How the 9-5 is promoting climate change
We live in very uncertain times where no one knows what will happen next. Will the sun explode? Will the waters consume the planet? Will we live to see tomorrow?
It is evident that the earth is upset. That’s the only plausible explanation for the myriad of deaths due to drought being experienced, recurring earth tremors, and unexplained rising water levels. We live in a world where it is survival of the fittest. I am sure many people are concerned by the animals that are already going extinct but who will be next after all the animals are gone? Definitely the human race! In 2015, scientists from Science came up with a theory that there are about 8 years before a mini-ice age occurs. According to them, we are currently in an interglacial period that began about 11,000 years ago.
Most people believe that taking care of the environment and mitigating the effects of climate change is the government’s responsibility. That may be true! However, eventually, we have to realize that the government can only do till a certain point. Analogically, it’s like hiring chefs and expecting them to cook and also put the food into your stomach. You have to eat for the food to get into your stomach!
The 9-5 jobs have been glorified for years, as many people migrate from the countryside to urban areas seeking white-collar jobs. It is one of the causes of climate change because, in order to create more jobs, we need more space for offices meaning more cutting down of trees. Additionally, we have to commute to our places of work expending more energy as more fossil fuels are burned. It also means there will be fewer people on the farms and, thus, less food production and therefore increased reliance on greenhouses.
During the Covid outbreak and lockdown, there seemed to be a slight improvement in the weather and quality of air because people were working from indoors. In fact, in Nairobi, we could see the peaks of Mt. Kenya which were obstructed by years of pollution. As a matter of fact, Nasa found that the pandemic’s resulting limitations on travel and other economic sectors by countries around the globe drastically decreased air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions within just a few weeks.
The pandemic has proven to us that, indeed, things can be done from any part of the world. Why not take advantage of this? Moreover, we can divert all the money used for commuting, etc. into planting trees and creating sustainable systems. This will not only divest our expenses and make us healthier.
It is time for us to embrace change in order to better the current climatic situation. If we all sit in the nice corner office, who will plant the trees?
