Saving our planet

The Earth is our home. This little speck of dust in the vastness of the universe is our only hope. We may have taken the first steps to outer space, but colonising other planets and even terraforming Mars is a long, long way off.

The Earth will be humanity's only abode for millennia to come. We must protect it while we can.

This is the premise behind Earth Day, which falls on April 22 every year.

Today, the Earth is facing an unprecedented crisis. The very face of the Earth is being changed and its very fate is hanging in the balance as humans have consumed its resources at a blistering pace without thinking of the environmental consequences.

We must reverse these trends, so that the Earth can recover at least partially. In other words, we must go `green' to the fullest possible extent.

April 22, 2009 will mark the beginning of the Green Generation Campaign which will also be the focus of the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day in 2010.

With negotiations for a new global climate agreement coming up in December, this is an opportune moment for action.

There are three main goals in the Green Generation campaign: A carbon-free future based on renewable energy that will end our common dependency on fossil fuels, including coal; commitment to responsible, sustainable consumption at individual, community and country level; creation of a new green economy that lifts people out of poverty by creating millions of quality green jobs while transforming the global education system into a green one.

The biggest challenge is climate change. The climate is being altered as we write by humanity's insatiable desire for progress.

We have released more Carbon Dioxide to the atmosphere than the Earth can possibly bear or purify, thanks to the excessive use of fossil fuel for everything from cars to factories. We release seven billion tons of carbon to the air every year. It took 125 years to consume the first trillion barrels of oil but we will consume the second in just 20 more years. World temperatures have been rising slowly but steadily.

The sea level is also rising, almost imperceptibly, but some scientists warn that there could be a rise of around 50 cm by 2100. Agriculture and biodiversity are being threatened and thousands of species of flora and fauna could be gone by 2050. The Earth as we know it will change within our lifetime.

Is it too late to save our planet? Not if we act now. The Nations of the world must unite on the issue of emissions protocols and industrial countries should raise their level of commitment to cut down on emissions.The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, due to be held in Denmark from December 7 to 18, 2009, will be an ideal opportunity to forge an international consensus on this critical issue.Cutting down on emissions alone will not help. The world must move towards renewable sources of energy. In any case, fossil fuels including coal will run dry in the next two centuries or so.

More funding should be made available for research on this subject. Increasing the efficiency of technologies for harnessing wind, solar, geothermal and wave power should be a priority. Governments should encourage the use of all-electric and hybrid (gasoline engine plus electric motor) vehicles.

Governments must popularize the 3R concept - Reduce, Re-use and Recycle.

The Earth's resources - not just oil - are finite. Everything that we use in everyday life from the clothes we wear to the car we drive is made using materials obtained from the Earth. Reducing consumption and reusing our possessions is vital for the Earth's health.

Recycling should not be an afterthought - everything must be designed from the ground up for disassembly and recycling. The newspaper that you are reading now could provide pages for a book tomorrow. Components from your old CRT television set could end up in a LCD television.

Parts from your battered old car could find their way to a new car.

We need not move the heavens to save the Earth. Even a seemingly small step at individual level can make a huge contribution to the planet's health in the long term. Using fluorescent or LED bulbs instead of incandescent bulbs, completely switching off TVs, DVD players, Wi Fi/ADSL routers, phone chargers instead of keeping them on standby and switching off unnecessary lights/fans/airconditioners can reduce Carbon Dioxide emissions by a huge quantum if followed by individuals and organisations worldwide. Why not walk to the junction instead of taking the car? You will save fuel, money and he environment. Why print unnecessary emails when you can read them online and discard them? You will save trees. Why keep the tap open to wash your face? Use a container and save water. These are not heroic deeds, but `green' things ordinary people can do to save Planet Earth.The population is expanding, but the Earth is not. There will be a projected population of nine billion by 2040. They will have to share diminishing resources, including precious water. This Earth Day, we should resolve to act at individual, community and Government level to save the Earth for the future generations.