Cambridge Matters asks residents of different ages for their views on the environment.
Louisa Niven (29) I don’t worry about climate change, there’s nothing we can do to stop it. I do think we should be doing more to protect wildlife though, I used to work for WWF and we’re not doing enough. People in this country also don’t do enough recycling – in Italy they have penalties for people who don’t recycle, and I think that should happen here too.
James Shires (19) I worry about the future as humans are using too many fossil fuels. The most important thing is to change the public’s attitude towards climate change. Unless we act soon the world could be in a real mess, but with countries like China building more and more power stations something has to happen on a global scale.
Roy Callcut (74) I’ve lived in Cambridge since 1956 and seen a lot of changes to the surrounding countryside. We need to make sure we hold on to our green areas as the city grows. I have an allotment and I try to encourage wildlife. I also don’t like waste. You used to be able to get deposits back for returning bottles and that was a good way to encourage people to be less wasteful.
Jean Ho (40s) To me environment means outdoors, nature. I feel optimistic that although we are having an effect on the climate, nature will keep itself in balance. I do thimnk we need to change our behaviour – with people living longer we are using more resources and we need to conserve more. We can only do so much as individuals though; why are companies still allowed to produce gas-guzzling cars and encourage us to drive them, for example?
Mike Theobald (74) I was a building contracts manager for many years, so the built environment is very important to me – I don’t like to see ugly buildings! One of my daughters is a farmer’s wife, and I am concerned about the future of the British countryside. Small farms find it difficult to make a living from the land and are under pressure to sell out to bigger farms. Hedges get removed to make bigger fields so wildlife isn’t supported and the landscape loses its features. I worry that without small farmers looking after the land the natural environment will become like a desert to our native wildlife.
Annie Fox (85) I worry about climate change and what sort of world my grandchildren will be living in. The drive to recycle and to use energy saving light bulbs and other measures should have been done a long time ago. However, I don’t think it’s too late for us to change our ways if we act now.
Millan (8), Hannah (9), Sea (9), Poppy (9), Natalie (9), Newnham Croft Primary School To us environment means everything – not just plants and animals but us as well. Climate change is making the world hotter because people are using more cars and causing global warming. A lot of bad things will happen if climate change gets worse – it will affect everyone, animals, people and the plants that they rely on for food. Plants that live in cold places will die as it will get too hot for them. The arctic ice will melt and animals like polar bears will not have anywhere to go. Some places will be under the sea. We can all do things to reduce climate change and help the environment. We can walk or cycle to school; use the bus; reduce, reuse and recycle; pick up litter; turn down the heating; use a hot water bottle at night and use energy saving light bulbs.
Our thanks to Newnham Croft Primary School and the Not Quite Over The Hill Club for helping with this article.
Filed under: CM issue 11 (Winter 2007), Climate change, Opinion | Tagged: attitude, cambridge resident, children, Climate change, environment, newnham croft primary school, not quite over the hill club, Opinion
I personally do not think that is is too late for us to change our world. If we commit ourselves to changing the environment. If we do the things that will help protect the environment such as recycling we have a very good chance at reversing the effects of global warming. The only way to do that is to do those things honestly. We can’t just recycle when the issue arises in the news or when there is a reclying drive in the community. We have to do it all the time and we have to do it honestly. If people buy into the fact that recycling will help eminsly then global warming can be stopped.