“The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it; for he has founded it on the seas, and established it on the rivers.” (Psalms 24:1-2)
The earth is in a fragile condition. The earth has amazing ability to heal itself, but currently we are putting too much of a strain on the fragile systems that are in place that regulate the environment. Humanity is uniquely gifted with the ability to affect the environment for good and bad.
We are not living together in unity with one another. We have the ability to meet the needs of those who are around us. Poverty is an environmental issue. Those living in poverty are forced into living in the worst environmental situations. They are faced with the highest health risk from the environmental degradation that is occurring while at the same time they are the group that is the least responsible for the current situation.
There are common misbeliefs that since the poor are living in the worst conditions that they are the cause of the situation in which they live. There is a direct correlation between the amount of resources that we consume and the health of the environment. It is the consumers that are the main source of environmental degradation. It is our responsibility to practice appropriate care for the environment.
The first thing that we need to recognize is the source of the situation. The more that we consume resources the worst the environmental crisis becomes. We must take responsibility for our actions as individuals, communities, and even countries. If we do not see the earth as the precious gift that it is then we only have ourselves to blame for the continuing of the environmental crises that is occurring.
There is hope for the future, but only if we act. Too often we do not act because we think that we cannot make a difference in changing the current situation. We might think that what we do is too little to help. But we can help. Little things done by many people over and over again have a tremendous effect on the environment.
There are things that we can do on a small scale that can help curb the current environmental crisis.
The first thing to do is to learn about the environment.
List of things to do:
- Replace incandescent light bulbs with fluorescent bulbs.
- Recycle anything that can be recycled.
- Reuse old things that still have value.
- Unplug appliances when they are not in use.
- Decrease the amount of water usage.
- Support beneficial environmental regulations.
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