The impacts of climate change have directly affected me with my recent move to Sydney and the weather that the city was subjected to earlier in 2022, and is continuing to be subjected to. Unfortunately as a consequence of the turbulent weather, the roofing on my house failed and my house flooded which posed an extensive financial burden on myself and my housemates as many of our household items were ruined as a result.
Sydney, NSW
My name is Laurence Young and I am an actor living in Sydney. I was born in the north east of England and moved to Australia with my family as a child where I grew up in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs. I have always enjoyed making the most of Victoria’s natural beauty as well as other natural resources throughout Australia. My work as an actor means that I am travelling around Australia a lot which has given me great insight into how diverse Australia is in terms of the environment. I recently travelled to the Northern Territory which really opened my eyes to how amazing Australia is in terms of its environment and how deeply connected the land is to the indigenous culture of our first nations people. It has also given me a unique perspective into how climate change will directly and perhaps disproportionately impact the connection that first nations people have with their land as much of their culture is linked to the land which stands to be negatively affected by the impact of our contemporary western way of life.
On a personal level, the impacts of climate change have directly affected me with my recent move to Sydney and the weather that the city was subjected to earlier in 2022, and is continuing to be subjected to. Unfortunately as a consequence of the turbulent weather, the roofing on my house failed and my house flooded which posed an extensive financial burden on myself and my housemates as many of our household items were ruined as a result. I believe that such events are only likely to worsen in severity and increase in frequency as the impacts of climate change continue to be felt in Australia.
I am also concerned with the world in which future generations stand to inherit as a consequence of the worsening state of our environment due to the impact of climate change. As someone who eventually wants to start a family, I feel a level of anxiety about the issues that my children and their children will be compelled to deal with. This has instilled a sense of responsibility within myself regarding my carbon footprint and the overall impact I am having in terms of reducing the negative impacts of climate change. My hope is that as a nation, greater responsibility is placed on all individuals as well as our public institutions so that more meaningful efforts can be made in reducing climate change and the associated harms that come with it.
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There were species of trees along the Katherine River that all died in unison, and huge areas of native forest perished. It was all because of the heat.
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