JOSEPHINE KALBFLEISCH
A chalkboard at the Boston University Sustainability Festival where attendees can list the reasons they love the environment. The health of the ozone layer, one of the biggest indicators of global climate change, has steadily been improving, but many BU-based environmentalists have been advocating to continue the fight.
Throughout the 1980s, chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs, were everywhere — from spray paint and hairspray to refrigerators and air conditioners.
There was one problem: Research at the time revealed the synthetic compound could eat away at the atmospheres’ ozone layer, allowing hazardous levels of ultraviolet radiation to reach Earth.
There was time to prevent this, scientists thought, but they were wrong.
In 1985, three scientists from the British Antarctic Survey uncovered a massive problem — there was already a hole in the ozone layer.
The discovery sent shockwaves throughout the scientific community, the general public and policymakers worldwide.
In 1987, the United Nations ratified the Montreal Protocol, banning the production and consumption of CFCs for all member countries.
Nearly 40 years later, the ozone layer is showing signs of recovery, according to a Sept. 16 World Meteorological Organization report.
Jeff Geddes, BU associate professor in the Department of Earth and Environment, wrote in an email to The Daily Free Press that living on Earth would be far more dangerous if interventions hadn’t taken place.
“Imagine a world where you step outside in Boston and get a sunburn in five minutes” Geddes wrote. “Skin cancer risks would have soared almost unimaginably. That is the world that experts believe we would be living in just a few decades from now, if we hadn’t controlled the emission of ozone depleting substances.”
While Geddes is optimistic about humanity’s ability to combat climate change, others remain concerned.
Robert Kaufmann, a BU professor in the Department of Earth and Environment, said although there is progress, the issue of climate change persists.
“[Treaties like the Montreal Protocol] give me hope that something is possible,” Kaufmann said. “But I also teach a class on the role of climate and energy in human history, and that gives me less optimism.”
Kaufmann said countries like the U.S. continue to use fossil fuels as an energy source — despite their negative effects on the environment — due to economic self-interest.
“If it worked in the past, people will continue to do it, even if it’s not working now,” he said.
In spite of this, environmental organizations around the world continue to combat climate change — many located in Boston.
Shelby Rose Long is the president of BU’s Environmental Student Organization, which she described as BU’s biggest and broadest environmental organization. ESO meets weekly to discuss environmental issues and connect with the Boston community to complete service projects.
The organization has a well-established relationship with the University, Long said, providing them with an abundance of valuable resources and connections. This also allows them to support “budding” environmental organizations on campus, such as The Emerald Review, an environmental news publication, and Climate Cafe, a research center dedicated to studying the health and environmental consequences of climate change.
Long said people demonstrating interest in bettering the environment is a sign of hope.
“Studying environmental science and showing up to meetings on Monday nights and trash pickups on weekends means that you’re inherently hopeful about the state of the planet,” she said.
Hessann Farooqi, executive director of the Boston Climate Action Network, said local-level initiatives are essential in combating climate change.
“What happens at the city level often becomes a model for states and countries everywhere,” Farooqi said.
BCAN, a community-based environmental organization in Boston, advocates for policies that support the environment. Farooqi said its efforts have pushed bills providing residents with renewable energy and requiring large buildings to create “net zero” carbon emissions by 2050.
Farooqi said when communities collectively take action against climate change, it doesn’t just better the environment — it betters the lives of people.
“We’ve proven that it isn’t just the right thing to do for the planet, but that it improves our day-to-day lives, it reduces bills, it raises wages, it creates better health for ourselves and our kids,” he said. “That’s something that everyone can get behind.”