By ACE Field Correspondent June Tong, student at West High School in Torrance, CA

I traveled to China in the summer after eighth grade with my family, as it would be an opportunity to explore my roots as well as reconnect with the memories my parents and grandparents had in that country. I had never been to China before, and since it was the year before the summer Olympics at Beijing, I was excited beyond belief.

The thirteen-hour flight was hard to endure, and I ended up getting air sick twice along the ride…But finally! This was the “Middle Country”! And when I stepped out of the heavily air-conditioned and ventilated airport, I nearly turned heel to see if I could catch a plane back to America.

Compared to the sea breezes I experienced back in California, China was suffocating and hot and dusty. Under the intense sun, my hands gripping the traveling bag filled with emergency medical supplies grew sweaty. I could tolerate this weather, but I was especially concerned since my mother and grandmother both have asthma.

My thoughts traced back to some articles I read a while back regarding this country. China was almost rejected from hosting the summer Olympics because of its air quality, and for good reason too. China is notorious for its pollution levels, even beating America by producing 6,200 million tons of carbon dioxide every year.

“Weren’t they supposed to clean this place up?” I thought dryly.

Granted, the following three weeks of my vacation that followed made up for the hot and smoke-filled atmosphere. I got to visit several locations, and I grew a deeper respect for my family heritage. The fact that China was improving its environmental policies due to the Olympics was also a bonus.

However, why should a special event force China to change its ways? Environmental protection should be an everyday thing, from the smallest action of doing one thing, to planning for something bigger for the future. It shouldn’t be determined by “saving face” for your country. If anything, the air quality and satisfaction of tourists should be the main priority of the country if focusing on appearance.

Regardless, going to China has raised my awareness on global climate change. I am a Chinese American that is very proud of my culture and how far China has come economically-wise. But such polluting antics need to be reduced and, hopefully, stopped.

But the main thing is to start now and here, that this generation will be the moving force behind the coming wave of environmentalism.