"Who are we really fooling by denying climate change?" asks Dia Mirza

As we see a extreme changes in climate conditions, actor, producer, and climate champion Dia Mirza said, "We all need laughter and light-heartedness to get through this time in history but humanity is also facing a lot of challenges right now that we must address. We are witnessing wars, famines, hunger, and natural calamities and there is the ever-present challenge of environmental degradation. I really wonder at times, just who we are fooling by denying climate change and its possible impact on human life. If we don't turn the clock back with mindful action, right this hot minute, the damage will be irreversible. Research says that the threshold for dangerous global warming will likely be crossed between 2027 and 2042 but it could even be sooner."

Dia believes there is a major knowledge gap that distances scientific facts from mass awareness. She adds, "There is so little being written and discussed in mainstream media that there is very little clarity about just what global warming really connotes and how climate change will impact us and the future generations. The sense of urgency we should be feeling is missing and  even a pandemic has not really shifted the awareness needle."

Dia, who is also  UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador and United Nations  Secretary-General Advocate for Sustainable Development, reminds us that extreme weather events and shifting water cycle patterns are making drinking water increasingly inaccessible. She adds, "According to Unicef, around 74 percent of natural disasters between 2001 and 2018 were water-related,  and we are talking about devastating droughts and floods here. Let us not forget that the frequency and intensity of such calamities will increase in the time to come.  Around 450 million children are already living in areas of water vulnerability and do not have enough water to meet their everyday needs. Why we are not concerned about the fact that Asian countries could experience an increase in drought conditions  by the end of this century is baffling."

It is also unfortunate that destructive human behavior is adding to the problem.  Says Dia " Irresponsible production, consumption, and cultivation is diminishing wildlife habitats and also harming coral reefs and diverse marine and coastal ecosystems.  Additionally, a temperature rise beyond 2 degrees Celsius would make it difficult for humanity and biodiversity to survive, and yet, there is no determined, collective effort to address this increasing danger."

Dia emphasizes that switching to clean energy, changing consumption patterns, adopting more sustainable business practices, synergizing at the individual, local, national, and global levels to amplify the need for policy changes and political agendas, would be important steps towards healing the planet and make it inhabitable for the future generations.

She says, "The time to take constructive action was yesterday but we can do something even today to ensure that our shared tomorrow is not poised on a precipice. We must leave behind a cleaner, greener, healthier earth for our children and our time starts now."