“Birth strike” is an increasing phenomena and an extremely personal choice. There is no doubt that we face severe disruption due to climate change, therefore, some people are genuinely afraid of what the future will hold for younger generations. Over population causes a massive drain on resources as we need more food, housing, energy, transport etc.
putting extra strain on nature already struggling with wildlife loss and climate change. The number of people on this planet continues to increase. Population Matters has a counter that shows global population as it grows – around 8.
1 billion at the time of writing. We’re also living far longer as we’ve improved healthcare so people live longer and births are increasing. So yes population matters.
Advertisement Advertisement Did you know with an ad-lite subscription to Derry Journal, you get 70% fewer ads while viewing the news that matters to you. The more we educate citizens, particularly young girls, the more likely they are to have smaller families and therefore the number of people inhabiting the planet reduces. Another essential, is access to safe family planning.
You wouldn’t think these two solutions were controversial in 2024 but in many parts of the world, it is a real struggle to find contraception. A key reason is the Catholic church is the biggest health and education provider in the world therefore, their strong stance against contraception is a huge issue in many countries. With around 1.
3 billion Catholics, changing that policy would have a massive effect on the numbers of babies born each year. The Pope is very vocal on his support for climate action. He first published Laudato Si, his writings on caring for our One Home, in 2015.
Permitting birth control could be one of the biggest improvements Pope Francis could make. As well as the number of people on the planet, individual lifestyle choices are also very significant. People’s carbon footprint (their personal contribution to climate change) are not all the same.
The richest people on the planet contribute by far the most damage. Think private jets and big SUVs. Meanwhile, the poorest, who are the most affected by climate impacts, produce the lowest emissions.
The carbon emissions of the wealthiest one percent accounts for around 16 percent of CO2 emissions or the equivalent of 1.3 million excess deaths! So when it comes to tackling global warming, we simply can’t look at the number of babies being born but also their carbon footprint. Researchers from Lund University identified four high-impact actions with the greatest potential to reduce our individual emissions.
These were having one fewer child, living car-free, avoiding airplane travel and eating a plant-based diet. By far the biggest difference was one fewer child. But this calculation was based on the assumption that we continue to burn coal, oil and gas.
We know however that renewable energy is cheaper than fossil fuels so the clean energy transition is underway and consequently pollution levels per person are decreasing. The key to tackling climate change is to stop burning fossil fuels and go green. The faster we do this, the better the future we will secure.
Advertisement Advertisement In 2021, Stuart Capstick, wrote the following which was read by actor Benedict Cumberbatch, star of Sherlock Holmes, at the Royal Albert Hall in March this year: “What can I say now it’s too late? I can tell you the obvious, that I’m sorry, that I tired. I can tell you how sorry I am but it ate me up that even as we sat in bed with the night light on reading about coral reefs and Finding Dory I knew there wasn’t much time left for those bright and beautiful places..
. I can tell you that I tried and even though it felt hopeless I wasn’t going to quit. I can tell you this is why we always took the train, why I pestered politicians, why we changed what we ate, why I got myself arrested that time.
But what I really want you to know, that the hardest thing was living through a time when we could have turned this around but that most people just carried on as if it didn’t matter.” https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=yJvczRkQHK0 Swap a higher temperature for a lower one when washing clothes. More than 1000 washes are started every second in Europe, washing clothes in cooler temperatures reduces both your electricity bill and carbon footprint without reducing the cleanliness of clothes. As children receive their exam results, there is good news on links between improving air quality and education.
New research has found there’s a direct correlation between the introduction of Low Emission Zones in London and improved SAT performances in year six pupils in the areas with LEZs. The findings – from the London School of Economics suggests there’s a “meaningful link” between exam results and taking dirty vehicles off our streets. To look at the specific impact of clean air on school performance, the researchers compared schools in the low emission zones in London with schools in the other 20 largest cities in the UK that were more than 100km from the LEZs in London.
Advertisement Advertisement The improvement they found was substantial enough that study authors called the results “highly statistically significant”. They added that it is “similar to the estimated effect of reducing class size by 10 students or paying teachers large financial bonuses”, which is an incredible result. The study doesn’t suggest reasons for the link but it’s thought that better air quality results in fewer student absences and the continued attendance means they’re able to learn and perform better in tests and exams.
The study also found the benefits were “disproportionately greater in schools serving a larger share of economically disadvantaged populations and those with historically lower academic performance”. While the UK findings are relatively new, a study from the US found spikes in air pollution reduced test scores in maths and English. The study from Salt Lake City in Utah found a direct link between fine particulate matter exposure that get trapped in lungs and lower grades.
Advertisement Advertisement The findings could be down to classroom attendance or they could be down to how pollution affects us physically but either way the evidence is there that improving air quality benefits education results. We already know cleaning up the air we breathe improves everyone’s health but the study from London shows it also affects academic performance which is huge news. There’s a lot of disinformation spread when it comes to methods for tackling air pollution and studies like this go a long way to highlight why reducing toxic fumes is so important.
A ban on buying new diesel and petrol cars by 2030 is already transforming our roads as customers are voting with our wallets and choosing all-electric vehicles, which eliminates tail-pipe emissions. But much more needs to be done to clean up our streets from more cycle lanes to better buses. And finally, if you have loved-ones receiving exam results this summer, I hope they are pleased and perhaps will consider environmental vocations in the future.
69 percent. Support for Net Zero has stayed the same since the general election in July. Fiction.
Support for the UK to reach Net Zero has increased by five percent in three months. In April, 69 percent of UK adults supported it, since the election, that figure has risen to 74 percent..
