I mean, I thought it was clear money & power meant like, lobying ability, buying elected officials that agree with you, etc. because this is what is affecting the grand scheme of things. If this is you, good on ya for making it to the 1% and using your wealth for good!
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There are so many things in our world that make me anxious, so I donāt even want to think how many similar guides I need 
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Who said anything about the 1%? I said ārisen out of poverty.ā Iām talking about the vast number of people between the poverty line and the 1%.
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Climate change also brings benefits. Land that was permafrost becomes farmable. Scientists are getting invaluable information about the past from what melts out of the ice.
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And a lot of lands on Earth will be unfarmable. Sadly the biggest beneficiaries of the changes in the melting of the polar regions will be companies extracting fossil fuels.
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Thatās one of the least working ideas really, when it takes you two hours to come to work by bus and subway, with bike it will take you full day if you even can ride for so long, it kinda sounds like a European idea working only in small towns, I actually like how COVID forced us to a distancing work, energy to run computers is less than what is needed to ride back and forth every day, though thereāre too many bad environmental consequences from this pandemic.
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And ocean levels rise, destroying some cities and changing the way of oceanic life, farming there doesnāt sound like a good idea with how much youāll need to do and spend just to make it real.
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Cape Town isnāt looking forward to becoming 2 islands instead of a Peninsula as sea level rises. Our endemic fynbos species will lose their niche. Canāt go up, or South, to escape heat and drought. We already have a huge area of the country, either Karroo or Northern Cape desperately short of water - and difficult to farm.
On a trivial level - the train from Fish Hoek to Simonās Town, is again today, closed due to sand on the track. Built too close to the sea all those āinnocentā years ago. Canāt move the line inland as bulk services are on the landward side. Next victim will be the coastal road ā¦
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One piece of invaluable information that is coming out of the melting permafrost is the huge amount of methane that is within and under the frozen ground and which is contributing greatly to the greenhouse gases in our atmosphere as the ice melts.
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Working from home is nice is soooo many ways; the world was built for the neurotypicals and extroverts, finally we ND people have escape.
And yeah biking to work is not workable for many, for many reasons logistical and physical, was just tossing out the āsterotypical ideasā.
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With the state of the world, pollution, climate change, biodiversity loss, policies, and oil drilling running rampant. How do you cope? Iām a wildlife student, and I am graduating soon, so the reality of the real world is starting to overwhelm me. I go to class every day, and in every class I hear about so many disheartening situations. I remember coming to school my freshman year, excited and passionate and hopeful. Lately, I am feeling hopeless. It can be difficult feeling like you are one of the only people who cares about these things. Knowing that no matter what you do, it wonāt change.
So as an ecologist, to my fellow nature lovers. What are some positive ways you cope with these feelings? How do you work through it, if you even can?
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@jme I re-opened this older thread and moved your post here. As you will see, you are far from alone, and others have already suggested some coping ideas, especially in the earlier few posts.
This related topic may also be of interest:
https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/climate-change-how-can-we-stop-it-how-much-worse-can-the-problem-get-why-we-need-to-stop-this-now-why-i-care-about-action-and-more/22619
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I hope you will be able to find work that aligns with your principles - so you can feel you are making the difference you care about. Perhaps a few hours a week volunteering in a project you care about. Or hiking companions that make you feel not alone.
Otherwise ā¦ iNat is full of crazy people like you and I!
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Iāve become increasingly pessimistic about the future of humanity in the last few years, not just because of climate change, but political and social developments in general. I do what I can (consumption and mobility choices, donating, voting, etc.), but without a sense of hope that my individual actions will make much of a difference. It is maybe more in the sense of Camusās Sisyphus who keeps rolling that rock up the hill and finds meaning in the task itself even though he knows that the rock will fall back to the bottom again and he will never reach the top.
One major reason iNat has become important to me is because it feels like a way of bearing witness. Someone posted a link to this article a while ago which helped me articulate some of my own thoughts:
https://www.wildculture.com/article/solitary-executioner-clownfrog-wants-you-know-she-exists/1862
Maybe I canāt do much to affect the big problems we are facing today, but I can go out with my camera and document the life thriving in the pavement cracks and empty lots, the plants that are blooming in spite of drought and pollution, the insects that are visiting those plants and simply going about their lives oblivious to all the terrible things happening in the human world. The photos are a way to say: each of these beautiful, amazing organism exists, they matter, theyāre still here.
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I think if we take the longer term view, and I am talking hundreds of thousands to millions of years, for the rest of nature apart from us, the anthropogenic climate change we may experience in the next decades or centuries is likely to be a drop in the ocean for life in general. The Earth has seen vast differences in the component gases of the atmosphere along with ice ages and huge sea level fluctuations. The species most at threat from climate change is Homo sapiens because of our complex society and food production systems
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sometimes it is better to focus on the small, the personal things.
If you bring a casserole to your friend who is struggling to pay rent, you have not solved the housing crisis - but you have made her life better and happier. and you have strengthened the community.
Similarly, if you create biodiversity records, you have not ended the climate crisis. But you have helped some future scientist / archvist / human know more about the world we live in. You have granted yourself a little time contemplating nature, which will support you health.
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Well, maybe. But if she already had enough food stamps to cover the monthās groceries, and recently visited the food bank, food may not have been one of her worries.
To put it another way, what can be given painlessly may not be what is really needed.
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Your post breaks my heart. Please donāt despair! There is so much you can do to help protect and repair the natural world ā maybe in small ways for now but larger and larger as you grow with your profession. Try to find āyour peopleā ā those who are engaged in the work of ecology or wildlife/conservation biology. I have many friends in similar fields who are also natural mentors/teachers, fun to be around, happy to have assistance in the field or lab, and passionate about their work. How to find these people? Look for opportunities for seasonal work or internships with state or national parks and wildlife refuges, or local non-profits doing conservation work. Donāt be afraid to walk in and ask what might be available. Perhaps thereās a faculty member or mentor who can help you make connections?
I find that the best antidote to the 24/7 onslaught of bad news is to be outside with people who share your excitement about the natural world. Cultivate your own passion(s) ā if thereās a particular place or species that interests you, do what you can to learn more. And then become its/their advocate by telling their stories in a compelling way (here is where I put in my plug for resource interpreters and for National Geographic Magazine).
People DO care and yes, things can change even if it takes a long time and several major shocks to the system. I was lucky enough to see the convergence of several forces in the early 1970s that led, in the U.S., to passage of the Wilderness Act, the Wild & Scenic Rivers Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the National Environmental Policy Act. The political and climate environments are more dangerous right now but it ā hopefully ā wonāt last forever.
There is so much good work that people do to protect nature. Many have overcome adversity and challenges so they could keep moving forward towards that goal. Youāve come to the right place: iNaturalist is full of such people. Envision the world that you want and then work to make it happen. Itās lifelong work but youāll find many rewards along the way, Iām sure!
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