My mother and grandmother tell me to keep quiet because the TV news programme is about to start. Usually, the two of them carefully listen to all the stories, but only one attracts my attention – about protesters who have gathered somewhere in the world and are waving, their banners declaring "SAVE THE EARTH!"
Questions fill my head.
How do they think we can save the planet?
Whom do they see as the main culprit?
What can ordinary people do to keep our Earth green and comfortable for living on?
I know that many things we do ourselves every day harm the environment and I know that our environmental awareness is low. However, the negligence of factories and large companies remains a bigger and more serious problem. By focusing on mass production, they are not prioritizing the protection of nature, from which many raw materials are extracted, allowing them to secure enormous profits.
Even though it sounds almost impossible, you must have heard that in some places in the world people cannot see the sun's rays or clear skies every day. For example, in China and Korea, the pollution is so serious that people have to wear face masks every day to be able to breathe at all. They are deprived of the "privilege" of even seeing clear skies above the cities they live in! Therefore, in these ultra-industrialized parts of the world, children do not have the opportunity to experience the joy of playing on a sunny day, since their everyday environment is grey and gloomy.
That is why we should call out all those corporations that do not respect environmental standards and, perhaps, boycott their products or do whatever we can, to shake them up to be fairer to nature and to themselves, because they live on the very same planet, don't they?!
Therefore, I would like to use this opportunity to send a clear message:
Honorable "lofty figures", wearing your expensive suits and sitting around your expensive marble tables... you, who hold your noses high in the air and look away when people tell you that are your corporations keep destroying nature, wildlife, and our living environment...
Why don't you redirect part of your profits to the preservation of planet Earth, more precisely to the environment surrounding your polluting facilities?
Why don't you take better care of the conditions in which your employees work, ensuring that they are sufficiently protected at work?
A smart person once said "our planet suffered more damage during the 20th century than throughout its entire history." So, you have to be not only technologically and economically literate, but also environmentally literate. All of us, adults and children alike! Let the Earth thrive, as beautiful as it is, as the planet that gives us life, as it has done for millions of years so far. Let’s not be the generation that destroyed it... Let's be environmentally literate!!
Lara,16, is a student from Podgorica. She speaks English, German and Spanish, and she started learning Chinese. She is a member of the debate and volunteer club at her school, and she writes for the school newspaper. She likes volunteering and is often involved in community volunteer activities, such as first aid, and helping socially disadvantaged people, especially children. In May 2019 she became a member of 'UNICEF Volunteers - Young Reporters' formed in 2018 within the media literacy campaign 'Let's Choose What We Watch'.
