When A Fire Starts To Burn: Let’s Talk Bushfires
LIVE from Australia; where the nation is facing the most dangerous bushfire week ever seen. Fires of unprecedented number and ferocity are currently raging throughout the country. New South Wales has confronted a catastrophic day, with 60 fires currently burning across the state, 40 of which are running out of control. In Queensland, there are 50 fires burning as well as many across Western Australia and South Australia.
As friends and strangers evacuate their homes, fellow Aussies are holding those affected in their thoughts and prayers, but moving forward we must do more…
For years, scientists and meteorologists have warned of more frequent and extreme bushfires as global warming worsens. However, their cries have been met with apathy, particularly from policy makers. Australia’s deputy prime minister, Michael McCormack even went as far as to say that those who believe bushfires and climate change are linked are “inner-city raving lunatics”. Sounds eerily familiar to the leader of the free world who has upset many climate change activists with his many polarizing opinions on the matter including “climate change is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese” (how’s that for fake news!).
Let’s get technical for a second. According to experts, the relationship between increased bushfire risk and rising emissions is complex, but clear. While climate change does not create bushfires, it can and does make them worse. Factors that contribute to the risk include temperature, fuel load, dryness, wind speed and humidity.
So, what are we going to do about it? We need to progress from debating whether global warming is real to implementing policies and solutions, in part so that we can avoid people losing their homes and lives as a consequence of catastrophic blazes. Perhaps Australia can take a leaf out of the book of our trans-tasman cousins. To be more specific, I’m talking about New Zealand’s recent commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050. But that should only be the beginning.
To all the ‘non-ravers’ out there, it is not an expression of lunacy when us ‘ravers’ are stressing about global warming, stressing about whether enough is being done, or stressing enough to attempt to do more. Lunacy is, in fact, not stressing about it at all.
*Our hearts are with everyone affected around the country*
Lauren Thurin, VP, Business Development & fellow Australian
Last week, the Trump administration declared that the U.S. is formally withdrawing from the Paris deal. The U.S. is the only country to pull out of the pact, which was signed by 200 nations in 2015.
If you wish to help those affected by the fire, you can donate to the following causes:
On Saturday 7th of February 2009, a series of bushfires ignited across Australia. Coined as the Black Saturday bushfires, they were among the all-time worst bushfire disasters the country had ever seen. My Australian Story: Bushfire by Sally Murphy gives a raw insight into this and teaches about tragedy and survival.
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