Creation Care Mom

It is no secret anymore that climate disasters are intensifying in both frequency and severity. A simple look back over the summer and you see floods, fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, extreme heat, and drought. These events are almost so common now that it isn’t surprising to hear about another one. No region or country is immune. And we all pay the cost.

Some costs are obvious. Flooding kills and displaces. Fire destroys buildings and leads to hazy skies for days to weeks. Visible damage, evacuations, closures, and deaths are clear effects from weather disasters. This is what we hear on the news. Extreme heat is less obvious, but kills many each year either directly or indirectly. As the heat increases, we begin to see damage to our infrastructure through melting and warping. Heat in the ocean is a clear cause of coral reef bleaching.

And yet there are many costs we carry that don’t seem obvious at all. Both Florida and California are known to have a struggling home insurance market. The sheer number and size of disasters means insurance money is being paid out as fast or sometimes even faster than the money comes in. In the new today, California approved a rate increase for Allstate of 34% to attempt to balance their books. But in both state homeowners face the reality that they may not be able to insure their property, and even if they can, it’s going to cost a lot. This problem isn’t state specific. Those are simply the markets already in dire straights. But rest assured, if we don’t slow climate change, it’s likely the home insurance market is on it’s way to collapse.

What about other financial costs? Extreme weather events driven by climate change put an immense amount of extra pressure on our food supply. Crops end up damaged and unharvestable. Reducing the food available for consumption. Increasing prices. This increase is disproportionately felt by those with the lowest incomes. When the worldwide price of corn, wheat, or rice goes up, the poorest can’t afford to eat, those in Africa and southeast Asia. Climate disasters are also dictating where capital investments are going. Companies don’t often build factories in areas prone to flooding or fires, the risk is too high. In fact, lots of businesses are relocating away from disaster prone areas which devastating communities. Climate risks can even impact your stock portfolio, if you’re wealthy enough to invest. Here’s a article if you’re curious.

What about the emotional costs? Climate anxiety is a real problem just beginning to be given attention and study in the academic realms. For those that know, believe, and care about climate change, the news can make us very anxious about where this world is heading. It can make us question whether or not the problem is solvable and if humans are up to the task. I also have found that for some of my peers it is either the reason they aren’t having kids, or the reason they are only going to have 1 or 2 kids instead of large families. It’s one of the reasons I myself weighed when we were considering growing our family. I wondered is it fair to bring him into a world so out of balance that climate disasters could change every part of his future? Will he be able to live in one place or be displaced by climate change? What financial certainty will he have if insurance doesn’t exist? Will he go hungry because extreme weather stressed the food supply? I ended up settling my anxiety by choosing hope. Choosing action. Choosing to write. I believe that my work, and the work of many others can and will change our trajectory so that those worst case scenarios won’t happen.

In the end, I know that the cost of my actions today will be carried by the next generation. That is the difficulty of climate change. It is a slow danger allowing you to take now and pay later. The costs we pay today were locked in by our parents and so the costs our kids will pay will be decided by our actions now. Do not let that discourage you. There is hope in our collective action and our collective voice. Do something today for climate so that you don’t have to tell your kids (or grandkids) “I’m sorry” later.