[Letters] A future painted green

The “defining issue of our era.” This is what United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called climate change.

Without a doubt, global warming is the imminent issue to be addressed. The increase in CO2 emissions and rise of oceans lead to detrimental effects on the world.

Right at this moment, we don’t see the impact of global warming every second, and it can take centuries to fully respond to the crisis, but we should never wait for the worst impact to happen.

Even if the effects of climate change seem to happen slowly, they are actually happening very fast.

Another crisis we are confronting with difficulty is the global financial crisis. The global financial crisis is described as the worst we have experienced since the Great Depression. The connection is that helping the environment helps the economy to prosper as well.

If so, then what color should our future be? Green, the color that promotes nature, growth, hope and health should be the answer.

Green businesses, green jobs, green roofs, green vehicles even a green future are some newly minted phrases as the climate crisis is dramatically rising to its flood mark.

Healthy nature is green when trees are no longer destroyed. In addition, a financially sound economy is green because it is the color of the U.S. banknotes symbolizing wealth and money. Hence, I have several win-win solutions to aim for in order to paint the future green.

First of all, there has to be something done about the dramatic increase in unemployment; thus, new research showed the challenge of climate change presents opportunities for new industries and unemployment.

The so-called “green jobs” will provide new and better jobs dealing with sustainable development for the vulnerable people who need them the most. In the U.S. alone, the environmental industry generated more than 5.3 million jobs.

Germany will have more jobs in the field of environmental technologies than in its entire automotive industry by the year 2020.

With more people working to resolve the climate crisis, this will definitely be more beneficial to the economy.

Furthermore, as Japan’s national brands, green vehicles are mutually beneficial because they reduce almost 90 percent of the smog released into the environment. Hybrid cars are economical compared to normal conventional cars.

Plus, economically, hybrid cars have a potential to become a national product and it increases the competition between car industries to develop better ones. Consumers would want to purchase hybrid cars because they are inexpensive and more fuel-efficient.

To illustrate, the Toyota Prius produced 90 percent less pollutants than comparable non-hybrid cars.

We have a win-win solution right in front of us. Everyone knows how impending the climate crisis is. However, actions speak louder than words. Thus, we should show our concern and sincerity through our deeds.

As much as the world is a global village, we should all cooperate in order to pursue the common goal we have been longing to fulfill. A green future is what we, the citizens of the global community, want both environmentally and economically. Sa Jee-won, CheongShim International Academy