This weekend, while roaming YouTube, I stumbled upon Jubilee’s new video, “Do All Climate Change Skeptics Think the Same?”  I was interested in understanding what made some people refuse to believe the facts that scientists have presented for years or even refuse to see the effects of climate change that we witness daily.  As I expected, many of the skeptics were older, however, even the younger ones all believed (to some degree) that environmental activists were blowing the changes in temperature, the extinction of animals, and the destruction of the environment, way out of proportion.   

I recommend watching the video, however, if you end up being swayed by these skeptics, or happen to know someone that would fit right in with them, don’t worry.  I am here to provide a quick reminder about the truly devastating impact of climate change, from 30 years in the future to 500.   

 2050 (30 years)

In 30 years, we will all be just under 50 years old, probably have a family, a stable job, a relatively normal middle-aged life.  However, the globe will become increasingly unstable with a rise in temperature and changes in the amount of rainfall. The image below depicts how cities could move south in terms of their climate.  

 

 While cities in America will get progressively warmer, this increase will come at different rates.  The more northern parts are increasing temperatures faster than the southern ones, and cities in the eastern US and upper midwest are changing the climate faster than those in the West.  

One might be thinking, “So what?  No more snow days? Whatever. Warmer weather means a better reason to hit the beach right?”

One is wrong.

An increase in heat and a change in rainfall will significantly alter crop production, especially affecting countries that rely on agriculture to support their economy.  More plants will dry out, leading to an increase in wildfires. Already there is a link between the wildfires in Australia and California and climate change. Sea levels will rise and, in turn, make many places unsafe or uninhabitable.  According to the World Bank, as many as 140 million people could be displaced by 2050 due to high water levels. 

So yeah, unless you want to uproot your entire life as a 50-year-old to move inland, pay attention to climate change. 

2100 (80 years)

2100.  Unless you are continuously eating your greens and exercising daily, you will probably be dead.  However, that doesn’t mean that the welfare of our globe is not important, not our responsibility to solve.  The trends from 2050 will continue to rise. Temperatures will continue to increase, causing extreme heat days (which usually happen once every 20 years) to occur every few years.  Oceans would be an average of 3 feet higher by 2010. The world’s coastlines will be unrecognizable. This could displace over 700 million people. This does not even include the loss in animal habitat that will lead to mass extinctions all over the globe.  

So if all else fails, think of the poor polar bears and act to improve your life for the better.  

 

2520 (500 years)

The sad truth is that humanity will not survive until 500 years unless major changes take place. 

About 500 years ago, the world was in the Little Ice Age, a period between about 1300 and 1870 during which Europe and North America were subjected to much colder winters than during the 20th century.  Now, 500 years in the future, conditions could not be more opposite.  

 

Temperatures will be soaring high, and according to some sources, sea levels could rise by as much as 26 feet by the year 2300.  

 

 

500 years ago, there was the Age of Discovery, where explorers like Columbus traveled uncharted territory.  Again, this is extremely different from conditions 500 years from now. If we continue increasing the population of the Earth as we have been over the past decade or so, 500 years from now there will only be enough room on Earth’s surface for everyone to only stand up straight.  

 

Nevertheless, all of these statistics do not take into account the advances in technology that are bound to happen.  If we work together, we humans will be able to pull our sh*t together, hopefully decreasing these trends to be able to survive not just the next 500 years but the next 500 million.  But we must start now. Each person needs to do what they can to reduce their carbon footprint, limit pollution, and stop the destruction of nature. No matter what the skeptics say, climate change is real.  From daily actions to national legislature to global movements, this to be at the forefront of our minds.  

 

Sources 

https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2018/11/30/18117953/climate-change-maps-cities-2050 

https://phys.org/news/2019-10-world.html 

https://www.businessinsider.com/neil-degrasse-tyson-describes-world-500-years-future-2017-6

https://www.businessinsider.com/paris-climate-change-limits-100-years-2017-6

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I99Fqj_TBKU

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/01/sea-level-rise-may-not-become-catastrophic-until-after-2100/579478/

https://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/earth/geology/earth-500-years.htm

https://qz.com/is/the-world-in-50-years/themes/ 

 

The People’s Temple. The Manson Family. Children of God. Heaven’s Gate. All of these infamous cults pale in comparison to the most nefarious of them all.

Cross Country.

As a member of this group since seventh grade, I have learned the ins and outs of navigating through impossible workouts, demanding coaches, and several different types of members. Doing cross country is the number one piece of advice I would give to anyone who wants to make lasting friendships, develop their focus and determination, and find pride in one’s accomplishments. So, if you are looking to join our ranks, I highly recommend! But before you begin your journey, you must understand who you are dealing with.

Here are the five different types of high school cross country runners you will meet:

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The All-Star

The All-Star. One of the best on the team. And for good reason. This person devotes their life to running. She takes the term “24/7 athlete” that the coach preaches to heart. The All-Star is gluten-free, dairy-free, and sugar-free, all by choice. She has zero free time, and her social life consists of talkative recovery runs with friends that struggle to keep up. However, her extreme dedication and willpower pay off. She is the team’s inspiration (and the coach’s favorite) and without her, there would be no one to set the pace for the difficult workouts.

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The Slackers

Now, this teammate is on the opposite end of the spectrum. Her involvement is a direct result of her parents wanting her to be involved in really anything. Cross-country seemed like an easy choice because it is a no-cut sport. However, it is a shocking reality to these girls on their first day when they realize they can’t just B.S. their way through this activity. Nope. There is no walking in this sport. There are no “breaks.” Therefore, it is the sad truth that either these girls quit for an easier sport or miraculously come down with some sort of ailment that takes them out of the rest of the season. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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The Cheerleaders

These are some of the best people on the team. The Cheerleaders are the ones that are slow but supportive, always radiating positive energy and great vibes. They are some of the sweetest people you will ever meet, and they always know what to say to get you through a workout. These girls do cross-country as a way to meet people like them, always smiling and there for a good time. They are always incredibly impressed by the runners in the top seven but little do they know that they are the true heart and soul of the team.

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Fast or Flop Freshies

The freshmen are quite interesting. All of these newbies, fresh out of middle school, come in with high expectations on the first day of summer camp. It is a tradition that a group of freshmen tails on the varsity runners during the warmup and cooldown only to be lapped at the part that really matters. It’s okay, they’ll learn. What is more interesting to see is how the freshmen respond to the intense increase in their training. Many (like me) cannot handle it, eventually getting injured. Others, however, “pop-off” with the new high school regimen, all of the sudden coming from nowhere and finding that this sport was made for them.

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The Gear Junkie

This is the girl that is fitted head to toe in Nike, wearing Hokas, and a $200 Garmin watch. You can find her talking about which shoe brand is the best, all of the cool features her new watch has, and how she can’t wait to go back to the Naperville Running Company to buy more $10 socks. Moreover, she is extremely knowledgeable about all of the famous high school, collegiate, and professional runners. The only problem with the Gear Junkie is that, no matter how much she has read about how to run well, it never translates to herself. No matter how hard she tries, she never becomes the ultra runner that she has spent hours stalking on social media.

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No matter what kind of teammate you meet (or which kind you end up becoming) you will learn to love them all. There is something special about being with people at your absolute worst in the middle of a workout or at the best during a runner’s high. The bond that you create with these teammates is something unbreakable, creating a group that is inseparable, very cult-like.