As I am making my way towards the half-way mark of this expedition, I am truly beginning to grasp the importance of this voyage. The voyagers, the ship’s crew and the staff have all helped me to open my eyes to our current global situation. This experience has not only altered my outlook on climate change, it has helped me to look at my entire world under a different light.
After visiting a small community at the base of one of Greenland’s incredible snow covered mountains, I realized how unfair global warming is. The entire community amounts to about eighty of the most inspiring people I have ever met. They are not in any way materialistic, nor do they have the opportunity to be. The few toys and games that the children have are greatly appreciated, and the three computers they have in their school are eagerly shared. This small community has a nearly non-existent carbon footprint compared to mine and those of all Canadians. This is the part that is so unfair; they and all other small communities in Greenland will be the first and hardest hit by climate change if we do not do something about it.
Playing with the kids and getting to understand their way of life made me passionate about changing the fate of our earth. It is time for all of us, especially us Canadians, to step up to the plate, look outside of our suburban bubbles and save the North where these people have been living for ages!