When I went out to walk the dogs this morning, I smelled the smoke in the air from the Canadian wildfires. The kicker here is that I live in Maryland. Research shows that human-caused climate change is increasing the length and severity of wildfires and wildfire seasons in Canada.
Why Science is Elemental matters
There are times when I wonder if the effort to start and grow Science is Elemental will ever make a difference. When I see the effects of climate change, when I smell those effects on a morning dog walk, I know that I have to continue with this effort.
The Canadian Wildfires of 2023 are yet another warning signal that we need to do more, sooner, and better to combat climate change. My hope is that SIE enables more people to understand the importance of the science of our changing planet. If SIE accomplishes its science education mission, then we are a step closer to mitigating and adapting to climate change.
How bad is it?
Bad. Code red indicates unhealthful air quality, using the Air Quality Index system. In code red situations, vulnerable people may be affected. Code purple, one step above, indicates very unhealthful air quality. In Code purple situations, all people may be affected. The worst level is maroon, considered dangerous for all people.
The map in the picture below, from Air Now shows the air quality index as of the morning of June 8th (today) across Canada and the U.S. My state, Maryland, is smack in the middle of the purple zone.
I cut the dog walk short this morning. I honestly don’t know how the purple zone affects dogs, but I knew I didn’t need to spend much time in that haze.
What can you do?
Stay informed. Take all the easy steps you can. I think one of the easiest is drinking from a reuseable water bottle rather than from disposable plastic bottles. In the long run, it’s cheaper for you and better for the planet.
Importantly, don’t feel bad for using the energy you need to use. We all need fuels to do the important things in our lives. Just try to need to use less.
From the perspective of SIE, find a way to ensure that your kids learn the science they need, we all need, to understand our planet.
