Jaelyn Kelly
Like most I am a frequent user of tik Tok however I take the information I receive with a grain of salt except there are some topics I cannot just let go over my head .Earlier this month this happened I came across some valuable information I never knew about until it caught my eye on tik Tok, That information was on the “Willow Project” I came across it on my for you page with many links and hashtags called #StopTheWillowProject and #Willowprojectawareness there are also many petitions to try and turn this project around at www.change.org . It is amazing how Tik Tok had such an effect on this topic as I have seen it happen to many others, I have seen small restaurants almost having to closed down get reviewed from someone off tik Tok and suddenly became booming with service. It is almost like that app has some kind of secret power kind of like a voice for the younger generation. People on tik Tok started speaking up about the willow project that has been going on since former President Trump’s presidency at the beginning there was only a couple hundred petitions, since the #StopTheWillowMovement we are now at over a million signatures. Tik Tok showed me that change can happen but it starts with awareness.
This project was proposed and approved first by the Trump administration this project is to allow ConocoPhillips an energy company to drill up to five oil sites in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. This area holds up to 600million barrels of oil the administration believes that “there would be enough oil to release 9.2 million tons of plant warming carbon pollution a year and equivalent to adding 2 million gas powered cars to the road”. This project was put to a halt in January 2021 when Biden became president due to many environmental concerns, this project will affect the environment for generations to come. Air and water pollution due to the tons of carbon dioxide being let out in the air, soil degradation, and big effects on polar bears and much more wildlife their homes will become a landfill and not only will it affect them but could very well push many species into extinction since the area is already home to many endangered species. This project will affect climate change because of the extraction and burning of fossil fuels, it also comes with health risks because of increased air pollution and exposure to toxic chemicals. Lastly the development of this project can affect the activities and cultural practices of indigenous communities in the region.
Unfortunately, on March 13th the Biden administration approved the project after a lot of controversy however the battle is not over yet. We still have a chance to overturn this decision by voting in a new president and continuing to sign petitions , donate and shine more light on this subject. There are many tik Tokers advocating for this cause one user commented “There are a lot of petitions against the willow project, sign them it’s a small step but it is something”. The future of the world needs us to fight for it and tik Tok is allowing us to come together across the world.
As we all know the use of social media app “Tik Tok” is very trendy in today’s generation. It is the most widely used around the world people post funny content , things about themselves and more however it can be informative in many different ways. It is a platform that allows business to promote, gets news out there that may not be on television and allows others to show off there knowledge and skills. However it is important to always fact check your information on reliable websites not all information is accurate when posted.
Picture credits:
Channel, W. (N.D) The Weather channel. https://weather.com/news/climate/news/ Skinny polar bear
Smith, D. (2023, March 17). BREAKING: Biden administration approves Willow project, locking in massive greenhouse gases for decades. Trustees for Alaska. https://trustees.org/breaking-biden-administration-approves-new-willow-oil-and-gas-project/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=breaking-biden-administration-approves-new-willow-oil-and-gas-project