Sneha Subramani,17, With the current Trump administration and the Republican majority in Senate, the climate change issue has become of least importance in politics today. This begs the question of why climate change is an issue of politics at all. Climate change is a very real and imminent threat to today’s world and needs to be dealt with immediately. In fact, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, along with other members of Congress have drafted a plan that tackles climate change and mainly, how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, called the Green New Deal. However, since climate change is seemingly a partisan issue, and Democratic leaders are the founders of this plan, the Senate will not pass it. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell even went as far as to say that the Green New Deal is “socialist takeover and that it is evidence that Democrats are far from the mainstream on energy issues.” Why is it deemed “socialist” to want a better future/plant for generations to come? Why is it “ far from mainstream” to want better for the planet? If the Green New Deal is such a “socialist” plan then why does the Republican party not draft their own plan to combat climate change? It is simply put like this: the Republican party is anti-science. They fail to see the proven statistics and facts that climate change is bringing an inevitable end to resources around the world. They seem to think this is a “democratic issue” and until they believe that climate change is a real issue that will affect every person living on this planet, we are in danger. It is imperative that we vote for leadership that will have a part in dealing with climate change. 

Sachi Ramachandran,15, Climate change needs to be addressed globally by world leaders and finally, be taken seriously. It has become a political issue when it is simply an environmental issue that affects all of us. Our world leaders must do better and put in an effort to cut down our carbon emissions and work towards becoming carbon neutral. My biggest fear is that we will lose forests, animals, and reefs, never to recover them. There are small things that we can take ourselves, like shopping sustainably, using less plastic, and eating less meat. But these steps only go so far. Until our generation can vote, we must fight and advocate for government leaders who will support measures to mitigate the impacts of climate change. We need to see real leadership when it comes to climate change and we must work together. 

Alex Butler,15, I believe that the current administration is doing more harm than good to our climate change situation. The continuous disregard for the environmental consequences of what the administration’s actions might cause is leading us down a dark path to the destruction of our own making. I fear that if older generations don’t vote for leaders that will start making changes, we could all be in a very bad situation. Each person is responsible for reducing their carbon footprint and do what they can, but when it comes down to it, individual action will not be enough. Major corporations and governments have to take large-scale actions to reduce the major damage that they are doing on a daily basis. Large bans on plastic, non-renewable energy sources, and other widely used items and procedures that harm the environment could be immensely helpful in turning this scary situation around. Whether we can vote or not, we all have to stand up and call these issues to our elected officials’ attention. Otherwise, nothing will change and our situation will just continue to get worse and worse until there’s no turning around.

Aasim Musani,14, Climate change is no joke. It is not some farfetched myth that is waiting to be debunked. It is a real issue that is going to change the way our generation will live across the world. And frankly, the Trump Administration isn't helping us; in fact, it is ensuring our demise. By slashing the budget of the EPA he showed that his primary concern isn't that of protecting the Earth that we live on; instead, his focus is to hold on to his seat to continue to control the politics of this country. For example, in his proposed budget, he cut funding from waterway protection programs only in Democratic states while leaving projects such as the Everglades and the Great Lakes fully covered because they are located in swing states. Since our generation has been left to fend for ourselves, we have to take action for ourselves and future generations. We can try to reduce our carbon footprints in our families, or try to recycle more, etc. We also need to push leaders to change their stance on these issues because if we can get the entire country to cooperate, we can make a massive impact in this ever-worsening issue. 

Khushi Patel, 15, Climate change is a very real and progressing issue in the present time, and I don’t think many people are taking it seriously. I believe the current Trump administration sees this as an issue that isn’t valuable to the U.S. By trying to cut EPA funding from scientists and contributing more effort to business corporations instead, the Trump administration is taking the U.S. backward in tackling climate change. Additionally, making efforts to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement is doing more harm than good for the global effort to stop climate change. The U.S. needs to fund more money into tackling climate change, reinitiate the Paris Climate Agreement, and encourage citizens to educate themselves and consistently raise awareness. Battling global warming should not be seen as a “chore”. All people, especially youth, need to realize that recycling, eliminating food waste, and simply reusing are small steps that we should take in our daily lives. I fear the excessive droughts, heatwaves, hurricanes, and other natural disasters that will occur if we don’t collectively begin to take action. In order to have this issue recognized as a priority in the U.S. administration, we need to begin voting for candidates that promise to move our country forward. 

Vaishali Ojha, 15, The current administration is not taking climate change as seriously as it needs to be taken. Climate change can and will have drastic effects on our planet if we do not make the efforts to try and change what’s going to happen. The United States government needs to take steps to control and reduce carbon emissions. Individually, we can do our part for the planet and recycle, eliminate waste, etc., but the biggest positive impact on global warming will be big corporations acknowledging and striving to cut down the damage they are doing to the planet. We should elect officials who support action against climate change and will take global warming seriously.

Writers in the Forum: