6 minute read
Witnessing the effects of Global Warming in Antarctica by Shantha Jain
Shantha Jain
Shantha Jain lives in San Diego, California along with her husband and three children. She was born and brought up in Chennai, India, where after graduating with degrees in commerce and business administration, she worked at a Citibank for a few years before moving to the US to join her husband. Her interests are hiking and running half marathons for good causes. She also volunteers amongst her community.
After moving to San Diego, I developed a keen interest in hiking around the hills and lakes, running the trails and soon was running half marathons. I felt very much at peace when I was amongst nature and have always been fascinated with wildlife. I have tried to instill the same strong values in my children that are taught to us in Jainism; specially to respect Mother Nature, and to protect it. I work with elementary & middle schools to spread the word about the significance of sustainability and protecting the environment around us.
I consider myself as an avid traveler, a nature lover who loves the mountains, but never expected to visit Antarctica, but when a chance presented itself to join Sir Robert Swan for an expedition into the last continent, I had to go. In 1992, Sir Robert Swan founded the 2041 Foundation, an initiative dedicated to the preservation of Antarctica. He aims to garner enough support to ensure Antarctica remains the last great wilderness on Earth as it is today, well before the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty — which bans mining activities in the region — is up for review in 2048.
The 2041 Foundation (https://2041foundation.org/) is doing a tremendous amount of work in raising awareness about climate change, its impact on Antarctica and its very fragile ecosystem, through various expeditions and scientific activities. The Foundation also aims to inspire definitive action to mitigate climate change and gather support to protect the treaty while bringing attention to Antarctica’s vulnerable situation.
When I first caught a glimpse of Antarctica, I wasn't sure how to describe it, it just left me in wonder and awe, and completely speechless. No writer, author or a poet can adequately describe the beauty of Antarctica, its infinite stillness and solitude.
We started the trip from Ushuaia, Argentina on March 20th, and during the course of the journey it rained quite heavily for an entire night, which is very unusual for Antarctica. Rain in Antarctica, in March, is especially disconcerting because most of the precipitation that Antarctica gets is typically in the form of snow. However, the rise of global temperatures over the past decades has led to occurrence of rains over the continent – a warning sign that can have huge ramifications on the global weather patterns. Recent studies project that such events are more likely in wake of global warming - a serious cause of concern which could hasten the melting of ice sheets and disrupt the ecosystem. We have all heard of the consequences of global warming and the resulting climate change which has caused havoc across the world, but I was witnessing a symptom firsthand and there was a sense of collective reckoning in me.
Sir David Attenborough, the greatest environmentalist of our generation once said "We know what the problems are, and we know how to solve them. All we lack is unified action”.
Unified action is what I am hoping to inspire amongst the next generation by helping spread the word by creating awareness how our actions are going to affect our future generations. We are witnessing a huge rise in temperature around the world, and we are also seeing how weather patterns are changing throughout the world. We collectively need to act now and be responsible for our actions. We need to teach the next generation of kids how our actions are going to impact Antarctica and the world.
As part of our project in Antarctica, the team got into small zodiac boats to visit the massive floating ice packs. Even though temperatures were below freezing, and it was snowing, it was not as cold as I had expected it to be.
The rapid melting of ice has another dramatic, albeit invisible effect. A small shrimp-like creature, Krill, is among the most abundant marine species on the planet, and yet is facing a stark drop in population due to melting of ice. It forms the backbone of the food chain in Antarctica, and its plummeting numbers can have cascading effects on the population of penguins, seals, whales, and the entire ecosystem. Ocean life is very important for our planet and eco-system. Preserving our ocean life is the responsibility of every individual.
The world is already warmer by over 1.2 degree Celsius over pre-industrial levels, and its impacts are already intense. It is this concern that Robert Swan and his ‘Leadership on the edge’ training program is tapping into to inspire action among people including students and professionals, who can spread the word to protect the great wilderness on earth.
Seeing the Icebergs of Antarctica, and the repercussions of climate change, I found the purpose of my trip and my collective experiences so far. I was determined to come back home, spread the word, and raise the knowledge around our personal impact on our planet.
We can all take small steps, like turning vegetarian or eating plant-based food, avoid using plastics, and we can make sure that we recycle or the product meets its complete cycle or is reused. We can keep our community and surroundings clean. We should keep our oceans clean and perform community service to clean up public sites frequently.
We all need to rise up to address this issue - our hope lies with our generation. We need to believe that we are resourceful and privileged to have the life we have now. It is our collective responsibility that we give Earth back to the next generation safely and that we are very mindful about using our resources and what actions we take.
