The only good thing I can think of right now is our environment. And that too is a bittersweet conversation. 

Being in quarantine has done a number on wildlife. Since the outbreak, sika deer have been roaming freely in Japan, and monkeys have been fighting on the streets of Thailand. But for the animals that eat leftover scraps from dumpsters, this time isn’t the best for them. The more people decide to stay inside their homes (and rightfully so), the less food these animals get. 

But looking at the atmospheric version of things, in these past four weeks, China (the world’s biggest polluter) reduced their carbon emission percentage by 25% when compared to the same four weeks from the previous year. Practically, having everybody stay home is not the most efficient way to limit the fossil fuel usage but it’s a start given our situation. 

It’s ridiculous that the only time we ever started to see change was when we were forced to inadvertently create it. That the global pandemic that is taking away our loved ones is seen as a way to bring about environmental change. 

The problem is that once everything cools down and we start rolling back into our daily routines, we go back to what we know as a normal life. And to us normal means a frequent use of automobiles. Sooner than later, the numbers are going to catch up and we wouldn’t have done any good to the world. It’s all a matter of time. Unless, we take this as our wake up call.

I mean, I get it. The environment isn’t everyone’s top priority right now and that is very understandable. Our focus should be on safety and security. Nevertheless, if people decide to turn their backs on progress once everything’s “over”, this could very well ruin the goal towards decarbonization.