Dear future generations,

I apologize. It is not a certainty that by 2050, when you are reading this, the world will be even more of an environmental wreck as compared to the world in 2016, the year I’m writing this, but if trends continue the way they seem to be headed, it likely is. I’m sorry that your children and my children and their children have to deal with extreme weather, mass extinctions of animals that my generation and those before me took for granted, rampant greenhouse effect, and worst of all, knowing that what you’re going through could’ve been stopped. It wouldn’t have been too difficult either, but why on Earth were we not able to make the changes necessary to curve these inevitable impacts when we had a chance? I want to blame politicians who sometimes block conservation efforts from being practiced, I want to blame the masses in general (particularly Americans for our unhealthy level of consumption), but in the end I really don’t know who to blame or if there is anyone in particular to blame. All I know is that I hope you’re reading letter laughing at my worry.

I hope sometime very soon after I write this we see a major shift in global conservation efforts and we see every single one of us taking responsibility for our effect on this planet. I hope my children and my grandchildren don’t have to worry about having enough food to eat or whether it’s too hot or cold to go outside. I hope they can take a trip to the arctic and still see polar bears and glaciers as I can today and I hope that they don’t have to use scuba gear to see Florida. Whatever the outcome ends up being, it’s in my generations’ hands to undo what damage has already been done and create a more sustainable future. Not for us, we likely won’t be here long enough to see any severe change, but for you.

Thank you.