‘Silence is a sign of betrayal’

You must have noticed the high temperatures and the blistering heat now bearing down on us. What’s even worse is the variance between the temperature and the real feel of the heat. That tells us a lot.

Summer has truly set in, bringing the heat that dries our lakes and rivers and saps the energy from the frail human body mostly composed of water. Amidst the heat, thunderstorms occur and rains pour, causing destructive flash floods.

People and animals get sick, and new diseases appear. Deserts continue to expand, claiming prime land and destroying our soil. The weather cannot be predicted anymore.

A call for a new development model is echoing worldwide as countries fall on austerity measures compounded by the shortage of food and water. Higher rates are imposed by the International Monetary Fund.

Poverty continues to rise and more Arab Springs are in the making. Cyprus is the latest victim, its financial system in near-collapse.

Yet, despite all the calamities and the continued pronouncements that climate change is the single most critical threat to humankind and the planet, the old development model continues to bully the weak and to accelerate the pace of extraction of minerals.

But many are taking matters in their own hands and are doing volunteer work to mitigate the effects of climate change. Yes, things are changing, and with the election of Pope Francis, who advocates “helping the poor and the sick, all creatures and the environment,” there is hope.

People will hopefully get the message that God’s creation is being destroyed.

“There is a time when silence is a sign of betrayal,” Martin Luther King once said. And this is such a time. It is a time for all to make their voices heard. The louder their voices are directed to all leaders, from local governments to every head of state in the world, the better.

It is time to act and wage war on global warming and climate change. It is time to bite the bullet and step on the brakes against false development and progress. It is time to follow Germany’s lead to go full-blast on renewable energy like solar and wind power. It is showing the way; we must follow its good example.

We must remember that Mother Nature sustains us all. We need to protect her from all pressure. She cannot take much more of human-induced pollution and climate change.

Make your voice heard. Take action in your own way. Lower your carbon footprint. Perhaps we may still have a chance to save our planet, our only home.

—ANTONIO M. CLAPAROLS

President, Ecological Society of the Philippines