Who Pays the Price?: Small Litter to Big Disaster | Bartholomew Jordan | TEDxITS

The Current State of the Environment and Its Impact

• The current state of the environment is far from pristine, with pollution, harmed wildlife, and damaged ecosystems being some of the consequences of littering and neglecting the environment (1m21s).
• The effects of environmental neglect are not limited to the environment itself but also impact communities and the way people live, leading to extreme weather events such as floods, storms, and droughts (1m54s).
• Every small action can have a significant impact, and being mindful of this can help create a better future (2m6s).
• The number 1.5 degrees Celsius is a significant figure, as it represents the Earth's tipping point, or the safe limit for global warming, as stated by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (2m54s).
• The current global temperature is at 1.4 degrees Celsius, which is close to the tipping point, and if exceeded, it can lead to severe consequences such as loss of biodiversity, coral reef damage, and increased risk of heatwaves and wildfires (3m26s).
• The IPCC has been warning about the dangers of climate change since 2021, and despite this, the global temperature continues to rise, with the previous year being the hottest on record (4m22s).
• The speaker, Bartholomew Jordan, emphasizes the importance of individual actions and choices in determining the future of the planet, and how small litter can lead to big disasters (5m0s).
• The current state of the environment is a result of past actions, and it is essential to consider the potential consequences of present actions to create a better future (5m19s).

Indonesia's Waste Problem

• Indonesia is the country that produces the most waste in the world, making the phrase "it's only one plastic" seem insignificant in the grand scheme of things (6m9s).
• The majority of waste in Indonesia comes from food waste, which is ironic given that there are 26 million poor people in the country who cannot afford to eat (6m40s).
• % of waste in Indonesia ends up in landfills, which produce methane gas, a potent greenhouse gas that is 25 times more harmful than carbon dioxide (7m4s).
• Methane gas can also be explosive, as seen in the 2005 Lewi Gajah landfill explosion in Bandung, which killed 157 people and destroyed two villages (7m21s).
• The explosion was one of the deadliest waste-related disasters in the world and highlights the dangers of waste management (7m45s).

Individual Responsibility and the Circle of Control

• The data shows that most waste comes from households, which means that individuals have a significant role to play in reducing waste (8m8s).
• The concept of the "circle of control" suggests that individuals have control over their own consumption patterns, which can have a significant impact on the environment (8m19s).
• However, many people feel hopeless about environmental issues and believe that it is the government's responsibility to solve the problem (8m51s).
• In reality, the government is a reflection of society, and individual voices and actions can influence policy and create change (9m7s).

The Power of Collective Action

• The phrase "your voice matters and your action does matter" emphasizes the importance of individual participation in creating a better future (9m37s).
• By talking about environmental issues and taking small actions, individuals can collectively create a big impact (10m11s).
• The formula "small action x a lot of people = big impact" highlights the potential for collective action to drive positive change (10m11s).
• An individual's lifestyle, consumption patterns, mindset, and understanding of environmental issues can shape their behavior and influence others, starting from their closest circle, including family, friends, and community (10m31s).
• The collective effort of individuals can lead to a significant impact, and when combined, individual efforts can result in a collective success, creating a movement that can inspire others to join (11m20s).
• To create a collective effort, individuals can use their voice to express their concerns, make conscious consumer choices, and apply pressure as consumers, which can be a powerful tool for change (11m49s).
• A collective movement can lead to environmental behavior and can be applied to various causes, as seen in the example of Green Wolfare Indonesia, a movement founded by Naala Amira in 2020 (12m29s).
• Green Wolfare Indonesia has achieved collective success through branding, reputation, and credibility, and has inspired others to join the movement, including the speaker, who was initially unaware of environmental issues but learned and became involved (12m55s).
• The movement has distributed plain bas meal sanitary kits, created climate education booklets, and educated schools, demonstrating that collective action can lead to positive change (13m42s).

Finding Your Role in Environmental Action

• To start taking environmental action, individuals should reflect on what environmental issues are closest to them and what they can do to make a difference, as environmental action is not a one-size-fits-all approach (14m5s).
• Individuals can find their role in environmental action by considering their interests, skills, and fields of study, such as the speaker's background in landscape architecture, which has led them to explore the intersection of landscape design and environmental issues (14m23s).
• By finding their unique role in environmental action, individuals can contribute to creating positive change and inspiring others to join the collective effort (14m59s).
• The idea is that there are solutions to environmental problems, and people from various fields, such as law, policy, business, economics, and design, can contribute to finding these solutions by learning about climate policy, green economy, and circular economy (15m4s).

The Importance of Awareness and Collective Effort

• Small actions can collectively make a significant difference, as illustrated by a scenario where two people working together with 50% effort each can achieve more than one person trying to do everything alone (16m4s).
• Many people are not aware of environmental issues, which is why they do not take action, and awareness is necessary for people to care about these issues (16m34s).

Reframing the Narrative: Saving Ourselves, Not Just the Earth

• The narrative of saving the Earth is not entirely incorrect, but it may not be the most effective way to encourage personal action, as the impact of environmental degradation ultimately affects humans, not the Earth itself (17m21s).
• The definition of a disaster is an event or series of events that threaten and disrupt the lives of communities, which can be simplified to mean causing harm to humans (18m8s).
• Natural disasters, such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, are natural processes, but they become disasters because they affect human populations (18m47s).
• The Earth has the ability to regenerate and heal itself through natural processes, such as ecological succession, but humans do not have this ability (19m18s).
• Ultimately, it is humans who are suffering from the effects of environmental degradation, not the Earth, and this realization is necessary for people to take action to address these issues (19m37s).

Taking Responsibility for Our Future

• The discussion emphasizes the importance of taking responsibility for the well-being of the Earth and its inhabitants, highlighting that humans are in need of help and that it is up to individuals to take action (20m0s).
• The focus is on the human aspect, emphasizing the need to protect the planet for loved ones, including family, friends, and future generations (20m13s).
• The current state of the planet is a result of past actions, but the future is determined by what individuals do in the present moment (20m25s).
• The question of who pays the price for the crisis is answered by acknowledging that humans are the cause of the crisis, but also have the power to do something about it (20m38s).
• Ultimately, the future depends on the actions of individuals, and it is up to each person to decide what they will do to address the crisis (20m48s).