The campaign season is heating up faster than the rising temperatures of summer, with less than 30 days to go before the national elections. Many online platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter and TikTok, are full of political content. Some of it is true, but most are misinformation. These are deliberately created to sow inaccurate or false reports.
Our screens are filled with noise and it is becoming louder and more apparent everywhere we look. These political antics, gimmicks, and other tricks are inevitable during an election cycle. What if we temporarily shut down the noise and instead focus on issues?
A lack of discussion about the environment is one of the most alarming issues that many civic-minded citizens and peoples groups have raised. There is currently no presidential candidate who has created an all-encompassing environment agenda that would help us achieve the 1.5 degree Celsius goal set by the Paris Agreement. Simply put, the presidentiables have not fully informed the voters about their plans to combat climate change or make our country more resilient to it.
Some presidentiables have shared some of their views on environmental issues in interviews and debates over the past few weeks. Because these online or television interviews are more watched and rated, the questions to the candidates are often more TV-friendly in order for them to give soundbites and make social media artcards.
It is difficult to talk about climate. It is a multifaceted issue that touches economics, urban development and resource management. And, of course, it is crucial for our survival as a country. Climate is more than tree-planting, estero cleaning, and the use an eco-bag. This is only a small part of the iceberg. Below is a wide range of issues like renewable energy and carbon emissions, mining in a protected environment, wildlife protection, reclamation, even legality of a dam within an ancestral domain, and feasibility for a dolomite sand beach.
Climate experts from UN (UN) raised alarms this week. Hopefully, they will reach the ears and minds of our presidents. Experts stated that humanity has less time than three years to stop the increase in planet-warming carbon dioxide emissions and less than a decade for them to be slashed by almost half. They warned that there will be a last-gasp battle to save the planet’s carbon emissions and ensure a viable future.
The 2,800-page report by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, (IPCC), is the most comprehensive assessment of global warming ever done. It also highlighted the importance of government decision making.
Hoesung Lee, chief IPCC, stated that we are at a crossroads. We can make the right decisions now to ensure a sustainable future. We have the know-how and tools necessary to limit global warming. The UN panel gave some examples of what can and should be done.
The report made it clear that investing in cutting emissions will be much cheaper than failing to limit global warming. Scientists warn that any increase above 1.5 degrees Celsius could lead to the collapse of ecosystems, and irreversible changes in the climate system.
As time is short, the next president should have a plan to address climate change and a clear policy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The presidency is not for those who are weak-hearted or uninitiated. Only a fully informed president can make wise decisions about our future. With that, the electorate deserves to be fully informed right now of a candidate’s green agenda.
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