The Earth’s silver lining

Thursday, 23 April 2020 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Yesterday marked World Earth Day, and what a couple of days and weeks it’s been for planet Earth. While COVID-19 has been taking lives and the resultant countrywide lockdowns have debilitated the global economy, viral stories of dolphins and swans returning to the canals of Venice to elephants wandering into a village in China and getting drunk on corn wine have given people some semblance of hope.

Now of course, all those stories mentioned above have been debunked as patently untrue. Which should be a lesson to many on verifying news items before sharing them – but that’s a conversation for another day. This editorial is rather on the reasons why such news items, despite being fabricated, speak towards a reality that not so long ago seemed nigh on impossible. Indeed, while it may not be dolphins in canals, there were sightings of water buffalo on the Rajagiriya flyover, while there have been anecdotal reports of cleaner air and more stars visible in the sky.

It’s easy to forget that just months ago the world was up in arms about the systematic destruction of the Amazon rainforest and wildfires in Australia. While on the other side of the climate change divide, activist Greta Thunberg drew fire from many quarters – including, notably, the President of the United States – for her uncompromising stance on the need for immediate remedial action.

It’s safe to say that the conversation surrounding climate change has only become more polarised, even as deaths resulting from it have mounted globally. But as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, humanity has seemingly been given a second chance to get things right. As all reports point to essentially a reset of the global economy, it would make sense to make use of this opportunity to reset it in a more sustainable manner.

Marking Earth Day, UN chief Antonio Guterres Guterres called on all governments to use their fiscal firepower not to simply rescue businesses, but to promote “green jobs and sustainable growth”. This is no longer an unrealistic ambition.

In Sri Lanka alone unemployment rates are expected to soar in the coming months, with many SMEs likely forced to shut up shop. Sri Lanka’s textile and apparel industry, which accounts for roughly a third of the country’s exports, is going to be one of the worst hit. Another is going to be the tourism sector.

These workers will need new jobs, and an introduction of new segments to the economy – segments which focus on sustainability – could be just the panacea Sri Lanka needs, and one that could possibly set the country ahead of its neighbours, at a time when the entire world is suffering in equal measure. In terms of tourism too, a focus on sustainability and green production practices would undoubtedly help protect Sri Lanka’s abundance of natural attractions.

In the end, the perceived compromises needed to pursue a green economy, that just a few months were deemed unpalatable, are now being forced upon us whether we like it or not. It’s time to make sure that these short-term losses end in long-term gains.