Nature Vibes: Why Small Actions Have Big Impacts

I watched a documentary the other night called A Life On Our Planet. It was hosted by David Attenborough and, besides the stunning footage of the natural world, it showed how our planet is changing and the detrimental trajectory it is currently on. We silly humans are destroying the very place we call home and if we keep it up there will be no home at all.

We’ve all seen the footage of extreme weather causing more frequent and severe fires, hurricanes, tornados, and earthquakes. We know that pollution is bad, that we’re producing more waste than the planet can handle, and that the massive deforestation for agriculture and meat production is wiping out the last little bit of wilderness that’s still left.

According to Earth.org, “Since the 1950s, animal populations have more than halved, while domestic birds’ populations have skyrocketed; 70% of the mass of the birds on the planet are domestic birds- mostly chickens. Humans account for over one-third of the weight of mammals on Earth. A further 60% of animals are those that are raised for us to eat. The rest- from mice to whales- make up just 4%.

Humans cut down up to 15 billion trees per year; this is just one facet of the planet’s degradation thanks to humans, which has resulted in 30% of fish stocks being fished to critical levels and freshwater populations declining by over 80%. The Arctic, one of the coldest and remote places on Earth, has experienced summer sea ice reducing by 40% in 40 years.”

From the time we were in elementary school we were taught that we’re interconnected and that every species plays an important role in the survival of life on this planet. When we remove one of the cogs in the life machine, countless others are affected. We may not see the results immediately, but each time a species becomes extinct, there is a clear path of destruction in its wake.

The world needs biodiversity and wilderness to survive. Until we acknowledge this fact and make changes that support it, we’ll continue down the route to our eventual demise.

The hard thing is that the changes in the earth are gradual and we are still able to go about our daily lives without the immediate effects of climate change blasting us in the face. We don’t prioritize it because, for most of us, life continues onward as usual. This is one of the most dangerous threats we face because it grows behind the scenes of our lives and we will only properly notice it once it’s already too late.

A couple of years ago the Tubbs Fire in Sonoma County raged through my hometown of Santa Rosa. Watching the news felt surreal because I had distinct memories associated with the places shown in ashes in the live footage. It stalled my life in San Jose as I watched in disbelief, trying to do what I could to help from a distance. Fear for how the climate was changing and what the future would entail consumed me.

And then, the fire was contained, another natural disaster in another part of the country took over the news and my focus returned to my daily life and work. Disasters have become the new normal and as a result, we aren’t taking them as seriously as we should.

The earth has been patiently warning us, desperately shaking us in an attempt to wake us up to what’s happening to her, but we aren’t listening.

We are focused on our lives, our schedules, our routines. We are just so busy with our futile attempts at a work-life balance that we opt for time-saving convenience. The problem is that there is that convenience always comes at a cost, which typically is at the expense of the environment.

Mobile ordering at coffee shops has taken away for folks bringing in their own reusable mugs, causing the single-use waste to drastically increase. The ease of being able to order anything online with one click and two-day delivery has resulted in mountains made out of cardboard. Grocery and food delivery services have filled our waterways with plastic sporks and straws.

Although changing our individual actions will help, it is not enough to counterbalance the damage we’ve already done. This is where despair and hopelessness typically creep in. We need strong leadership to make policy changes focused on renewable energy and drastically reducing our carbon footprint. This involves the cooperation of large corporations and governments across the globe. We need to work together for the common cause of humanity’s survival.

Seems kind of impossible, no?

What can one person do to influence this sort of change? First of all, it’s critical that we don’t just ostrich our way through this crisis and ignore it. Educating ourselves on the subject can feel overwhelming and scary considering how dire it really is, but the key to implementing change is to be aware. It’s crucial that as we learn, we don’t give up hope, no matter how disastrous it may seem.

Hope is one of the few emotions that can seem totally illogical at times, but in reality, is absolutely vital for progression and change...especially, in moments of despair and overwhelm. The times that seem the most hopeless are the times we need hope the most.

Small actions can have big impacts. If we work together for the sake of our kids and grandkids, for our world, and for all of the plants and animals that make the earth so incredible, we can make the difference needed for us to not only survive but to thrive for generations to come.

1. Key Takeaways From David Attenborough’s New Film, ‘A Life on Our Planet,’ Earth.org, Oct. 8, 2020, accessed Oct. 22, 2020, https://earth.org/david-attenborough-new-film-a-life-on-our-planet/