IT CAN STILL BE SAVED

March 2, 2026

I found myself on a planet. The air was heavy. Everything around me was gray, and in the distance, the world looked even more colorless. 

As I wandered through this planet, I missed my own – the green one – more and more.
Walking across the tired land, I could no longer see the places I once loved to visit, the forests and meadows that used to bring me joy.
And yet, it all seemed to have started with something as simple as a single barrel of gasoline that no one bothered to clean up in time.

I was angry because it could all have been saved.
We could have lived on a clean planet, but everyone thought it wasn’t their responsibility.

Slowly calming my anger… I woke up.
And I realised it can still be saved.

Art by Kabilzhan Barzuyev, 14
Nukus, Karakalpakstan/Uzbekistan
Text by Sati Sadykova, 15
Astana, Kazakhstan
IT CAN STILL BE SAVED