It's a daunting task.

Climate change is here and it will bring alterations wanted or not - in how society operates.

'I'm saying we better get our ass in gear today,' says Don Trudeau, a first nations elder and author.

Trudeau was among six panel discussion members at a community forum held last Thursday evening about climate change. The event was organized by the Yukon Liberal Party and took place at the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre.

Trudeau was joined by Jim Pojar, the executive director of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society's Yukon chapter; J.P. Pinard of the Yukon Conservation Society; Jessica Thiessan, founder of the Arctic Youth Network; Michael Westlake from the Northern Climate Exchange and Guy Dauncey, a climate change expert from Victoria who presented the keynote speech prior to the panel discussion.

Dauncey is part of numerous environmental initiatives and the author of Stormy Weather: 101 Solutions to Global Climate Change among other books about the environment. He gave a keynote speech prior to the panel discussion to the packed theatre at the Beringia Centre.

After working on climate change for 15 years, Dauncey said, he's concluded there are only two major problems on Earth. The first is the sum of all the economic, environmental and social problems, while the second is the belief the problems can't be dealt with.

'If we believe we can't solve our problems, we are now part of the problem,' he said.

There's a huge opportunity to move into a sustainable age, he told the crowd.

Before going into some of those opportunities, Dauncey pointed to evidence such as warming temperatures, Arctic ice melt, weather and other environmental changes that have been seen across the globe.

'All over the world, icebergs are melting,' he said.

In the Yukon, he pointed out, the spruce bark beetle has become a problem because it's no longer cold enough to kill off larvae in the winter.

'What's unusual is going to become usual,' he said.

Carbon being released into the air is impacting the rate of climate change, with emissions coming from vehicles, diesel generators, planes and other devices.

Dauncey told his audience the Ford vehicles built today are less efficient than the vehicles Henry Ford originally built.

Even without climate change, he argued, issues around the world's oil supply would have to be addressed. Since 1961, less oil has been discovered though the consumption of it has increased.

The future calls for more sustainable energy use such as solar or wind, Dauncey said.

Pointing to things like solar panels and electric vehicles, Dauncey noted throughout his presentation changes can be made to encourage fewer emissions going into the atmosphere.

About 60 per cent of emissions in the Yukon come from transportation, he said.

He noted residents could walk, cycle or even ride-share among the 65 per cent of workers who commute downtown every day to work between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. he said.

Transit is another option.

The Yukon is also a fantastic spot for geothermal energy use, he said.

Dauncey proposed government could include incentives for people using sustainable energy, or place a small increase on power bills for energy consumed to go to projects aimed at sustainable energy.

'There's no one quick fix, ' he said.

It's the public will that drives politicians to make changes, he said.

In his comments, Pinard asked each member of the audience to promise to write letters of support for climate change initiatives in an effort to show that public will to make changes.

Other panelists also encouraged residents to be involved and push for environment changes such as establishing large protected areas as climate change sanctuaries, one of a number of proposals brought forward by Pojar.

It was also noted the Yukon's small size could be an advantage in leading climate change initiatives.

'We're a small community; we can do this,' Thiessan said.