Note: This piece is a staff editorial, which is an opinion article meant to reflect the opinions of the Drops of Ink staff. Because of this, the author’s name does not appear alongside the story, as the opinions shared in here are based on class discussions about the topic among the 20 DOI staff members. The staff is composed of students of all grades from a variety of backgrounds and experiences; therefore, the editorial speaks to the publication’s view on a subject and is not representative of each staff member’s exact view on the issue at hand. 

In thirty years, we will be adults, leading our own lives. The world is rapidly changing around us as we grow up in the midst of skyrocketing technological advancement, rampant political strife and the COVID-19 pandemic, all while the effects of climate change are closing in on us.

Climate change has been slowly creeping up on us for decades, but the world is beginning to face the point of no return, where we have to act or its effects are irreversible. Global temperatures are rising significantly more and more each year, and our planet is facing these consequences as we speak.

It is the responsibility of government officials to address this and enforce stricter laws and regulations to prevent the global warming issue from worsening. They are the only people who have this power and are responsible for leading this change.

Technology has been rapidly progressing for the last few decades, and will continue to expand, especially in response to climate change.

A growing sector in new technology is electric cars, which are already becoming more and more popular. Electric cars are considered to be environmentally friendly and developed as they are easy to use, require less maintenance and are eco friendly.

In an era ripe with fear of climate change, electric cars will have to make their way into the mainstream. However, they are overpriced and there is no way that we will reach a point where everyone has electric cars to benefit the environment.

Another crucial issue that has worried us about the future is the widening rift between the upper and lower class. The wealthy are becoming wealthier and the poor are becoming poorer.

Social class division has been a conflict since the beginning of history, but it’s gotten to the point where upward mobility is nearly impossible to achieve, despite this ideal being touted as attainable in the United States.

Multi-billionaires in first-world countries have enough money to end world hunger, homelessness, poverty and more. As these billionaires grow wealthier, they should also be held responsible for using that wealth to improve society.

It will take worldwide efforts to provide protections for the lower class, along with holding grossly wealthy people accountable for paying their fair share. If multiple countries band together to try to fix this and provide clear regulations and goals, the social class divide could lessen, instead of grow, like it will if no action is taken.

Another issue looming in the future that we will have to confront is the healthcare crisis. The United States has a very complicated healthcare system that doesn’t work for so many people. 

On top of that, it is also grossly expensive for people. Paying off bills years after an accident or illness or being left in lifelong debt is extremely wrong.

Everyone would benefit from a change in the healthcare system. Many countries provide free healthcare or require patients to pay a very small check, and if they can do that for their citizens, the United States shouldn’t be doing less.

While COVID-19 seems to be reaching its end, its effects are still beneath us. While many jobs and college classes have returned in person post-COVID, others have remained virtual. Remote jobs and classes provide flexibility for clients to work from home and live wherever they want. We hope to see that option become more available in the future because it works extremely well for so many adults.

The future can seem so exciting, yet so terrifying simply because it’s too unpredictable. While we cannot wait to see flying cars or that new Apple Macbook that can do just about anything, we might end up seeing terrifying global conflicts rapidly growing to the point where it becomes too late to prevent.

Our generation has a complex future ahead of us — one full of both advancement and progress, alongside world-ending crises. It’s tough to sort through our feelings about it because everything is so ambivalent and divisive. All we know is that one day, the world will be ours, and these issues will be ours to solve.