The Australian Wildfires prompted a worldwide response and renewed focus on the climate crisis.
The coronavirus pandemic brought the modern world to a standstill with a global lockdown, ironically affording some benefits to nature with a reduction in emissions and air pollution. Astronaut Drew Morgan, who watched the pandemic take effect from space, marvelled at increased visibility of areas previously masked by airline contrails, demonstrating the positive effects. Nevertheless, it is imperative that this temporary relief does not lull us into a false sense of security – the climate clock is still ticking.
The year began with wildfires engulfing Australia – images of burnt koalas wrapped in bandages plagued social media. Within 48 hours, millions of dollars were raised to help the fight against the natural disaster, as the world came to the realisation that the climate crisis urgently needed to be addressed. However, February brought a world pandemic, and the climate crisis was forgotten – no longer a priority.