Exist vs Evolve – Melba Pría

It is the natural course of the human race to develop and improve the standard by which we live. Over the
course of mankind individual humans have been replaced by societies who were in turn replaced by
countries in the endless quest for improvement. In the economical sense of this idea, which most would
argue is of extreme importance, development has manifested itself in industrial and commercial progress.
This natural race for the “best”, has led to the inevitable clash between man and nature. Literature has
repeatedly reminded us that we can’t control the nature but we can choose to evolve with nature. The idea
of harmony of mankind with nature sounds ideal in my head but with the consistent ever-growing
technology along with the quest for the “best”, I think we have lost touch with our environment.

The evolution of earth has been a long and interesting one. The reasons for our long and continual
survival on this planet are many, foremost being the favourable climate. However, unfortunately, now we
are amid a climate shift, it will not be long that earth would no longer be an apt place for our survival and
like the extinct species; we would be lost in the pages of history. Yet, the earth will continue to exist with
or without us.

Mexico is no stranger to the plight of pollution. In 1992, UN declared Mexico City as the world’s most
polluted city. México is located in the high altitude which traps pollution and makes it a victim of poor
ventilation and strong sun isolation. Furthermore, it is a highly developed industrial area including over
78,000 industries and 1,23,000 commercial and service establishments. Mexican author, Carlos Fuentes,
ficticiously renamed the city as "Makesicko City". The pollution level was so drastic back in 1992 that it
led to serious health issues for its population. Together, this cost the economy about $850 million.

We have come a long way since 1992. The government designed to curtail pollution to some extent. One
the most intriguing measure that the government took was the campaign of “one day without car”.
Originally, it was a voluntary initiative to stop using the car one day one week. Eventually, this evolved
into the program “Hoy No Circula”, which shares similarities with the Delhi’s odd-even policy. Under the
ProAire programme, launched in 2011 and running until 2020, contains 89 measures and 116 separate
actions across eight strategy areas, including energy consumption, greening of the municipal transport
fleets, education, green areas and reforestation, capacity building and scientific research. Following these
measures, we were able to combat pollution in an effective way, which reduced our carbon emissions in a
considerable amount allowing us to enjoy better air quality. Thus, we were awarded the C40 City Award
for air quality. A happy ending right? But there are new challenges to overcome. While we haven’t
reached there yet, we are determined to evolve.

Svalbard Global Seed Vault is a secure seed bank on the Norwegian in the remote island of Spitsbergen
near the north pole. This vault started aimed to preserve a wide variety of plant seeds which are mostly
spare produce. It was designed like a deep-freeze refrigerator which would be an insurance against the
loss or damage of food at the time of global crises or a disaster. But due to Global Warming, the melted
water flooded this vault on 22nd May, 2017. The vault is not supposed to be manned but just because we
can’t tap the energy from renewable resources, we have to face the consequences of soaring temperatures.
These red lights are making us question us own “fail-safe”. We not only have to look out for our backups
but also hold fort against the impending results of our own actions. This is not about México or India, this
investment is for the world, and the world which will be the witness of the future.

According to the report of World Health Organization, India has half of the world’s 20 most polluted
cities, mostly due to industrial and vehicular exhaust. (Auto) The smaller towns of India like Gwaliar,
Allahabad and Patna are actually competing to be in the second and third position against Delhi which is
at the 11th position. In 2005, 6.2 lakh deaths were reported due to particulate matter and ozone. In 2010,
the numbers increased by 11% and counting. India is an old country but a young nation. The average age
of India in 2020 will be 29 which implies that more than half of the population would be under 25
compared to the average age of China which will be 47, U.S, 40 and Europe which will be 46.

It is easy to give up on things because life is hard and you can’t change the world, but you can choose a
different story for yourself. You can change your world, your sphere, your personal space and I am here
to encourage you for exactly that. If the youth constitutes the major part of the population then it means
that we don’t lack manpower but determination. This degradation calls for action and support of you all.
We need to realize the power that we can choose between existing and evolving.