Sunshine Project was started on the premise that humans should understand that the environment must be treated with deep respect if we have any hope of surviving as a species.  We live at a time in history that is unique. For the first time in the Earth’s history (which stretches back 4.5 billion years), a living species is single-handedly altering the climate. The degree of change or whether the change is irreversible depends solely on our actions.

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The Earth is not only our home, it is our protector. Selectively, the Earth’s atmosphere lets through life-giving light radiation whilst the ozone layer, which makes our sky its wonderful blue colour, keeps the nasty high-frequency radiation out. The Earth’s spinning iron core, which generates a magnetic shield, gives us an extra layer of protection against the sun’s high-frequency radiation.

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Meanwhile, the Earth is blessed with being in the goldilocks zone from the sun and has lots of water thanks to the fortuitous bombardment by water-bearing asteroids in its early development. We have a moon to stabilize the Earth’s orbit around the sun and we have Jupiter to protect us from meteors and asteroids that would have already wiped us out.

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Finally, we have an atmosphere that not only provides us with life-giving oxygen, but is configured to trap just the right amount of heat for our survival. As a species, we are altering this configuration. Because of human impact, global greenhouse gas emissions are way too high, mainly because of the use of fossil fuels. These emissions are trapping more heat, preventing that heat from escaping into space. Like a kettle, the system is getting agitated with increased heat energy. We are heading for a minimum of 2°C warming. It inevitably means more frequent and more severe natural disasters that are going to wreak havoc at a scale never experienced before. The chance of life surviving on earth is a billion-to-one because the universe is an extremely violent place.

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Unfortunately, our consumerism-based culture is based on the proposition that the environment is here to serve us. This is what has got us into this mess. The Earth is now sending out messages that this approach won’t be tolerated indefinitely. It is time for the Western ethos to pivot from the environment being there to serve us to an understanding that we are all a part of the Natural World, and therefore need to live in a way that conserves nature and the sustainable use of natural resources. This means living in harmony with the environment.

 

Additionally, environmental issues are starting to impact communities. Sunshine Project seeks to support the environment and communities to adapt to and build resilience to the impacts of climate change, in particular the most vulnerable groups disproportionately impacted.