Editor,
When I heard about the Los Alamos High School Eco Club’s recent climate strike, I felt a surge of pride. These young people are organizing a public demonstration to demand meaningful action on climate change, not to mention other important changes like increasing what students are taught about climate change in school. You can’t help but be impressed by their maturity and clear sightedness.
However, I also felt a twinge of guilt. They’re in this situation because adults like me haven’t been able to face this problem yet. Like many others, I’ve gone from feeling like this was such an important problem that surely someone else would take care of it… to feeling simply frightened, overwhelmed, and with no idea where to start.
But the fact is, we can all start taking meaningful action on climate change today, and we all need to, regardless of our personal background or political leanings. As it happens, Congress is currently discussing putting into place one of the single most powerful tools to reduce the United States’ carbon pollution: putting a price on carbon. This simple action will put the U.S. at net zero emissions by 2050, all while saving 4.5 million American lives and making the U.S. a world leader in clean energy. Not to mention, this action is the single best way to protect the U.S. economy in the face of the devastations of climate change. No wonder it’s supported by dozens of leading U.S. economists!
Ordinary citizens are emailing the White House right now to express support for including this measure in the budget reconciliation process. What’s more, the New Mexico chapter of Citizens’ Climate Lobby is helping interested citizens go further in becoming strong advocates for climate change.
As the LAHS Eco Club wisely points out, there is no Planet B. There’s also no reason to sit by and wait for someone else to solve the problem. Ordinary citizens like us have what it takes to address the climate crisis, and working together we can drive Congress to make crucial decisions like enacting a price on carbon.
Sara Ann Mason