Letter to the Editor

Dear Middlebury Campus,

As a member of the community of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., the idea that the seas could rise with global warming is very distressing.  After seeing the recent photograph of the government of the Maldives signing a petition underwater to promote climate change in Copenhagen, I realized this is a very big issue where I come from, too.  Not only is Florida very close to sea level, it is one of the areas most affected by storms in the world, and with a steadily rising sea level, these storms could become more deadly than they already are.
If world leaders can agree to lower the CO2 emissions and other greenhouse gases

in the atmosphere and slow down or stop global warming, then this would be a huge step forward.  If global warming slowed down or stopped, it would be beneficial for everyone, not just the countries with the highest sea levels.  If nothing is done, this world will see millions of homes destroyed and people displaced, uprooted and forced to find a new way of life.  These leaders need to agree on a plan and find a solution so that when I want to visit my home in Palm Beach Gardens, I don’t have to wear a scuba suit.

Thanks,
Andrew Ackerman ’13