As society progresses through a seemingly permanent era of industrialization, the earth suffers at the hands of humans’ man-made processes to improve their livelihoods. The Industrial Revolution transformed the globe, rewarding nations with abundant benefits to economy and society alike, but deep under the surface lay a harsh reality of the wounds inflicted by mankind’s venture into a revolutionary period of progress and advancement. These wounds have increasingly grown, proven severe to the planet’s wellbeing, and have led many to worry about the fate of the globe and humans alike.
Earth suffers from a collection of issues in today’s day and age, but none fares far worse than climate change. As humans began to rely further and further on fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas, the byproduct of the burning of these elements released excess carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, creating an imbalance and further pushing earth’s temperature to dangerously high levels. This increased temperature for all regions of the planet completely shifted the climate of the planet to erratic conditions, and this condition was coined the phrase, climate change. Climate change has proven to be detrimental to the globe, creating hotter environments, rising sea levels, and extinction of various animals and plants species. Many activists have risen to bring awareness to the issue, creating a global movement against climate change. Senior Meghana Kunapreddy is an active voice within this movement, and she hopes to raise awareness about climate change among her fellow students through her work.
“I created a podcast in the 9th grade, called the Sustainabilidate, when a lot of people were posting Instagram infographics about different social issues,” said Kunapareddy. “I felt like a lot of these- especially those related to the environment and climate justice did not do a good job at explaining these issues well, so I created a podcast, marking the beginning of my environmental activism journey.”
Kunapareddy founded the Sustainabilidate with the intention to educate fellow students and youth about the environment, an objective she has continued to achieve today. Each episode provides an in-depth analysis of a certain aspect in the realm of environmental science portrayed through one-on-one interviews with professionals who have had experience in the climate justice movement. Kunapareddy stresses the importance of climate justice education among her peers for the sake of the planet.
“Being educated on climate injustice-especially in Texas is extremely important since this is a topic not incorporated into the curriculum,” said Kunapareddy. “I have faced a lot of backlash for my activism in Texas, my ideas being shut down in settings such as the Texas Capitol and rural communities to promote these movements.”
In addition to her podcast, Kunapareddy provides climate justice education to students, in hopes of spreading awareness regarding the planet’s health further. Yet the journey comes with severe challenges, as many officials are adamant against the criticism of a system that has been instilled in society for extremely long periods of time. However, Kunapareddy persists and seeks alternatives such as self-teaching methods. Kunapareddy emphasizes the importance of perseverance in the climate justice movement, hoping her journey will serve as motivation to drive other students to pursue this life of activism.
“Despite my struggles, I have accomplished major achievements throughout my career,” said Kunapareddy. “Had I not continued to pursue environmentalism, I would have never been elected to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and get the opportunity to collaborate with President Biden and Vice President Harris to enforce climate justice education across the country.”
Kunapareddy’s journey is an inspiration for this generation to take a stand against this environmental issue that threatens the planet. She hopes her story will influence other students to take a step and educate themselves on the climate crisis. Climate change is the primary issue for her generation to tackle, and she emphasizes the importance of increasing awareness on the matter in order to produce a steadfast solution in the near future. Likewise, senior and OTHS Environmental Club President Kristine Samuel is determined to bring awareness to the Tompkins community, stressing the impact of the crisis on future generations to come.
“We are the future, and our ability to live sustainably will impact the quality of life we will endure as we enter the real world, and the life our future generations will live as well,” said Samuel.
Check out Kunapreddy’s podcast, the Sustainabilidate on Spotify and the OTHS Environmental Club on Instagram for more information regarding the climate campaign.
