Environmental pollution is one of the greatest troubles that the earth is facing today, causing serious and permanent damage to our planet. Numerous individuals seem to be more and more concerned about protecting our environment. Regardless of this, not many of us are actually making an effort to reduce the harmful chemicals destroying our world today. Maybe it's because a majority of people believe it is the government's fault for problems such as global warming and oil spills, and that only the government, environmentalists, or big industries can fix this. This is something that people may not want to believe, but we are the main reason for these environmental issues today. A single person cannot be held accountable for the pollution of our planet; however, the little choices that person chooses to do everyday can be the major cause. Michael Pollan, American author, journalist, activist, and professor of journalism at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, explains in his essay "Why Bother" how all the little everyday things we do add up to be the big problem. Wendell Berry, an American novelist, poet, environmental activist, cultural critic, and farmer writes in his essay, "Think Little" how we need to take care of the public problems as well as the individual problems. In my opinion, I agree with both Pollan and Berry that we are the cause of this environmental crisis and they only way to fix it is to make some small changes in our everyday life. Individuals need to stop blaming people of higher authority for our problems and make a change themselves. The bigger issues aren't the foundation of the problems circulating throughout the world today; it's the little things we do everyday that produce the crisis we are battling. Once we make some changes such as walking instead of driving, planting a garden instead of buying, and taking matters into our own hands instead of relying on others, an improvement in our world will be made.
