Isla's Letter

To the future,

I am writing because our planet needs help and we are the only ones who can help it. For years, we've been told that something needs to be done and yet nothing really has been done. There is only so much that citizens can do and unfortunately, the lives of everything on Earth is mostly in the hands of the world leaders. Action needs to be taken NOW.

I love Earth. Not only because of the obvious - it's where my family and I live - but because it's absolutely beautiful! Bright, colourful flowers, deliciously juicy fruits and crunchy vegetables, weird and wonderful minibeasts, deep sea wonders... The list goes on! I wholeheartedly believe I am lucky to be a human being living on such an incredible and diverse planet and it deeply saddens me to know that I'm not enjoying it at its full potential because of what our species is doing and refusing to correct. At this rate, future humans will experience even less of our planet until eventually, there's nothing left.

In the future, I hope that sustainability is accessible to all and that the world leaders have finally done what nature has been begging for. A ban of fossil fuels and pesticides (there have been green versions of these for years!), more community gardens and allotments to allow people to grow their own food even if they don't have their own garden, harsher action against litterers, a ban on microplastics and non-recyclable plastics (or at least having the non-recyclable ones repurposed), schemes to teach people how to mend and upcycle clothes/furniture/etc. These are only a small amount of things I hope our future contains, for the benefit of us all.

Although I avoid single-use plastics, eat meat-free, recycle everything I can (and most of what I can't, I use in crafts), turn off and unplug any electronics not in use, and always try to buy local and seasonal produce, this fight can't be won alone. Everyone needs to do their part, no matter how small. World leaders need to take responsibility for not just those they lead, but the planet we all live on.

I hope these words don't go in vain.