Journal Entry#4

Focus of Article

The article Australia’s budding climate change reversal by Grant Wyeth (2022) focuses on Australia's intentions to minimize carbon emissions. It highlights the effect of politics on the actualization of energy and climate change policies, which have slowed the exploration of renewable energy. In the spirit of marking the end of the wasted period, the country's parliament passed a policy to decrease carbon discharge by forty-three percent before 2030 and eradicate it by 2050 (Wyeth, 2022). The article highlights the efforts made by Australia's minister for energy and climate change in outlining the strategies that the country will employ in achieving the emission control goal. Currently, the country can extract and supply imperative minerals used in renewable mechanization. However, the author shows that Australia faces a significant problem: its ability to manufacture its own power. The Chinese industry highly dominates the country's supply chain and renewable manufacturing sector (Wyeth, 2022). Australia's energy and climate change minister identifies these challenges; however, he does not provide a strategic guideline for achieving the goal (Wyeth, 2022). The article challenges Australia by questioning its ability to make investments that will enhance the country's energy freedom. Moreover, it questions Australia's credibility in leading the worldwide climate alteration reduction dialogue. Therefore, succeeding in these actions contributes to decreased carbon emissions. 

Relationship to Fight Climate Change

Climate change results in adverse effects, making it important to counter it. The article shows that Australia is in the process of generating almost half of its domestic energy from renewable energy sources by 2025, intending to increase the ratio by 2030 (Wyeth, 2022). This shows that the country also relies on fossil fuels, evidenced by the significant export of fossil fuels. The domestic consumption and burning of fossil fuels contribute to one percent of the emissions, and including the exported fuel increases global carbon emissions by five percent (Wyeth, 2022). The article compares the country's emissions with its population and identifies it as a significant proportionate emitter. These emissions have contributed to the obstinate nature of the Australian climate, which has caused problematic relations with pacific neighbors who presume climate change as a key security threat (Wyeth, 2022). Therefore, Australia needs to be at the forefront of the fight against climate change to enhance its relations with its pacific neighbors and save the environment. Shifting to renewable energy will play a significant role in eliminating climate change, a step that its pacific neighbors will highly appreciate.

Why I Chose This ArticleI chose this article because it strongly supports the fight against climate change by providing convincing arguments against it. It not only establishes the problem that contributes to climate change but also provides a solution for alternative energy sources for the countries. Moreover, it focuses on Australia, which according to the article, is a significant carbon emitter per capita. The article outlines some of the challenges experienced by countries globally, which hinder or slow the implementation of important energy and climate change initiatives. By reading the article, countries are urged to be vigilant in implementing initiatives that control climate change. This can be done by considering several factors, such as alternative clean energy sources, especially renewable ones. Moreover, the article teaches that contribution to carbon emission is not only determined by the fossil fuel burnt domestically but also by exported quantities. Resultantly, this discourages the total reliance on fossil fuels as an energy source. Therefore, these facts provide a reasonable argument for fighting climate change while promoting reliance on renewable energy.

References

Wyeth, G. (2022, September). Australia’s budding climate change reversal. The Diplomat. https://thediplomat.com/2022/09/australias-budding-climate-change-reversal/