Firstly, as your Mum let me offer my deepest sympathies for those of my children who have fallen victim to this pandemic and thank those of my children who continue to put themselves in harm’s way to protect the rest of the family.
Let me say at the outset, I have no power to change the course on which you are set. What I can do is highlight the consequences of your failings, your shortcoming, your greed, your actions , your lack of empathy and your lack of respect for the biodiversity and other sentient beings that also inhabit this earth. The recent IPPC Report “Code Red” clearly states that incrementalism, prevarication and as Greta put it, blah, blah, blah is no longer a sustainable position if you wish to leave a sustainable planet for future generations. The irreversible tipping point is only years away.
Climate change the biggest existential threat to you, is happening right in front of your eyes in the form of forest fires in Australia, the US and Europe. This is laying waste to millions of acres of natural carbon sinks. In Europe the highest recorded temperature of 49°C was recorded in Scilly and globally the number of days where temperatures have exceeded 50°C have doubled in 25 years. The rising temperatures are accelerating the melting of ice caps resulting in rising sea levels. Heat waves are leading to both droughts and flooding. The changing climate will result in disruption to global food production and famine on a scale probably unseen in human history. Water, the molecule that made and sustains you and critical to your survival will be the next point of conflict leading to the displacement of 100’s of millions of your brothers and sisters. How come? you may ask. Huge freshwater lakes are disappearing, aquafers which took thousands of years to fill are being emptied at an alarming rate.
In addition, is it just or even morally sustainable that you, my offspring, kill 70 billion sentient beings each year just to fulfil your insatiable appetite for meat, fish and in the process accelerate climate change. Carbon capture forests like the Amazon for example are being cleared at a rate of 12 million acres annually to create grazing land for cattle . Add to these the intensive farming methods used to produce cheap meat in particular beef which creates methane that is 80 times worse for climate than carbon. So, if cows were a country, they would be the third, after China and the US at omitting earth baking gases.
You must also stop the carbon suicide and remove fossil fuels from your energy mix without delay. I know you all need electricity, then building a renewable and sustainable energy system is the answer and let’s hope the smart ones can deliver on nuclear fusion.
The covid pandemic is yet another crisis that has highlighted the fragility of the human condition. What is blindingly obvious is that consumption(GDP) as the only matrix to define human flourishing is failing before your eyes. Yes, it’s you the super consumers, the rich and middle classes who drive too much, too much fast fashion, too many SUV’s, eat too much and in recent decades, fly too much. Look, if you are concerned about the world’s poor stop plundering my finite resources to generate growth this is not the answer, try a bit of redistribution.
There will be NO divine intervention, NO Red Sea event or some sort of divine carbon capture. Technology will help to save you but what I need to see is a change in your behaviour which is the key to securing your future. Here, the most fortunate members of the family will have to dig deep, because if you can find double figure trillions of dollars to fight covid is it beyond your intellectual wit and self-interest to find more trillions to save your home. It is clear that the greatest threat to your survival is you and if nothing changes your demise is assured, the only question is when.
For those who teach our children , it is vital the children understand the climate emergency and the building a sustainable future should be a core part of the curriculum thus, allowing them to actively engage in building their future. One of your more thoughtful brothers, Noam Chomsky said something like , the greatest threat to the humankind is an ill-informed electorate.
How many more Cop’s will you need before urgent action is taken and finally, mummy cannot help, I know this is tough love and you are all members of the family, so please just start acting like one.
Love, Mum
Let us know what you think in the comments section👇
The Gob 
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