23 Reasons We Need To Stop Freaking Out Over Climate Change

    We only have about 12 years before the changes become irreversible, but who's counting?

    Shelby Heinrich
    by Shelby Heinrich

    BuzzFeed Staff

    1. First of all, there's pretty much no proof that our icebergs are melting.

    Mario Tama / Getty Images

    Fun Fact, when Glacier National Park opened in 1910, it housed over 150 glaciers. It now has less than 30.

    2. Like, literally none at all.

    Christian Åslund / Via Instagram: @christianaslund

    This is the difference between a mere hundred years, btw.

    3. And even if there was, they can't ALL melt, right?

    New York Post @nypost

    Climate change could melt most of the ice in the Alps by 2100 https://t.co/I31Rk0I0Vs

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    According to the New York Post, a recent study found that half of the ice in the 4,000 Alpine mountain glaciers will have disappeared by 2050 due to a combination of rising temperatures and past pollution, and two thirds will have melted by 2100.

    4. It's fine though, the polar bears are still having a pretty good time.

    5. Plus, how about our pristine beaches?

    Jes Aznar / Getty Images

    The UN Environment Programme states that eight million tons of plastic leak into the ocean each year.

    6. And the happy sea creatures that live in our oceans?

    NPR / Via npr.org

    "That means that this animal has been suffering not for days or weeks but for months or even a year or more," says the man who found the whale.

    7. Our coral reefs are still super gorgeous.

    8. But still, they should hold up for awhile.

    The Atlantic / Via theatlantic.com

    Whoops. According to The Atlantic, back-to-back bleaching events killed one in every two corals in the Great Barrier Reef, leaving half its landscape dead and barren.

    9. We still have SO many trees around. It's not like we can lose ALL of them to deforestation...

    CosmosUp @CosmossUp

    Heard about the #10YearChallenge? This is the one we all need to care about. Forests help to mitigate climate change and provides homes for many species of plants and animals. Every year 46-58 thousand square miles of forest are lost to deforestation.

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    Deforestation is the second leading cause of climate change, but who's counting?

    10. Or wildfires...

    Josh Edelson / AFP / Getty Images

    In 2018, California was ravaged by the most destructive and largest complex fires in the state, brought on by drought, dead vegetation, and strong winds.

    11. Or droughts...

    Patrik Stollarz / AFP / Getty Images

    Prolonged extreme temperatures in Northern and Southern Europe led to intense browning of fields that could be seen from actual space.

    12. But those droughts are nothing a little flooding can't fix!

    Joe Raedle / Getty Images

    Hurricanes and typhoons are fueled primarily by warm ocean waters, and our oceans are currently warming by 0.2 degrees every decade. That means LOTS of new floods and other disasters come hurricane season.

    13. Really, our trees are fine.

    New York Times

    According to the New York Times, increasingly warming temperatures could wipe out Lebanon's remaining cedar forest by the end of the century.

    14. And frankly, so are our animals and insects.

    New York Times / Via nytimes.com

    Six species may face local extinction at the hands of droughts and dry climate in Southeast England. Super chill.

    15. No one's going extinct on our watch!!!

    Buzzfeed News / Via buzzfeed.com, Ian Bell/Queensland Government

    This little guy was a Bramble Cay Melomy, who survived for years on a tiny, remote island before going extinct (aka gone forever) due to rising sea levels.

    16. I mean, how can climate change really affect us superior humans??

    Scott Olson / Getty Images

    Hurricane Michael killed 43 people and damaged or destroyed roughly 40,000 homes in 2018, leaving up to 280 families displaced.

    17. It's not like any of these things could cost us money in the long run.

    The Hill

    Yep, that's 54 billion. With a "B."

    18. And even if they did, our economies are still thriving!!

    Bloomburg / Via bloomberg.com

    What with all the agricultural damage, threats to infrastructure, and raising commodity prices.

    19. We still have plenty of food.

    New York Times / Via nytimes.com

    Agricultural production could reduce by 2 percent each decade, while demand is expected to rise by 14 percent. You do the math.

    20. Look at those thriving crops!

    Sean Gallup / Getty Images

    Droughts due to rising temperatures have been ravaging crops across the globe, meaning many of our favorite foods could soon be no more.

    21. And everyone still has easy access to water.

    Farshad Usyan / AFP / Getty Images

    Afghanistan's current drought is the worst it's had in a decade, leaving 13.5 million people food insecure and increasingly malnourished.

    22. And we still have our health.

    The Atlantic / Via theatlantic.com

    Apparently climate change will not only make us sicker, but also lead to a full-on public health crisis.

    23. We're totally fine, guys!!!

    The Atlantic / Via theatlantic.com

    Unusually high temperatures tend to cause suicides rates to climb, and our temps are just gettin' hotter.

    So yeah, I think we can all take a chill pill and stop worrying so much about climate change. It's really not a big deal.

    HBO / Via giphy.com

    In the meantime, let's all take a minute to learn more about climate change, what it means for us as a society, and how we can make a difference.

    Stay cool out there, friends.

    Simple Happy Kitchen / Via giphy.com