Imagine this: You’re in a packed cinema. Halfway through the film, smoke starts curling up from the carpet. A handful of people notice, but they don’t move. They assume someone else will sound the alarm. Meanwhile, the fire spreads. Some people pretend they don’t see it, hoping it’s not their responsibility. Others rationalise – Surely the cinema staff have a plan? Someone will sort it out, right?

This is the bystander effect in action. And it’s exactly how we treat environmental issues.

We see the evidence – but we tell ourselves it’s someone else’s job to fix it. Governments. Corporations. Scientists. Activists. The person sat on the next row using a plastic straw. The person sat behind us cursing their paper straw. We tell ourselves that our individual actions won’t make a difference, or worse, that the problem is just too big to solve. Failing that, let’s blame the media.

Why do we do this?

Maybe it’s because responsibility feels too heavy. Maybe it’s because the consequences seem too distant to us. Maybe it’s because we’re wired for short-term survival, not long-term planetary thinking. Let’s face it, life’s short. Or maybe it’s because the world and the technicolour painted face of nature seems like a fantastical backdrop, rather than the foundation of everything we do.

It’s easy to push the responsibility upwards – to governments, global organisations and billionaires who do hold the purse strings. Or sideways – to corporations whose footprints eclipse our own. But here’s the thing: everyone is waiting for someone else to go first. Meanwhile, back at the cinema – the temperature’s rising and it’s not going to end well. Time for more popcorn and a gallon of Coke.

So how do we break this cycle?

We shift our mindset. Instead of seeing environmental action as a burden, we treat it as an investment – one that benefits us all, now and in the future. Instead of waiting for perfect solutions, we push for progress in whatever ways we can.

The truth is, responsibility doesn’t have to be paralysing. It can be empowering.

Because if we keep waiting for someone else to fix it (while we pop out for popcorn), we might just realise – too late – that there’s no one left to sound the alarm.

What will you do now that you know?

Simon