Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla Urges Global Climate Action: "Earth is Our Only Home"

Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla emphasized that climate change requires global collaborative action. (File)

Lucknow:

During the 26th International Conference of Chief Justices of the World at his alma mater City Montessori School in Lucknow, astronaut and Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla made an impassioned plea for youth to unite against global challenges such as climate change and to avoid replicating Earth's environmental mistakes in space exploration.

Shukla shared his profound realization from space travel, stating, "This is your planet, this is your home, there is nowhere else to go." He explained how viewing Earth from space fundamentally transforms one's perspective.

"It's about the entire planet which is your home. What happens in one place, even if we don't see it visually, will affect us a few months or a year later. That realization becomes very deep and you come back a changed person," Shukla reflected.

He emphasized climate change as a crisis demanding unified global response.

"We are on the issue of climate change and how our Earth is changing, how there is a distinct need for us to first of all realize it and take concrete steps to protect it and prevent what is happening," he stated.

Drawing parallels to scientific understanding, Shukla referenced the early 2000s surge in thyroid cancer detection across South Korea, the US, and Europe. This increase wasn't due to rising cancer rates but improved diagnostic capabilities through CT scans, ultrasound, and MRIs.

Similarly, he noted how space exploration since the 1950s and 1960s revolutionized environmental awareness. "When satellites went up, they gave you concrete, irrefutable data that it [climate change] is real and it is happening the world over. It's a problem that we are all facing together."

Addressing international jurists and students, Shukla identified implementation as today's greatest challenge.

"We know that there is a problem and there are a few people who also want to solve it. But somehow we always fail at the implementation. How do we get people to agree to what we think is the right way to go forward? We don't have the answer," he acknowledged.

He called on young people to develop frameworks for global consensus.

"I hope some of you put your mind to it and come up with a framework that allows global citizens and governments all over the world to come together and agree that this is what the world needs to do together and go forward," Shukla encouraged.

The astronaut also highlighted space activity's rapid expansion and emerging challenges.

"There are about 13,000 satellites operational in space, and plans to expand these to around 35,000 to 40,000. And this is just the lower earth orbit (LEO) up to 2,000 km," he noted, questioning how humanity might avoid repeating Earth's environmental mistakes beyond our planet.

Shukla emphasized that future space challenges extend beyond technical considerations.

"It is going to be an ethical challenge, a moral challenge, and your responsibility that you have to understand now," he told students, urging them to leverage today's information accessibility.

"Start reading and understanding the issues from a bottom-up approach. This is your planet, your future, and we may not be there when you grow up. Go to the field with the right mindset to the problems we are facing globally," he advised.

Shukla concluded by calling on the audience—particularly youth—to actively participate in addressing global concerns and developing collaborative solutions.