The Climate Exodus

Last Sunday, I attended an activity about social justice and the climate crisis hosted by CG 7. We watched a documentary called The Climate Exodus during the event, and I was surprised to see the enormous impact of climate change on people, especially in Southeast Asian countries.

I have never pictured the impact of climate change when living in the US, as I always felt that it was far away from me. As a person who only lives in developed countries and has sufficient resources, I felt astonished and shocked to see children and students from Indonesia are constantly under the threat of flooding. They have the chance of losing classrooms and moving out of their hometown all the time because of the flood. It feels sad to see children who seek to learn new knowledge but can not make it because of the climate crisis.

Moreover, climate change does not only affect countries in southeast Asia. It also affected the size of Lake Chad in Africa. I remembered that the lake has gone over 90% in the past decades. The diminishing size of the lake dramatically affects the lives of current residents as they rely on the lake water for living. Without the water supply, residents would have to move away from their homeland. The climate issue not only causes potentially 180 million refugees by 2050, but it also reflects global social injustice. Most countries suffering from the climate crisis are countries with insufficient resources and undergoing slow technology development. Developed countries did not get affected as much as developing countries. I feel developed countries must take action first to help mitigate the climate crisis. Overall, one of the takeaways I learned from the activity is that climate change brings a way more significant effect than I thought. At the same time, I would definitely encourage more people to see the documentary to gain a better sense of the harm of the climate crisis. I would also encourage people to do campaigns and make social media posts to motivate the general public while fighting climate change.