UN Secretary-General

[Town], 17th April 2017

Mr. AntônioGuterres

UN Secretary-General

United Nations Headquarters

405 East 42nd Street

New York City, NY 10017

U.S.A

Dear Mr. Guterres,

To start, I would like to congratulate you for your appointment as UN Secretary-General. It’s truly a great honor for me to be able to work as your advisor. I believe that one of the key issues that needs to be addressed by the UN is economic growth and sustainable development. Sustainable development balances current needs with the needs of future generation, in a way that is less harmful to our environment. This is strongly related with the issue of an ongoing rise in global average temperature, also known as climate change.

As I am writing this letter to you, my mind flies back to two years ago, away in a small concrete building located in [Town], [Country]. Drifting into a cloud of memories, I could recall trying to sink myself in the clattering of keyboards. But alas, despite how hard this wretched soul had tried, it could not help but notice the thick films of smoke that fill up the vacant spaces of busy streets. A pain more agonizing than the excruciating feeling of being unable to breathe was to hear the cries of children, muffled by the suffocating haze. These children, the ever so promising faces of the future, were washed away with their opportunities.

How could a force so evil silence their lambent pearls of laughter? To replace them with coughs of despair, as it devours their insides. To erase the crimson-tinted cheeks, the powerhouse of our efforts. To let these boulders of will collapse in eternal death.

[Country] is a country full of potential. With an abundance of forests and fertile soils, it’s no wonder why big corporations take advantage of this prosperous country for business. Some have gone way too far, however, with forest fires sweeping across the country. Despite its drastic improvement, a staggering 14,605 hectares were burned in 2016 alone. This, may I repeat, is a case that I hate with burning passion. A passion as ripe as the red pomegranates in summer.

Sometimes I wonder what comes into their considerations, and when I am talking about this, I mean corporations that take these issues lightly. To allow these ongoing disasters and the consequences that come with them. Are they going to ignore the blatant screams of animals as they are having their homes destroyed? Are they going to ignore the outcomes, which include the risk of having to live in harrowing conditions like I have encountered? To hinder education and progress, as children struggle with these problems?

As we all know, forests not only in[Country] act up as ‘the lungs of the world.’ They have become one of the biggest, most well-known reservoirs for carbon dioxide. Trees, however, could also play one of the most significant roles in carbon emissions. Once they are burned and chopped down, carbon dioxide which they once stored would be released into the air, doubling the amount. This will add up to other air-contaminating substances that have together caused the depletion of the ozone layer.

Speaking of which, the ozone layer is constantly deteriorating to the point where it’s extremely alarming. In just a span of 37 years, the thickness of the ozone layer has decreased rapidly; from 220 Dobson units in 1979 to a devastating level of 114 Dobson units in 2016. When it comes to these subjects, we cannot wait. In a snap, things could happen right before our eyes. If we are not going to act fast, just imagine how the world would be like. Imagine our beloved islands sinking into the crashing waves of what used to be icebergs. Our earth, along with its contents, is gone.

So, to you and others who are willing to make a difference, we need a voice. A voice that billions of other people could hear. The voice of our actions. For that, I present to you the “Three for Trees” principle – our weapon to fight climate change.

Regulate. As a part of the United Nations, we have the responsibility of conveying the message as well as convincing world leaders to ensure the implementation of stringent policies for land clearing and illegal logging. This law shall give heavy sanctions for violators.

Prevent. Implement an early warning system to detect forest fires. Not only are forest fires caused by the acts of human beings, it could also be a result of natural causes. This system will help us immensely by sending early alerts for us to take action on containing forest fires.

Grow. We need to grow a defence system. This could of course be done by replanting the now bald spots of the earth with trees. These past few days I’ve been inspired by lots of incredible volunteers, especially the fact that most of them have very little support, who were able to rebuild forests on their own. Since the United Nations is such a big community, I figured that with the same amount of tenacity, we could do these things in a bigger scale. This could be ensured by setting a deal with other organizations as well as pushing governments to set a policy which targets a 1% increase of trees per country.

The United Nations is a big organization filled with open-minded members, hence I think is a great medium to promote my ideas. Together, with dedication and commitment, there could be a great possibility of putting a stop to deforestation, hence impacts the chance of climate change. Once again, I may only be a voice out of billions, but with this huge passion inside me I believe that I, too, could help fight this ongoing madness.

Yours sincerely,

[S] Advisor to the UN Secretary-General