A moment when public thought and action were severely impacted, to the point of being torn apart, was the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic. Whether its arrival was nature's way of responding to the various actions of its inhabitants or an intentional act by the so-called wise species itself, regardless of whether it's a personal perspective, I see this as an object for serious reflection and a valuable experience, a moment to re-examine our relationships with other creatures.

If experience truly is the best teacher, then, from now on and perhaps forevermore, this pandemic is an analogy: a teacher, providing countless lessons to be learned and used as capital for the days to come. The moments throughout 2020 simply represent the multitude of lessons presented for us to learn and interpret, and become our collective homework, as humans.

First Subject

'Serumah', nature is the eldest sibling to its human sibling, whose daily lives are so inharmonious with each other. The older sibling desires peace, but forgets that he has a very fussy younger sibling who constantly bothers him. Knowing his younger sibling's naughtiness, the older sibling ignores and tolerates it. The younger sibling mischievously takes advantage of this by playing to his heart's content, then ignoring and forgetting that his older sibling is present. Feeling bored and lonely, the younger sibling invites some of his colleagues. During their playtime, several problems arise within the 'home' environment.

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Reporting from World of Buzz: “ The World is Dying ” –  It's Only January 2020 But 7 Natural Disasters Already Recently Happened , starting in January 2020 the first incident that occurred at 'home' was in the Southeast Asian space, namely the Philippines, where a volcanic eruption occurred.

Second, the burning of "home" in the South, Australia. Drastic temperature rises and severe drought have exacerbated the situation in Australia, which has been hit by devastating forest and bushfires. These fires have killed more than 500 million animals and endangered koalas. Third, the impact of the fires in Australia: glaciers in New Zealand are turning brown after being exposed to dust from the fires, and this could cause glaciers to melt by up to 30 percent.

Then there's the rapid climate change occurring in the Himalayan mountains. This has led to the melting of Himalayan glaciers, leading to increased growth of shrubs and grasses in the mountainous regions. Another issue is flooding, which is usually very rare in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The extreme rainfall there is a result of climate change.

Another similar disaster to Dubai was the flooding in Jakarta. This is indeed an annual disaster in the Indonesian capital. Although considered commonplace, this flooding was considered the worst in the past decade, claiming 66 lives. Then came the devastating storms that struck the states of Texas, Alabama, and Louisiana, USA, claiming 11 lives.

The devastating storm surge in the southern United States has also been widely linked to climate change and global warming. These events, caused by climate change, should also serve as a warning sign, given how trivial this issue is, yet how serious its impacts are.

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In line with the above description, citing the Nature Climate Change journal published by researchers from ETH Zurich as reported by National Geographic Indonesia, the results show that the world's temperature has been much higher than expected, every day since March 2012. This series of events is only a summary of the month of January 2020, and the following months and years are still waiting.

Second Subject

Since 2020, several policies have been issued by stakeholders. One that has garnered public attention is the Omnibus Law. The public believes this policy has only increased the suffering of workers and the lower classes, and robbed them of their living space. Shouldn't workers, working, employing, and employment be a mutually beneficial ecosystem? Its fairness for the lower classes is questionable within the context of this policy. It's perhaps undeniable for the elite. While its efficiency in investment is certainly a welcome change, its impact on the lower classes is devastating.

Homework

The various lessons outlined above point us to a shared responsibility for a more dignified life. The current era of disruption also encourages us to be more sensitive to various issues, including economic ones. Based on the second lesson above, our  sense of humanity has diminished, and we are now only concerned with profit  for a small, elite 1% of Mother Earth. Sustainable development programs must continue to be promoted, while not forgetting the meaning of the  Triple Bottom Line , which aligns  Profit ,  People , and  Planet .

As young people who will welcome the demographic bonus, let us work independently and express ourselves and create in our own authentic ways to balance our daily activities, one of which can start by implementing an environmentally friendly lifestyle in each of our daily activities, because it is useless to promote ideas if those in authority are apathetic in responding to them.

And finally, don't forget the simple but fundamental thing to restore equilibrium in our shared ecosystem, namely, we must be serious about re-interpreting what "Humanist and Harmonious" means.

By: Mersondy Adrian

Students of Sam Ratulangi University Manado