It’s not my responsibility to fix climate change.

Combating climate change is impossible if individuals are the only ones trying, but solutions are almost always directed at ordinary people. Advertisements on TV of starving  polar  bears  and  forest fires guilt trip you into thinking that your choice to stay in the shower for an extra five minutes this morning doomed the world. Time and money is spent telling us to use paper straws and reusable bags when we should be focusing on larger holding accountable the true culprits.

According to The Guardian, since 1988, 100 companies  have been  responsible for 71%  of global greenhouse gas emissions. Corporations can tell us to recycle all they want, but they need to take a look in the mirror.

So why do we keep pointing fingers at one another for something as simple as throwing a glass bottle in the trash while the icebergs melt?

Conversation  around  solutions to climate change focuses on the everyday actions of regular people when it should target the biggest contributors. Corporations and governments emphasize individual behavior to distract us from the need for systemic change.

I am not saying that the actions of individuals  are  not  important when it comes to saving the planet. However, it’s unrealistic to expect that  we’ll  ever  be  able  to  get every person in the world to fully understand climate change and act accordingly.

It’s more productive and efficient to approach reform from a regulatory standpoint. The burden is on our legislators to pass laws that make these large corporations eco-friendly. This will bring about more change than any one person could.

Encouraging personal responsibility is valuable, but it must be paired with advocacy for structural change. If  companies invested in  renewable energy, sourced  sustainable  materials, and reduced emissions at scale, we could see tangible improvements.

We  need  to  hold  corporations accountable  in  order  to  move forward. Acknowledging their fundamental role in   climate change—usually swept under the rug—and speaking out about it will contribute to the awareness that will help us push for meaningful change.