Certain goals around the transformation of the world have always been there. 

Changing energy infrastructure that powers our civilization and replacing fossil fuels with carbon-free sources, relying fully on solar based energy, stopping the use of plastic. But how many of us can whole-heartedly say they do the absolute most to prevent using plastic. Aka. not buying your favourite cookies… or the latest album tracks because they’ve got plastic packaging. Everyone’s heard of the ‘bystander effect’ in bullying but how often do we associate this concept with the goal of reducing global warming?

Bystander- effect : “the influence of the presence of others on a person’s willingness to help someone in need. Research has shown that, even in an emergency, a bystander is less likely to extend help when he or she is in the real or imagined presence of others than when he or she is alone.”

Carrying out a test for myself, I asked 20 people of all different ages from students to grandparents whether or not they think other people are doing more than they were to help climate change. 80% of them answered yes. Well, you would think that, obviously there’s always someone doing things better than you. However, the bystander effect is when you would expect others to extend themselves, doing more good for the world, rather than you. Everyone will be thinking the same. And that is where the problem lies. Nobody would be the one to act, leaving them to others. Climate change strikes… you’d think other people can go to this. Ocean cleaning… you’d think other people can do this. If a plastic wrapping accidentally dropped out of the car and flew 20 meters across the park and you wonder whether to chase and dispose of it… no other people can do it. The problem is that everyone is waiting for others to do it.

Although even if humans manage to eliminate emissions by 2050, a difficult but reachable goal, the average temperature will stop increasing when emissions are cut, but cooling will take thousands of years as greenhouse gases slowly vanish from the atmosphere. And whilst the heat will stop getting worse, sea levels will continue rising for centuries as polar ice melts in a warmer world. 2021 July, was to be the hottest month ever recorded, but likely to be one of the coolest Julys planet earth will face in the future years if we don’t intervene now.