At the beginning of April, I received photos of cherry blossoms from my family and friends in Korea. The flowers are in full bloom. In San Diego, the Cherry Blossom Festival was already held on March 10-12 at the Japanese Friendship Garden in Balboa Park. I was glad to watch cherry blossoms here, too. (If you missed the chance, I would suggest you wait for next spring.)

Nevertheless, if I hadn’t gotten used to the weather in San Diego, I would have been surprised that the flowers in Korea had already bloomed. Because it was only two months ago that I received a picture of a huge pile of snow. The acceleration of the flowering season means the acceleration of climate change.

San Diego’s weather is mostly crystal-clear and beautiful. However, there were more days to open the umbrella than expected, after I came to the U.S. Everyone I met here said in unison, “This is unusual.”

According to CBS 8, from January through December 2022, San Diego received 5.90 inches of rain in total. So far in 2023 – just from January through March 15 – San Diego received 9.11 inches of rain. Also, the San Diego River flooding in Mission Valley occurred three weeks ago.

President Joe Biden’s key commitment during the election was to the environment. Biden believes the Green New Deal is a crucial framework for meeting the climate challenges we face. It powerfully captures two basic truths, which are at the core of his plan: (1) The United States urgently needs to embrace greater ambition on an epic scale to meet the scope of this challenge; (2) Our environment and our economy are completely and connected.¹

Therefore, The Biden plan was:

1. Ensure the U.S. achieves a 100% clean energy economy and reaches net-zero emissions no later than 2050.

2. Build a stronger, more resilient nation.

3. Rally the rest of the world to meet the threat of climate change.

4. Stand up to the abuse of power by polluters who disproportionately harm communities of color and low-income communities.

5. Fulfill our obligation to workers and communities who powered our industrial revolution and subsequent decades of economic growth.

As The White House clarified, Biden secured the largest investment to advance energy security and combat climate change in American history – all while lowering energy costs for the American people, by signing the Inflation Reduction Act last year. The Administration is continuing to implement the Inflation Reduction Act, which is already galvanizing our clean energy transition and making clean and energy-efficient technologies more affordable for American families.

In contrast, Korea’s plan for the environment is going backward. Among OECD countries, Korea has the highest growth rate in carbon emissions. President Yoon Suk Yeol promised to act on the climate crisis.

“We will greatly reduce the energy that causes carbon and increase the proportion of non-carbon energy. With Korea’s scientific capabilities, I will create an energy model that sets an example for the world,” said Yoon.

However, in the 110th national task, the climate crisis was not dealt with in weight.

In the case of the EU, at least EUR 100 billion will be invested for a just transition by 2027. More active support from the Korean government is needed, such as measures to expand renewable energy or support for energy conversion companies and related enterprises.

About the climate crisis, a Korean poet Mi-na Shin said, “It is not a shocking end like a nuclear war, but a slow, cumulative catastrophe.” If we want to watch flowers and sustain this beautiful blooming season, we must keep paying attention to the environment.

Let’s find something we can do ourselves. Did you know that erasing one email also helps the environmental movement? If you delete an email as much as 1 gigabyte (GB) from your mailbox, you can reduce 14.9 kilograms of carbon dioxide per year. According to the Korea Electrical Safety Corporation, storing spam mail data alone generates 17 million tons of carbon dioxide per year. Why don’t you go empty your mailbox now?

Juri Kim is an international intern from Korea.