Cup your hands together and take a look at what you’re holding. You may not see anything, but I promise you, something is there. If you look a little closer, you’ll see that you, along with every other young person in our country, has been given the greatest opportunity in all of human history.
It’s an opportunity so ripe for the taking that we should all be scrambling to be the first ones to grab it before someone else does. The opportunity I’m referring to is us embracing renewable energy as our source of power and helping other countries around the world do the exact same. No other singular action would create as much positive change in the world as that.
This goes far beyond just switching out a coal-fired power plant for some wind turbines. The benefits of such a transition would be far-reaching and long-lasting, something our great-great grandchildren will be able to appreciate. We have the opportunity to cement our legacy as the generation who stood together, side by side, and fought for a better future for all life on planet Earth.
I apologize if I sound over-ambitious, so allow me to be even more so. Many of the world’s problems can be solved, at least in part, by a global switch to renewable energy. Tens of millions of jobs would be created over the years, hundreds of millions of people would be lifted out of poverty as they gain access to reliable electricity and trillions of dollars would be saved by the world’s governments.
We could finally provide a decent standard of living for the poorest among us, ensuring that every single person in the world, no matter their race, ethnicity or economic status, will sleep in comfort and safety at night.
Climate change is the most profound challenge humanity has ever faced, but we can conquer it. Not only that, but we can blow it out of the water and come out on the other side infinitely better than how we came in. The only thing stopping us from reaching that side, however, is us.
We have to work for that change before it can take effect. The first few steps are always the most difficult, but when the stakes are as high as they are right now, then it’s necessary they be made.
We owe it to the rest of the world to clean up the mess we dumped on their front porch, and 50 years from now, they will remember if we were sincere in our efforts or not.
Furthermore, we are the generation that is slowly taking charge of the work force. In only a decade or two, most of our country’s decisions will be up to us, and if we don’t start preparing to make those decisions now, then our problems just become more impossible to fix. Bold and decisive action is what’s required of us at this very moment. So let’s be bold and brave beyond our years and show the world that we’re committed to making it a better place to live.
Cup your hands together and take another look at what you’re holding. You may see something now that wasn’t there before. If you look a little closer, you’ll see that it’s the power to create change, to help others, to save lives.
It’s the ability to be a part of something far greater than yourself, something that will live on for thousands of years to come. This is our opportunity to change the world. As Americans, we are more capable than anyone else to create this change, and we must do it.
Our quality of life as adults depends on it. The quality of life of hundreds of millions of other people around the world depends on it. All life on Earth depends on it.
There is no doubt in my mind that we can do it, but we must do it as one. For we all struggle together, but only together, will we all struggle less.
