Dear editor,
A high-pressure heat dome hovering over BC; catastrophic, scorching wildfires; unprecedented floods washing away European villages; and, Arctic surface temperatures peaking at 48C — what more evidence do we need to know that the climate emergency is upon us, it’s brutal and we must act now?
Millions of us must connect the dots between the extreme climate impacts we and our natural environment are experiencing and the decades of governmental inaction on the climate crisis. It’s such a huge threat, it has been suggested that we need to mobilize as we did for World War II.
In a video, “Four Hopeful Lessons from World War II to Confront Climate Change” (climateemergencyunit.ca), the following imperatives are detailed: The government must
1. Spend what it takes to win
2. Create new economic institutions to get the job done
3. Shift from voluntary policies to mandatory measures
3. Tell the truth about the severity of the crisis and the measures to combat it Our response needs to be big and our response needs to be now.
Patti Willis,
Denman Island