inhabitants of the low carbon world, the most impoverished places on our planet, are the ones who really know that climate change has arrived.
In order to reduce global warming, those of us who live in the high carbon world need to organise ourselves so that we decarbonise the atmosphere and switch over to clean energy production. And we need to do this by the middle of the century.
Immediately reducing as many of our emissions as possible will buy us precious time. Cutting back on meat and dairy consumption, reducing air travel, buying our energy from clean energy companies … these are just some of the effective steps we can immediately take.
Now is the time for all of us in the high carbon world to wake up and smell the climate change. Here is a reminder in case we need it; 97% of scientists agree that climate change is real and is happening.
Only those who cause global warming are in the position to do anything about it.
Yet it’s still “normal” for us to fly as if flying is not a major contributor to global warming. It’s still “normal” for us to consume high amounts of meat as if beef farming is not a major contributor to global warming. It’s still “normal” to do so many of the things that, if left unchecked, will continue to lead all of us to a catastrophe.
Should we not be gathering to talk to each other about what it is we face and how we are to respond? Should we not be gathering to talk to each other about what kind of world we’d prefer to live in?
Should we not be identifying those within our communities who can lead our conversations?
There’s a widespread silence. I can understand why. I don’t know anyone who thinks they are particularly good at talking about climate change. Climate scientists often think they are the worst climate change communicators. And many of us might feel inhibited by a lack of expertise. Writers and filmmakers are struggling to express a vision of the future other than one that features ecological and social collapse.
But we have to get past all this. As more of us break that widespread silence and talk with each other about what kind of world we want to live in, the more chance we will have of creating it. The more we talk, the better we will get at seeing, at articulating, at moving towards that positive vision of the future.
The next five years present a small window of opportunity for society to plan its switch to a clean energy world. We’re not going to make the switch if we don’t talk about it, it’s down to us in the high carbon world to make that happen. It is our consumption that is warming the planet.
This conversation needs to move into the centre of our activities, into our communal spaces as a matter of course; the community hall, the town hall, the church hall, the music performance space, the theatre, the arts centre.
The conversation needs to move into every workplace.
Inevitably, following on from much more talking, will be much more action on climate change throughout our society. There's no doubt that change is happening; fossil fuels are beginning to be priced out of the market as renewable energy becomes cheaper than fossil fuels. The rate at which this change is happening is currently too slow and must to be increased if we are to stand a chance of keeping the temperature down to a safe level.
So, whatever it is we do in life, let’s do it in conjunction with holding conversations about how we can positively respond to climate change. Let’s break that silence and address the biggest elephant the room has ever seen.
During 2016 I moved the conversation into the heart of my own concerts by collaborating with thinkers who engage in climate change and inviting them to converse with my audiences.
I then initiated ClimateKeys to inform musicians around the world about my concerts and ask if they would also consider placing the climate conversation within their own concerts.
If you are a musician or expert speaker who would like to join ClimateKeys, or if you would like get in touch for any reason, please send an email to lola@climatekeys.com or use the Contact Form below."
Lola Perrin