Building a sustainable planet
Posted on : July 28th 2021
Author : Sudhakaran Jampala
A new joint research published in the journal Science of the Total Environment [1] suggests a potential mechanism via which climate change could have contributed directly to the emergence of the devastating virus of SARS-CoV-2.
A key finding of the research is that as climate change altered habitats dramatically, species of bats left some areas, subsequently moving into others. This meant that their viruses moved with them, and the area shifts most likely facilitated new interactions between various animals and bat viruses. Thus, potentially causing harmful viruses to evolve or be transmitted.
It is clear that climate change threatens us all. The pathways through which it impacts us may not be apparent at first sight, but climate change is working in many insidious ways to undermine the lives of humans and other species on this planet. The time to practice sustainability is now.
Sustainability is the wisdom and the capacity to meet the current needs of humanity without leaving the younger and future generations poorer, socially and environmentally, for it. There is still a long way to go in terms of achieving the Paris Climate Change Agreement for limiting global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius. But showing laxity now will cost humanity dear, like how the latest SARS-CoV-2 research shows.
If we do not fight climate change effectively and collectively, we will compromise humanity’s resilience, causing loss of economic growth and jobs too in the process. The concept of sustainable use of natural resources and protection of our environment needs to be systematically inculcated at all levels of human society.
Corporate entities, along with governments, need to clearly take stock of the 2015 United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It takes an integrated approach towards planetary needs and humanity’s prosperity. The 2030 Agenda’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) includes environmental dimensions too. Without a stable environment, there is no lasting prosperity and security.
That is why we at SPi Global are committed to an environmentally sustainable planet. We owe it to our future generations!
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[1] Beyer, R.M. et al: ‘Shifts in global bat diversity suggest a possible role of climate change in the emergence of SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2.’ Science of the Total Environment, Feb 2021. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145413
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