I witnessed a sea of yellow-orange skies cast a haze over the nearby buildings. This was not Blade Runner 2049; this was yet another example of the cataclysmic impacts climate change can have on the planet we call home. The smoke from the wildfires in Canada had finally arrived in New York, sending my entire community into disarray. I felt my eyes burning as I walked out of the double doors of my school on what should have been a normal school day. Wearing two KN-95 masks, I turned my usual 10-minute walk home into a 5-minute run. I swiftly closed all of the windows in my house and turned on the air conditioner. I was watching the disastrous effects of climate change unfold first-hand, and so was everyone else. I immediately dialed my Dad’s phone number, concerned that he would be significantly impacted because of his underlying condition. It was a difficult week to be a New Yorker.

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• Political Science