Name: Alex Asgarov
Age: 13
Country: Georgia
Voices of Youth
…. degradation, deforestation, pollution - are largely caused by us, humans, and I want to talk to you about it now…
It worries me to read, “The biomass of wild mammals has fallen by 82%, natural ecosystems have lost half their area and millions of species are at the risk of extinction”. Today the situation is critical; we have made many mistakes and caused problems like air pollution, water pollution, global warming…
Before I mention a few solutions of how we can solve these problems, I want to highlight how we formed them.
What happened in 1750 has changed the course of history - a year when the industrial revolution started in Great Britain. This was the moment when different technologies, factories, and textile jobs were created. After a few decades, more technologies developed and fossil fuel production and consumption began. Using fossil fuels released gasses like carbon dioxide, which is a greenhouse gas that contains the heat from sunlight on the earth and with that, rises earth's temperature. The high temperature causes ice to melt and is a key contributor to global warming.
Not only is burning fossil fuels very dangerous, but extracting and transporting them is connected to many health and environment problems. What is even worse? - It is not renewable. Air pollution is mostly caused by factories and cars,while water is being polluted by the trash we are throwing out, such as plastic bags. We can tackle these problems differently. We should, for example, start using renewable energy such as wind and solar energy, and start recycling, reusing and reducing the use of non-recyclable materials.
Now let us talk about other types of problems we need to address - we need food, space to live and goods and services that we are getting from animals, trees, land, and water. The main problem is that we cut down trees (we are a cause of deforestation) and take more and more space to live (urbanization) and produce (food, apparel, furniture, etc). We are using natural resources to its maximum and very quickly and that in return has a detrimental impact on the environment and human well-being. For example, due to unsustainable use of water, its sources are drying up. Lack of water supply coupled with unsustainable land-use practices can further exacerbate drought, land degradation and even lead to desertification. To solve this problem we should use resources more wisely, start-building eco-houses and more recycling factories, restore and conserve forests, and most importantly, share information about the anthropogenic impact on the environment due to human activity and climate crisis because many people do not even know about these problems and alternative solutions.
To me, these are the most effective solutions I can suggest to you. For more information, please read what my peers have to say about the environment and need for more sustainable solutions by visiting www.voicesofyouth.org.