Escape to Mars

Mars. It has always been an enigma for mankind. Does life on Mars exist? How similar is it to Earth? Will humans ever get there? In recent times Mars has become synonymous with what people consider a safe haven, away from global warming stricken Earth. People casually joke "Oh well, I'm just going to move to Mars." This may not be too far from reality anymore as the race to Mars is real and talks about colonisation of Mars aren't all mumbo jumbo.

We have been told that Earth is heading towards its "tipping point". A term in climatology which means close to irreversible climate destabilisation. We have already raised global average temperatures by 1C pre-industrial levels. If this is raised by a further 1C, we will face a "hothouse" climate where Earth will continue warming even if all emissions cease. The Paris agreement on climate change made by 194 countries aimed to limit global warming 'well below' 2°C, or 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels if possible. However current efforts are unlikely to meet this target.

Reading reports such as these does make me pessimistic and I too wonder if we are fighting a losing battle and if Earth is hurling towards its inevitable demise. Grim huh?

This is probably one of the reasons why Elon Musk, Boeing and others decided it might be worth looking towards the skies for a way out. First humans on Mars are predicted to reach as early as 2020s. The idea is to start small,  build a base in Mars, learn how to survive and eventually build a self-sustaining community. It won't be easy. With freezing temperatures, radiation and thin atmosphere, humans can definitely not take a stroll in the Martian landscape without heavy spacesuits. But this too is being explored. A concept called "Terraforming of Mars" aims to alter the atmosphere of Mars through planetary engineering so it is more hospitable to humans. I have to admit, this concept does seem a bit far fetched to me and we definitely don't have the technology to do it in 2018.

But guess which place is hospitable to humans? Earth! I have nothing against space exploration. It is one of my key interests and it would be a grand day when we finally land on Mars. However I am hesitant to accept Mars as an escape route. We can make tremendous progress to reverse climate change here on Earth, through the resources we would invest in making a self-sustaining community on Mars. It almost sounds like we are giving up on this home, disregarding it as a sinking ship. Transferring the entire population of Earth to Mars is much, much more far fetched than making concrete efforts to reduce global warming here on Earth. Apart from everyday things that we do - reducing automobile use, eating greener etc. an important role we can play is to elect leaders who have an understanding of the delicate situation we are in and are willing to tackle climate change head on and not just cater to the whims and fancies of the fossil fuel industry and the likes.

So let's keep our eyes on the prize, shall we?

An Easy Switch - A Big Impact

I did not become a regular coffee drinker until recently. I mostly had a cappuccino at work if I felt like it, but for the most part takeaway coffee was usually only once in a while. However this has changed in the last year or so. There's a lovely cafe outside my gym and the smell of freshly roasted beans always lures me in after my workout. And then started my morning ritual of grabbing a coffee after gym and heading to work. For most Australians, having a coffee every day on their commute to work, going for meetings, etc. is extremely common. You'd be guaranteed to see busy commuters holding a cup of coffee from Starbucks or a local coffee shop while walking on George Street every morning.

Australians use 1 billion coffee cups each year. That is a LOT of cups. Is it sustainable? Most definitely not. Are there easy ways to reduce this waste? Most definitely yes.

Reusable coffee cups can be found quite easily in homeware stores around Australia. I prefer the brand KeepCup as their cups are quite high quality and come in various fun colours. But there are many other brands that you could easily choose from. Below are my cute KeepCups. I carry them while going to work, while going shopping (cause you never know when you might crave a coffee), they're pretty much in my handbag all the time.

I am not without fault. There are times when I forget. And that's okay. The important thing is to take the first step towards doing better. My good friend suggested that if you forget your reusable cup, you always have the choice of drinking your coffee inside the cafe in their ceramic cups - and that's always nice and relaxing.

The problem is that most people are aware of reusable cups but still don't think it's important enough to invest in them. There could be several factors responsible for this.

• Unawareness. People don't know the extent to which coffee cups have become a problem. Consider this -they are the second largest contributor to waste after plastic bottles. 

• Miscommunication. People think they are already doing right. Nearly all the takeaway coffee cups have a recyclable sign on it. But which part of the coffee cup is the sign referring to? If the sign is on the lid, it may just be referring to the lid, not the entire cup. Most coffee cups are not recyclable. This is due to the plastic lining inside the paper cup. Recycling rules vary from council to council - so you are better off not using them at all. 

• Just actually not caring. Had to include this cause there is a vast majority of companies and consumers in this category. Most cafes and hotels are well versed with the problem of waste. Despite this I find they are not making any effort whatsoever to reduce this. For instance, I stayed at a hotel in Melbourne earlier this year. When we ordered some coffees to our room, all of them came in takeaway cups. This made no sense to me as they could have easily used the ceramic cups when delivering coffees to rooms? Oh well. I left this feedback while checking out. I will have to stay there again to see if they've made any changes.

Okay so they're not all bad. I was heartened to see this movement pick up in Australia - https://www.responsiblecafes.org/. Basically participating cafes are offering discounts to consumers who bring their own reusable cups. How awesome is that! We need more measures like this to encourage behaviour change. You can look up if your cafe is participating through their map https://www.responsiblecafes.org/map-2/. You're instantly saving money AND doing your bit for the environment. Go you!