Pollution-spewing castles. Fortresses made of steel. Miles and miles of smog clouding the air. We all know one of nature’s greatest enemies lie within factories.

…so. That’s it. We’re doomed. (Ahhhhhh?)

Everyday people suffer from the drastic climate change caused by media-owned factories, and we can’t do anything about it?

Not quite. Some of you might be familiar with the World-O-Meter website, a world population count that tracks approximately every birth and death across the globe. Accordingly, the human race is approximately 7 billion, 300-some million strong.

But let’s take it down a notch. The World-O-Meter page also has a national population count, wherein the U.S. has about 320-some million people. On the other hand, according to the 2010 study done on the Ohio Politifact Webpage, there is only an estimated 324 thousand factories in the U.S.; newer statistics have shown this number is dropping.

Too many numbers? I agree. In a nutshell, the ratio of people to factories is surprising: approximately 1,000 people per 1 factory.

And while you could argue a 5-foot long piece of intelligent meat does not rival a towering steel corporation, the numbers are on our side. What’s more is purpose, too; everyday people forget these factories were built for us in the first place. What the general public demands, companies supply. Not to talk economics, but if you and I don’t buy it, then there’s no way they can sell it.

The world feels too big sometimes, but it often boils down to a bare minimum: people are behind everything. As the dominant life form on Planet Earth, we are the proud masses. We live culture up to its potential, and we are behind the millions of views that topple YouTube charts. We make people famous because we are their audience. True, we are also behind some of the great social evils of contemporary time. Cyber-bullying, obesity, pollution (as early mentioned), you name it.

When we move, the world will be forced to move with us.

And no matter what anyone tells you, never underestimate the power of the individual. It is a common saying that if one person teaches three people something, and each of those three people passes that on to three more people, it takes only 25x for that something to circle the globe.

And believe me, it’s possible. Consider the thoroughly effective “Ice Bucket Challenge” phenomenon of 2013 to raise awareness for the nervous system disease, ALS.

And if things don’t happen fast enough for you, reach out. Be the model of your cause. If you can’t do it, then there is no reason for you to go pushing other people into doing it too.

Take small steps that gain weight as you go on. Never forget that nothing limits you from stepping up and being vocal about what you care about.

We have the power. We have the numbers.

Every billion of us.