Bahamas Senator Julie Lashell Adderley addresses NCU graduates on climate change

Julie Lashell Adderley, the Legislator from the Bahamas, addressed the students of Northern Caribbean University on the issue of climate change. The legislator shared her views on the subject during the event of the commencement ceremony of the institute. The recent gathering was hosted by the university on Sunday, 11 August.

Adderley is the current President of the Senate of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. She is also the President of the Northern Caribbean University.

The president was addressing the graduates of the university, where she advocated the steps of adaptability to handle the issue of climate change.

She talked about the crisis faced by the region due to climate change and the efforts of the United Nations towards the issue. Legislator Julie asked the graduate to be an advocate for climate change adaptation under the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 by the UN.

The legislator of the Bahamas implored graduates on the 101st commencement of the university, where 582 people graduated in total. The occasion was organized under the theme of Empowered for Excellence: Poised for Greatness.

Julie Lashell Adderley said in her words while addressing graduates, “The human-induced climate crisis requires more activists along with advocates. Climate change is real and knocking at your door, are you home?” In her speech, she also addressed the impact of climate change on the Small Island Developing States.

She highlighted how these Small Island Developing States are vulnerable to the crisis caused due to rising sea levels, floods, crippling heat, severe fires, and intense droughts.

The recent crisis of the Beryl hurricane was one of the major examples of the catastrophic impact on small islands in the Caribbean, including the Commonwealth of the Bahamas.

Along with Beryl, the Dorian hurricane of 2019 was also mentioned by the legislator in her speech at Northern Caribbean University. As a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Senator Adderley also challenged spiritual leaders to raise their voices for the issue. The Northern Caribbean University is owned by the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

She asked the spiritual leaders to work for earth preservation and to save the creation of god. She also raised the point of commitment by the industrialized countries to provide a hundred billion dollars a year for the cause. The promise was made to give funds to developing countries in order to take steps toward renewable energy and a greener economy.

The Senator asked the graduates to take their own unique paths to solve the issues while targeting education, hunger, gender equality, poverty, and violence. She also encouraged everyone to use their positive voices, talent, and time to eradicate societal imbalances along with social and economic injustices, starting from their communities to worldwide.