Ainsley L. Virginia

Our invasive species

A plea for those without voices

Dear Future President,

We, as humans, are an invasive species. Last year, I did a 10-page report for a school project; it was about global warming—a problem that has been going on for hundreds of years. Our actions, as the people of the world, have been harming other animals that existed on earth before us. In Antarctica for the past 11 years, one of the most affected penguins, the Adelie penguins went from 33,000 breeding pairs to just 11,000. This is because global warming has affected krill, a small shrimp- like species that the penguins eat. The krill lay their eggs on ice shelves. As the climate changes, the ice shelves fall into the water and there are less places for them to lay eggs, so they don’t lay eggs at all. Naturally, there were less of them. The penguins have been starving, so they have stopped breeding. In another 11 years, there probably be no Adelie penguins left in Antarctica.

But there are more than just penguins affected. Due to the melting ice caps (because of the Greenhouse gasses), there have been floods all over the world. America has emitted about half of the total greenhouse gas emissions. The solution is alternative energy sources. When you become president, you can help get more solar power and wind power into America. Or, at least decrease the number of factories using coal, which means less pollution, which means less greenhouse gasses. The major problem I have with this country is the amount of greenhouse gasses we emit, and how that can be a (sort of) easy fix, or at least a step in the right direction toward a stronger atmosphere, which will help to solve Global Warming all over the world.

Regards, 

A.L.