Ten years ago I was here. Yesterday, I was here.
It felt good to march again.
Not that sharing 6th Avenue with over 300,000 other people demanding attention to the issues of climate change will necessarily make everything better. (Arguably, despite about a million of us in DC in 2004, things have gotten worse.)
But yesterday gives me hope. 1,200 events around the world. Millions of people now petitioning their governments. A growing coalition of city leaders who are taking action.
It doesn’t really matter what’s causing the globe to warm. This year is going to be the hottest on record. The question now is do we have the brainpower and the willpower to do something about it.
And let’s be clear: those that deny climate change aren’t stupid. Those that deny climate change are greedy. As with everything else, this is about money. If we really want to change things, we have to change our buying habits. Our living habits.
I’m not a poster child for these changes. I’ve written before about our efforts. But my house is too big. I consume way too much. Backsliding…
The scale of the changes required is daunting. The scale of education needed is equally huge. Yesterday, Tucker at least got a bit more education. But he’ll need much more in order to deal with what’s to come.
That assumes, of course, that we won’t act. That temperatures and oceans will continue to rise. I worry for him and his sister.
But for one day, at least, I feel a bit more hope.