It is undoubtedly the boldest thing to proclaim that today’s people of Earth will one day be people of Mars. NASA has been a leader in innovation time and time again since the founding of the space program, proving that advancements made in this interstellar endeavor have proved useful to life on our pale blue dot. But the problem today is the how we are still living with combustion in our automobiles that spew toxic chemicals into the air, plastic in our seas, and other environmentally harmful practices still in effect today. Various chemicals used during fracking, whether that be for oil, natural gas, or the, “Environmental” lithium that pollutes millions of gallons of drinking water; not only is this affecting us but the animals that drink that water as well. Global warming is a real thing, and is due mostly to a greenhouse effect caused by the rise in CO2, methane, and other gases in the atmosphere. There are holes in the ozone layer, which protects us from UV rays. There are species that go extinct despite conservation. There is animal agriculture, that proves also detrimental to the environment because of the amount of water and feed needed to produce meat that produces gas, and the list goes on.

I guess what I am getting at is if you take an honest look at what needs to be done to bring back a healthy Earth, and what needs to be done to make Mars habitable, and self-sustaining, there is quite a considerable amount of work to be done for the latter.

Understanding that the human race would not want to die out, it’s normal to want to branch out of our planet to increase our chances of survival. But this too comes with a fault if everyone puts all of the eggs in one basket. Because undoubtedly, a fresh new look at the problems faced by the engineers behind Mars' missions will lead to benefits back on Earth. We will see positive results. But the lesson today is to not forget where we are, and that we should strive for a cleaner home, and a more equal home. With another proponent being the need to stay on top, it's only necessary to ensure who holds the cards that whoever should land on Mars first, whoever is leading this new field, will be the leaders. This is due to selfishness with given resources, and is the same reason there are countries suffering, as well as others prospering. And to speak of social policies, if we cannot keep the peace for more than a century, more ambassadors are not a solution. Would you want a Mars that’s as mistreated as our own Earth? Of course not, which is why these things should be thought out fully before irreversible actions are taken.

Mars might be a new home, but it might be our only home if we cannot help the earth before its too late.