TODAY, 50 years ago on April 22, 1970, a 25-year-old graduate student named Denis Hayes organised the first Earth Day. There was no internet, and hence no social media platforms, to put across his message. Yet he was able to mobilise up to 20 million Americans, who took to the streets in different cities demanding a new response to the environmental crises — oil spills, pollution, smog, etc. The next decade saw sweeping legislative changes to tackle environmental problems including updates to the Clean Air Act, creation of the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act and the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Last year, millions of youth were able to spark a similar, yet much bigger, climate movement, uniting people across time zones, cultures and generations as they protested on the streets demanding urgent action to address the escalating ecological emergency.

And just when the momentum for such an action was finally built, exactly half a century later, Covid-19 has elbowed out the demand for climate justice and, for now, upended climate activism that brings people out onto the streets. While this may present a challenge, it is also an opportunity for human beings to reassess their relationship with each other as well as with the planet.

The pandemic came out of the blue, but it is temporary and will hopefully subside. But climate change and its impacts, though unfolding gradually, are here to stay. The health emergency has shown beyond doubt that we are all interconnected, that everyone is impacted, and a collective response (ie global cooperation) is needed to fight it, just like the climate movement. To flatten the curve for both, we have to form a united front.

As we fight the virus it is also time to tackle climate change.

The current, unforeseen health emergency has led to unprecedented disruptions in the economic and social systems — fighting Covid-19 requires focus and financial resources. Because of the similarities between the pandemic and climate change, this may be an opportune moment to advocate for solutions to address both. Both have long been predicted by scientists but neglected by governments, and both demand changes in our behaviour.

Scientists have been warning that if the pledges made in Paris in 2015 to limit the global average temperature below two degrees Celsius are not honoured, and if emissions are not slashed by 2030 and brought to net-zero by 2050, a bleak future awaits us.

Unfortunately, behaviour change in the case of the pandemic has been triggered mainly by people’s immediate fear that the virus can kill them or their loved ones — a concern that they may not associate with climate-induced catastrophes. However, the factors that increase our vulnerability to Covid-19 — dismal healthcare, economic inequities, inadequate housing, increased unemployment — are also responsible for society’s vulnerability to climate change.

And then there is our runaway population, of which nearly 64 per cent is under 30, to contend with. No amount of food we grow and electricity we generate, and no number of hospitals and schools we build or industries we set up, will ever be enough if we cannot do something to stall the population growth rate.

Today more than ever, systemic change is the need of the hour. Because only when systems improve can we expect resilience in areas of health and climate. But these may be the most difficult areas to tackle. The pandemic has made it clear that both Covid-19 and climate change have roots in the world’s economic model which pursues growth at the expense of the environment. It means that governments will have to wisen up, disentangle themselves from the clutches of corporations, see the flaws of a capitalist society and take measures rooted in justice and fairness, not wealth and influence.

The virus has helped lay bare just how much human activity affects our environment. As industrial activity and traffic is reduced, pollution has plummeted. People have been posting photos of birds and wild animals, of blue skies and far-off mountain peaks that can be seen due to a reduction in air pollution. Then there are heartwarming stories of the new ways in which young people have come together to volunteer their time and help the state with the gargantuan task ahead. Adept at technology, many have suggest novel ways of raising donations, designed apps for the disbursement of rations to the poor, and have even helped in contact tracing (the process of identifying those who may have come into contact with an infected person) and locating Covid-19 hotspots. Others have designed medical equipment using 3D printing and helped organise blood collection stations.

But this lockdown has also forced us to slow down and provided us with the perfect opportunity to reflect on the post-virus possibilities to build a better, more just world, as imagined by the Earth Day protesters 50 years ago.

The writer is a freelance journalist based in Karachi.

Published in Dawn, April 22nd, 2020