
Photo. Rinnie Ilsøe
I was born in the year 1973, and I am now in the midst of the best years of my life. When I was born, there were around 3.9 billion people on our planet. Back then, the global average temperature was at the level it was before the industrial age, and the same applied to the surface temperature of the world's oceans. The total area of the world's forests was about 450 million hectares more than it is today, and we had around 60% more wild animals on the planet. Climate change was still an unknown concept.
Since then, the global average temperature has risen by 1.25 degrees Celsius. The surface temperature of the world's oceans has increased by nearly 1.0 degree Celsius, and we continue to convert forested areas for agriculture and livestock grazing.
Today, there are 8.7 million animal species in the world, and 1 million of them are threatened with extinction as a result of human deforestation, hunting, and fishing. We are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction in Earth's long history, the first one to be initiated by another species on Earth – humans! All of the previous five occurrences were caused by natural disasters. Not exactly a legacy we should be proud to pass on!
The only species that seems to be thriving today is Homo sapiens. The global human population has doubled during the period from when I was born until now, and it now stands at 8 billion. But the question is, how much longer can we continue to thrive as the population grows? How long can this development continue? Over 120 million people are currently fleeing their homes due to war, persecution, or climate catastrophes. Scientists estimate that this number could rise to 1 billion by the end of 2050 if we do not manage to halt the trend before then.
I grew up in the part of the world that is largely responsible for this development. I have even participated in the consumption spree myself. But I now want to significantly reduce this. I can no longer look myself in the eye, and I no longer want materialism and capitalism to be the guiding principles of my life. However, I alone cannot make a difference, and certainly not all of my actions are equally sustainable. In that regard, I am no different from many others. My starting point is that there must be laws and regulations introduced at a political level to force us into a more sustainable consumption pattern, because from a consumer's perspective, it is quite opaque to ensure that everything we do benefits the planet. Therefore, it is crucial that all the products available in supermarkets and all other stores are created with the well-being of the planet in mind, so that we are forced to make the right choices because there are simply no other options available.
Sustainability should and must be the new political imperative today, tomorrow, and in the future. Climate change is here to stay, but at least we can work together to ensure it doesn’t get worse than necessary.