Teacher’s Summary
Grade: A
This reflection poignantly captures the environmental concerns of a 15-year-old Canadian student. The narrative is compelling, blending personal observations with broader environmental issues. The student’s call to action is heartfelt and thought-provoking, encouraging readers to consider their impact on the planet. The essay demonstrates a strong understanding of environmental challenges and the importance of collective action. Minor improvements in structure and additional specific examples could enhance the narrative further. Overall, it is an engaging and insightful piece that effectively conveys the urgency of environmental preservation.
A Canadian Teen’s Reflection on Human Impact and Environmental Concerns
Sometimes, when I look at the news or think about the future of our planet, I feel a deep sadness. It’s like this heavy weight settles on my heart, and I wonder if there’s any hope left. I see the faces of world leaders and big company CEOs on TV, and they often seem so… blank. Like they don’t really care about what’s happening to our world. All that’s left is this ache, this worry about what we’re doing to our planet. And I can’t help but ask… why?
We learn in school about how the Earth formed, about evolution and ecosystems. It’s like this amazing, intricate system that’s been working for billions of years. But now, in just a couple of centuries, we humans have messed it up so badly. We’re always wanting more – more stuff, more money, more resources. It’s like we’ve forgotten how to care about anything else.
I look around my hometown in Montreal, and I see how much we consume, how much waste we produce. Even though we have recycling programs and people talk about being “green,” it often feels like it’s not enough. We’re all part of this system that’s hurting our planet, even when we don’t mean to be.
Sometimes I wonder about the future – my future, and the future of kids who aren’t even born yet. Adults are always talking about making a better world for the next generation, but are we really? By the time I’m grown up, will there be any wild forests left in Canada? Will the polar bears in our Arctic have any ice to live on? It feels like we’re working so hard to give the next generation all these… things, but what about giving them a healthy planet to live on?
I know it’s hard for people to accept, but we humans… we’re not as smart as we think we are. At least, not when it comes to taking care of our planet. We can send rockets to Mars, but we can’t figure out how to stop destroying our own home. It’s a hard truth to swallow, but I think we need to face it.
I try to enjoy my life – hanging out with friends, playing hockey, doing normal teen stuff. But there’s always this nagging thought in the back of my mind. What if we’re running out of time? What if the damage we’re doing to nature is going to come back and hit us hard, in ways we can’t even imagine?
I don’t want to be all doom and gloom. I know that might make people not want to listen. But I also don’t think we can just ignore what’s happening. The clock is ticking, and it feels like we’re just watching it, not doing anything.
So, what can we do? I try to do my part – I’m part of my school’s environmental club, I bug my parents about recycling and using less plastic. But it often feels so small compared to the big problems we’re facing.
I guess what I’m trying to say is… we need to wake up. All of us, not just teenagers like me. We need to really think about what we’re doing to our planet, and start making big changes. Not just talking about it, but actually doing something. Because if we don’t, I’m scared that by the time we realize how bad things are, it’ll be too late to fix it.
I don’t have all the answers. I’m just a 15-year-old kid from Canada. But I know that we can’t keep going the way we are. We need to change, and we need to do it now. Because this is the only planet we have, and we’re all in this together.
Citations:
1.Crutzen, Paul J., and Eugene F. Stoermer. “The Anthropocene.” International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) Newsletter, vol. 41, 2000, pp. 17-18.
2.Steffen, Will, et al. “The trajectory of the Anthropocene: The Great Acceleration.” The Anthropocene Review, vol. 2, no. 1, 2015, pp. 81-98.
3.Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/
4. United Nations. “Youth and the Environment.” United Nations. https://www.un.org/development/desa/youth-and-the-environment.html
5. Government of Canada. “Canada’s Actions on Climate Change.” Government of Canada. https://www.canada.ca/en/services/environment/weather/climatechange.html