Don't you feel that the environmental crisis that we are facing today is terrifying? That the air we breathe is polluted and the water that we drink is contaminated? Whoever does not see these signs now will probably never have the eyes for what lies ahead!
The answer lies in what Robert Swan, the first person to walk to both poles, said: “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.”
Whether climate change is an effect that is caused by natural processes, manmade activity or the combination of the two, what is visible is that changes are happening to the Earth’s climate. And this is creating a strain on our environment.
I am not an environmental expert, nor am I mindfulness professional. But still, there is ample scientific evidence that the climate is changing and that the change is being influenced by a host of human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation.
The only thing I can say, as a layman, is the changing weather patterns are going to force us to make more immediate and drastic changes to our existing infrastructure.
It is clear that climate change, biodiversity loss, and other environmental issues are threatening the very foundation of our existence. So saving the earth is not merely the need of the hour but much more.
Unfortunately, the only home we have is at a breaking point. It is even messier. We have damaged two-thirds of the earth's oceans and three-quarters of its land.
These man-made changes to nature, as well as crimes that disrupt biodiversity, have gathered more pace, leading to the destruction of the planet. The final result is that millions of people are affected by extreme heat, wildfires, and floods.
So saving the earth is not merely the need of the hour but much more. We need a healthier plant. We need nature more than it needs us. Our world has been changing and will continue to change — with or without us. Saving biodiversity and ecosystem by ecosystem, is the only way to save ourselves!
April is Earth Month, a time when many people around the world come together to celebrate and raise awareness about environmental issues and take action to protect our planet. While Earth Month started as a movement in the 1960s, the first Earth Day was organised on April 22, 1970.
Unlike any other annual event, Earth Day serves as a yearly ‘wake-up call,’ shaking us out of complacency and urging us to confront the harsh reality of our impact on the planet. Climate change, pollution, deforestation and biodiversity loss are no longer distant threats.
Planting one single tree a year is a simple way to contribute to the environment because we believe that trees are nature's soldiers in the fight against global warming.
In this context is The Overstory, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by American novelist Richard Powers. Though I may be one of the last to put my hands on the book so late, it reminded me of what I had forgotten — the wordless understanding I had about trees. Rather, it is a reminder of our environmental consciousness.
The humans are not the important part of this book. It’s the idea of how we relate to trees and nature itself. It’s about the realisation that trees will find a way, with or without us. The novel provides an intimate case study of environmentalism.
The novel stresses the need for co-existence of humans and non-humans this planet. “All around the house, the things they’ve planted in years gone by are making significance, making meaning, as easily as they make sugar and wood from nothing, from air, and sun, and rain. But the humans hear nothing,” Powers writes.
The Overstory inspires its readers to do more, act more for their planet. As the world still celebrating the Earth Month, let this novel be an inspiration to contemplate our relationship with nature.
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