BLEND The Green Issue The Green Issue | Page 6

2020The year we save our Planet Without a doubt, the beginning of 2020 has already been quite troubled. From the Coronavirus pandemic, to great fires and floods, the world seems to have no rest at all. On top of that, I am sure that you are all aware that the planet is heading for a total ecological collapse. In case you needed another reminder, The World Economic Forum’s annual report found that, for the first time, the top five risks facing the world are all linked to the climate crisis. Extreme weather, natural disasters, biodiversity loss, climate action failure and human-made environmental disasters fill the top five places in the list of concerns which will likely have a catastrophic impact over the next decade. It is more important than ever, to be green, just like this magazine’s issue. “ClIMATE CHANGE IS REAL” The news, social media and researchers have already been mentioning for years that climate change is real. In addition, let’s not forget all the warnings our planet has already send us this year. For instance, the bush fires in Australia, which destroyed twelve million hectares of forests and killed a billion animals and 33 human beings. In addition, in the first weeks of January, Puerto Rico has been ravaged by earthquakes, destroying the homes of seven thousand people. Likewise, volcanoes have woken up on the Philippines, in Alaska and Japan. Besides these natural disasters, much more has happened and will happen. It is important to act Besides noticing all the signs of climate change, it is important to act as an individual and as a collective. The United Nations has set a goal to take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts. This goal has led to the Paris agreement, which went in force in 2016. In this agreement all countries agreed to work to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees centigrade. From 2018, countries have started with the adaptation plans for responding to climate change. The green issue will elaborate more on sustainability and explain how you can be friendlier to our beautiful earth. We don’t expect you to be the new Greta Thunberg, however, if we all contribute just a little, we can all help to preserve our home. “It is important to act” 10 11