Better late than never for climate resilience

The alarm has long been raised over climate change. Activists and experts alike have been waving red flags for years about the long-term effects of human pollution on our planet. With each passing year, however, those effects have made themselves more and more apparent. This summer has been no different.

Over the past few months, New York City has seen scorching temperatures, torrential downpours leading to flash floods, smoky skies from raging Canadian wildfires and strained energy systems competing with mounting heat. According to recent reporting by The Press, that strain on the electric grid announced itself with particular volume in the form of a sewage spill in nearby Yonkers.

Climate change is making itself known to our community in large ways, but also through less obvious means. Previous reporting by The Press revealed that local gardens are witnessing altered bloom times and growth schedules for their plant collections. Even the increasingly familiar invasive spotted lanternflies dotting the sidewalks are able to spread faster in our warming climate, according to a 2023 report by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

These changes are telling us what those activists and experts have been trying to: something needs to change.

As reported in a NASA FAQ, the impacts of human activity on the Earth’s climate cannot be reversed on the timescale of human beings alive today. But while we might not be able to completely reverse our impacts, we can stop their acceleration and prepare our communities for what comes next. NASA states that the approach to climate change is now one of mitigation and adaptation — reducing our impacts, and learning to live with the ones we have set in motion.

Rising heat, fickle air quality, flooding and other impacts of climate change are not just dangerous for our environment, but for the people in our community. As weak sunlight filtered through wildfire smoke, we were urged to stay indoors, check on vulnerable neighbors, wear masks. As roads were inundated by flash flooding from intense summer storms, we were told not to venture outside unless necessary, to keep in contact with community members in basement apartments. In essence, when the adverse effects of climate change suddenly rear their heads, we are told to look out for ourselves and for our neighbors.

But to many, these measures can feel reactionary. Slapping a band aid on an existing wound. So, how can we look out for ourselves and our neighbors in ways that might help us mitigate and adapt in the longer term?

It may seem anticlimactic, but the answer lies in advocating for the solutions we’ve all likely heard of before. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by turning to green energy. Protecting our oceans, forests and soil so they can act as natural “sinks” for the pollutants we still produce. Planning for the next flood, the next heatwave, and ensuring our infrastructure is ready to take whatever the next hit may be. Reducing heat with greenery. Adopting permeable surfaces to soak up floodwaters. Though climate change is no doubt a global issue requiring federal and global collaboration, NASA and the United Nations Development Programme, among others, remind us that the bulk of adaptation happens at the local scale.

It is up to our community, on the local level, to pay attention to the changes and threats we are seeing, call them out and push for the changes our environment and our neighbors need to remain healthy.