Many of us may have missed it, but Wednesday 22 April was Earth Day. Under normal circumstances climate change campaigners would have been holding demonstrations and other high profile events to mark the occasion. But we all know that we are not living ‘under normal circumstances’.
The point was well made by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in his message to mark the day when he acknowledged that all eyes were on the COVID-19 pandemic, which he described as “an unprecedented wake-up call.” He recognised the “immediate and dreadful” impact of the coronavirus urging everyone to “work together to save lives, ease suffering and lessen the shattering economic and social consequence”. At the same time, he observed that climate disruption was approaching “a point of no return” and a “deep emergency” that long predates the pandemic.
Continue reading “Post pandemic – will it be business as usual?”