An opportunity for courage

By Joey Maslan

The world is teetering on the edge of an abyss. The earth’s average temperature has already increased by one degree Celsius since the beginning of the industrial revolution and, at current emission levels, most scientists agree will increase by another degree in four or five years. This increase in temperature will bring about droughts, floods, storms and mass extinctions. 


The scale and severity of this problem calls for nothing less than a momentous display of courage and action to solve it. The only group with the vitality, freedom and will to answer such a call is us, the young people.


Some view this as a burden, but I view it as an opportunity. Never has there been a more real and more urgent invitation for heroism, and yet our generation seems uninterested.


Apathy, laziness, timidity and indecision are the most popular charges laid against us, but these charges are incorrect.


At lunch hour, a whole mob of students willingly strain their bodies at the gym. A multitude of different sports teams carry out rigorous daily training programs. Hundreds of motivated students are cramped in every corner of the TFDL to study. Our generation is anything but apathetic, lazy, timid and indecisive.


The problem is not that our generation lacks courage and vitality, it is that we are putting our efforts towards make-believe settings. We are spending all of our energy playing sports, studying for tests and trying to win competitions when there are real, urgent problems that we should be working on.


If we directed only half of this energy towards solving the looming environmental crisis, we could save the world in less than a day.


So what are we waiting for? Now is the time to forget about awards and resumés and start talking to each other, start seeking the truth and start acting. Now is the time to finally use our courage towards solving a problem that really matters.