Recently, Bill Gates stunned specialists (and non-specialists) working on climate issues by publishing a manifesto in which he stated that the climate crisis is a less urgent issue than others facing humanity, such as disease and poverty. It was rather a tragic irony that his publication coincided with Hurricane “Melissa,” the strongest ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean, which severely struck Jamaica, Cuba, and Haiti – an extreme phenomenon “fed” by this supposedly… non-urgent climate crisis. Despite the justified reactions, Gates “added fuel to the fire” by saying in a subsequent interview that “I would allow global temperature to rise by 0.1°C if it meant eliminating malaria.”

The climate crisis magnifies every hardship

It is precisely this misunderstanding — whether it comes from “famous” lips like Gates’s or from anyone else — regarding the separation of the issue of climate change from all other hardships the planet faces, that Canadian professor of Atmospheric Science at Texas Tech University in the US, Katharine Hayhoe, tries to clear up. Dr. Hayhoe, who has previously been included both in Time magazine’s list of the most influential people in the world and in Fortune magazine’s list of the greatest leaders, who has been awarded many times and has received the title of UN “Champion of the Earth” in science, maintains that there is no major problem facing humanity that is not connected to the climate crisis. On the contrary, as she says, the climate crisis magnifies every hardship: poverty, migration, lack of resources, diseases (including malaria, which Gates is fighting). She also argues that proper communication of the huge issue of the climate crisis is just as important as the problem itself — and this becomes abundantly clear whenever she speaks, as we observed during the interview she granted us.

For Professor Hayhoe has a simple yet meaningful and encouraging way of explaining what is at stake with climate change and motivating each person to take action. In her view, conferences such as the COP summits are certainly not a deus ex machina that will magically eliminate the climate crisis. “These days, the 30th UN Climate Conference (COP30) is concluding. After 30 COPs, we now understand that we never have sufficient results from such conferences, but we do climb at least one step above where we previously stood in confronting climate change. This particular COP is considered a conference of implementing previous commitments. On the one hand, we already know that it is now a matter of years before the limit of a 1.5°C increase in average global temperature compared to pre-industrial levels — the limit set by the Paris Agreement ten years ago — is exceeded. On the other hand, we also know that through the actions taken so far, we have reduced the future temperature increase compared to what it would be with no action at all. Ten years ago, when the Paris Agreement was signed, projections spoke of an increase of 4 to 5°C above pre-industrial levels. But with the national decisions of countries and with expanded transitions to green energy, we are now heading toward a future with an increase of 2.3–2.8°C.”

Cities should participate in COP

But is even this containment of warming enough to save us? “It is clear, according to science, that every increase — even by one-tenth of a degree Celsius — has an impact on the planet. Practically, it means that more and more people will be exposed to danger. It is also clear to me that anyone who believes that processes involving only leaders and countries could solve 100% of the climate crisis is probably very optimistic. In reality, cities act much faster and more effectively than countries, but the authorities of different cities are not officially included in COP summits, even though many of them request it. Also outside COP and its official decision-making are universities and organizations fighting climate change, which have important things to say about what should be done. Therefore, COPs cannot be sufficient for taking all the decisions needed to meet the Paris goals.”

Given what is done and what ultimately is not done at the level of countries and leadership, Dr. Hayhoe states: “I am not optimistic. But I do maintain hope, which stems not from decision-makers but from societies. And I firmly believe that each of us must believe that we can do something. Because if we all lose hope, if we consider the game completely lost, we will simply sink into despair on our couches. That is also why, in surveys in many countries, the climate crisis is not at the top of the issues that citizens mention, even though everyone is worried about it — because the population does not realize that climate change will affect not only future generations but each of us here and now. They do not realize that expensive groceries at the supermarket, skyrocketing energy bills, and the more frequent appearance of many diseases are already connected to climate change, which will make things even worse in the future.”

We can all take action

We can all — each and every one of us — take action, according to the professor. As she emphasizes, all the major social changes in the past were brought about by ordinary people who spoke up, who united their voices for a common purpose. “A social revolution is needed to confront climate change — and ultimately not to save the planet, since it will continue to orbit the Sun even after we are gone, likely sooner than necessary because of our own mistakes. Everyone must understand that we need a social revolution to save ourselves, to ensure a better future for ourselves and our children. Climate change is the obstacle standing between us and our best possible future. So speak — speak at your workplace, in your neighborhood, among your friends, at your children’s school. Communicate the issue of the climate crisis, discuss collectively what you can do, take action, and you will become the catalyst for change. Because, as climate activist Greta Thunberg rightly says, ‘What we need more than hope is action, because when we act, hope is all around us.’”