In my book, Uncommon Courage: an invitation, one of the mini chapters is titled breath in love, breath out hate. It was inspired by a conversation with someone who was sick of being angry all the time.
This week, as fear ripples around the world due to the escalation in Iran, along with all the other chaos going on, it popped into my mind as a way to cope with the overwhelm and terror about our future.
If you’ve meditated you will already know this, but if you haven’t, anytime you feel negative emotions rising – fear, terror, anger, despair, etc – just close your eyes for a minute and breath in love, breath out hate over and over again for one minute.
Do it as often as you need, and if you try it, let me know how it goes? I find it gives me peace.
No question, it’s a really HARD time and unfortunately, the way the world is responding to everything right now, things are not going to get better. Regardless of what happens between Iran and Israel, Russie and Ukraine, Israel and Gaza, the civil war in Sudan, Regime change in Iran, whether the US gets involved or not, and so much more, beyond that, we are also facing both economic and environmental collapse. Sorry, I can’t sugar coat this, it is the time we are now living in.
Can the path be different? Too right it can, but boy we better wake up and fast, otherwise the peace we have known in our lives to this point, will soon be a distant memory.
Let’s have a look at the environmental risks
One of the big stories breaking this week is we will hit the climate threshold by 2028. Essentially, we will have emitted enough carbon dioxide that there is no chance of getting back below 1.5°C of warming, and that’s because CO2 stays in the atmosphere for thousands of years.
The report is saying, to ensure we don’t pass this threshold, we need to reduce our fossil fuel consumption by 80% and I think we can all agree we are not going to do that.
Besides, even if we did do it, the reduction of sulphates in the atmosphere would cause dramatic warming, so either way, it’s a bitter pill to swallow.
Some content to read
- The report – Indicators of Global Climate Change
- Humans to hit critical climate threshold by 2028, study says | AP News
- Three years left to limit warming to 1.5C, top scientists warn
Here’s another interesting piece. Swiss Re, the Zurich-based reinsurance firm, has released a report on the risk of extreme heat, which appears unusual, because it’s not something typically linked with insurers – Insurers Want Businesses to Wake Up to Costs of Extreme Heat – Bloomberg.
Why is it relevant? Firstly: Up to half a million people globally succumb to the effects of extreme heat each year, according to recent scientific research, exceeding the combined impact of floods, earthquakes and hurricanes.
Please note, all heat death numbers are significantly undercounted and often attributed to other factors. So half a million might seem like a lot, but the truth is, the actual number will far exceed this.
Obviously, heat doesn’t just impact us, business is impacted too, which hurts our economy, and that hurts us again, so either way, we are all being impacted by heat.
Examples in the article
- Drought and wildfire – heat waves contributed to dried flammable vegetation and other conditions that helped propel $78.5 billion in insured wildfire losses globally from 2015-2024. A separate figure for the LA fires added up to $45 billion in insured losses
- Extreme heat contributes to subsidence, which causes fissures and cracks in homes, a concern for the property market
- The agricultural industry is very vulnerable, as an example, cows make less milk when stressed by heat. Crops wither and die too
- Data centres (which are growing) rely on water and electricity to stay cool, and can be knocked offline in extreme heat events (which has already happened) and this cost is rarely recognized, because there are many different types of insurance policies and linking it all together has not happened before this report
- The construction industry could face higher medical insurance claims, due to workers being injured or dying on the job. Not in the developing world of course, the workers are often left to fend for themselves
For me, it was a relief to see this issue finally addressed and understood. As the article states: it is important we shine a light on the true cost to human life, our economy, infrastructure, agriculture and the healthcare system. There are many impacts and it’s not good news for any of us.
Because extreme heat is here to stay.
The US and Europe are about to get battered – A potent heat dome will send temperatures into the triple digits | CNN.
And yet, the US still has no federal safety guidelines for outdoor workers, the people who pick our food, build our homes and infrastructure, etc.. – US Labor Advocates Demand Heat Protections for Workers as Planet Warms – Inside Climate News.
Japan has been getting hammered by extreme heat – Japan sweats under extreme heat despite ongoing rainy season – The Japan Times.
Another interesting piece after the Air India crash – extreme heat does have an impact, so if you’re flying in to or out of anywhere in a heatwave, make sure the run way is long – How Is Extreme Heat Affecting Air Travel? – The New York Times.
And please be mindful when booking holidays. Extreme heat is deadly, and if you’re out in it in the middle of the day, it can kill you, but it can also be cumulative. A delivery driver we knew in Thailand was feeling sick for days before he died of heat stroke – Extreme heat is starting to change the way we holiday.
Beyond heat
From heat to floods, China has experienced massive flooding across five provinces – China activates emergency response to flooding in 5 provinces – Chinadaily.com.cn.
Children born today, will have access to 50% less food due to climate impacts. The scientists analysed six crops — maize, soybeans, rice, wheat, cassava and sorghum — in more than 12,000 regions across 54 countries.Together, these crops provide more than two thirds of humanity’s calories. Food shortages, food inflation, famine, all on the table – ‘Like everyone on the planet giving up breakfast’: Calories from food production set to plummet as the world heats up | CNN
Sadly, all the way across to Antarctica, we are only just becoming aware of the impact of climate change in all its forms (increasing temperatures, food change shifts, etc..) and its having an impact. Weddell seals have declined by 54% since 1977, and Antarctic fur seals have declined by 47% – Antarctic seal numbers falling drastically due to melting sea ice, research shows | Sea ice | The Guardian.
Not a surprise to anyone paying attention to the climate crisis, women and children suffer the most – How the climate crisis fuels gender inequality – CNN.com.
But don’t worry America, if you don’t know about it, it’s not happening – How Trump’s assault on science is blinding America to climate change – E&E News by POLITICO.
Anyhoo, I know it’s all pretty bleak – breath in love, breath out hate – but it is the times we are in. When looking for hope, go local.
Get your community together and do something meaningful, whether its taking care of the vulnerable, raising money for those who need it, planting a community garden, heat proofing your community, or teaching skills to young people and addressing the lack of social cohesion we are experiencing. Do this, and you will forget about all the crap you can’t do anything about.
Also, take some inspiration from this below, and get out and protest. Not only will you meet like-minded people, but it actually does make a difference.
Do NOT listen to anyone who says protesting doesn’t work. It works for the soul, and just that’s worth it.
Also, protest for peace. We can’t afford war, we never could, but the environmental cost today is far too high for our world to tolerate. It will send us off a cliff. We must have peace.
Finally, listen to the great Carole Cadwalladr. Not only must we protect our personal data, we need to get local digitally too. Who cares what some random person/troll/Bott is saying? Go local, find your peace there. But don’t abandon these platforms (not yet), and instead use them to raise the importance of the issues we face and mobilize your community.
Favorite memes, cartoons, Tweets, etc…
There was a LOT to choose this week, but I limited myself. And yeah, Biden is the issue. My word, Trump is not looking good.
Distractions abound – there’s a strategy in that. Focus on what’s important my friends.
A favourite from the #NoKings protest. This man is revolting.
Not a nice image to cast your eyes over, but fair?
Liam is correct.
And finally, you will have seen the insects on car windows cartoon that’s been circulating for a while. I found this one very poignant. You too?
My content and my pals
The Sh*t Show was news heavy, and we really looked at the bigger story going on around the world, across all angles of the polycrisis. I found this news that David Ko shared with me really interesting – China Loses Big In Israel-Iran Conflict. The bigger concern, of course, is do we now have all the pillars guaranteeing World War Three?
Have a listen to the show and see what we say about it.
Dig into the news
Plenty more to read, listen to or watch, so do click through to the reads at the image below, and a reminder, this platform has articles going back weeks, so have a scan and read/watch/listen to whatever jumps out at you.
Let me know what caught your attention? Or share with me what has your attention now? There’s a lot going on, which means none of us can cover everything. Besides, it’s always great to get feedback so I know I’m delivering something of value.
Cheers
Andrea
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