Why American Youth Depends on the Paris Agreement

The generation who the Paris Agreement helps most is also the generation with no say in government. As of now, almost every country has signed it. Sadly, the United States of America, one of Earth’s greatest emitters of fossil fuels, is attempting to withdraw from the agreement. In order to understand the significance of The Paris Agreement, we have to know what it states.

What is it? 

According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Paris Agreement aims to reduce and assist developing countries in reducing the amount of emitted greenhouse gasses, limiting global temperatures. This is our global leaders’ response to climate change. 

The U.S. Withdraws

In 2017, President Donald Trump announced that the United States would withdraw from the Paris Agreement because it “disadvantages the United States, to the exclusive benefit of other countries,” as Trump addressed. The United States is still a part of it because the withdrawing process takes three years. It is set to take into effect the day after the country’s election day, and because a country can enter it faster than they can leave it, the United States could re enter in the coming months after they withdraw.

Importance of the Agreement

As one of the most influential countries worldwide, the United States’ decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement could put the future of the planet at stake, and the people who will live to see the beginnings of the crisis taking its true form are Millenials and those in generations Z and Alpha. According to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, “over the coming 50 years, 1 to 3 billion people are projected to be left outside the climate conditions that have served humanity well over the past 6,000 y.” 

This devastating news will affect the future of humanity who will have to bear with these miserable temperatures. 

While not the panacea of climate change, the Paris Agreement will help us see better realities. As a teenager myself, I don’t want to live in a world where a large percentage of the population lives in climates not meant to support our species. 

    

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