Making progress on Carbon Emissions Reductions
“There is much that people can do to reduce their impacts to this beautiful planet.”
I am writing this letter to the future grandchildren's grandchildren to inform them of what we hope will happen at the Paris Climate Change Conference. I am a retired Marine Biologist, who has devoted my entire career to protecting marine ecosystems. I am passionate about leaving this planet in a habitable condition and fear that we may not do so based on our recent history and actions. We need to take better care of this fragile planet, but my experience and observations have concluded we are not doing enough to preserve this planet for future generations. My generation have not been good stewards in protecting the planet for future generations, and have been slow to realize the impact that humans are having in our carbon emissions and corresponding climate change. People are slowly waking up to the reality of climate change, and it is my fervent hope that we can make the necessary changes in time through the historic meeting in Paris to save our planet for future generations. The World's Leaders are gathering in Paris to make commitments to seriously reduce our carbon emissions.
My hope is that the present generation acts soon enough to minimize the future damage to the planet and that present and future generations learn to live sustainably in harmony with the earth's finite resources using renewable, clean energy sources (solar, wind, geothermal, etc.). There is much that people can do to reduce their impacts to this beautiful planet. As an example, my wife and I downsized to a solar powered energy efficient home three years ago and drive an electric car. We produce more electricity than we use in our all-electric home, and believe others can choose a similar path to minimize their carbon footprints.
I pray and hope that the Paris Climate Talks provides meaningful, measurable progress in reducing our planetary carbon emissions. The accords reached at the Climate talks must be achievable in limiting our temperature increases to no more than 2 degrees Celsius. In order to accomplish this we need to move quickly away from fossil fuel forms of energy to clean, renewable energy. Renewable energy really works. Our personal experience with solar energy has been very informative and positive in demonstrating how individual action can make a difference in reducing our societal carbon emissions. At the international level, we can do this with active leadership from countries participating in the Climate Meeting in Paris, but it will take every country at the table and the support of the world's inhabitants to buy into the carbon emissions reduction strategy to make it work effectively. The lives of future generations depend on our actions in Paris, and we must act to ensure that we are successful in achieving this objective. If we are successful, future generations will have a habitable planet and viable future.
