Is the world really ending? How is climate change affecting us today?
This is a discussion everyone has heard for years yet apparently, we’re still looking for solutions… at least that’s what the media have been telling us! It appears that most of us are aware of what is slowly happening to our world but it’s hard to gauge how serious it is when one minute we have little time left to fix things and another, the world is ending! We were all told that the world was going to end in 2012 and well, we’re still here…
* awks *
How many times is the media going to spread propaganda to scare us? It’s not that I don’t believe there is an issue, but when the time comes (and a lot would argue that the time is now), how will we know?
Now I’m not the guru of Climate Change, nor am I a Scientist. I can only claim my A2 Geography and the time I was Head Girl ( Focusing on “environmental”) and was in charge of the SHEEP AND CHICKEN WE HAD ON THE SCHOOL GROUNDS- I always wondered how a whole school turned into a farm but that’s for another story lmao.
The point is, I’m no expert but I, like you, have seen enough strange changes to our world and the weather to know that something is happening as a result of our actions. I currently write this during a thunderstorm which is in anticipation of “Hurricane Lorenzo” which is supposed to hit us on Thursday… a whole ass hurricane you know? This is just an example of what everyone seems to be talking about when they say climate change is real.
Photo credit: Justin Hofman - Many would have seen this photograph taken of a malnourished Polar bear as the ice has melted. A similar image circulated recently showing a malnourished Elephant. Both pictures disturbed many as they shared their sympathies. We can do better
Now before I move on, it’s best that I clear up the confusion between Climate Change and Global Warming, since they are sometimes misunderstood as the same thing. I know you never asked me to but I’m going to regardless.
KEY WORDS:
GLOBAL WARMING - It pretty much says it in the name. Global warming only refers to the warming of the Globe. In other words, it’s the long-term heating of the earth and is caused by human activities, the burning of fossil fuels burning and increasing heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth’s atmosphere.
CLIMATE CHANGE - This is where the climate changes over a long period (lol). This may be changes in weather patterns ( like when we have winter in May…), Extreme weather, increased activity such as volcanoes, earthquakes, and Tsunamis, to name a few as well as all the unpredictable conditions we see in the news. Read more about the two here.
`The world (by me)- Don’t laugh, I think I did a good job!
If you don’t live under a rock you’ll be aware that the latest UN climate action summit took place last month in New York, where a certain young individual has been making the news. I talk of course, of 16-year old environmental activist Greta Thunberg from Sweden. She has expressed her concerns and fears for our future globally and continues to challenge those at the top to take climate change seriously. Leading up to the conference, Greta spent 15 days at sea on a 60ft racing yacht to reduce her carbon footprint and make her point and people seem to have a lot to say about her actions.
Although Greta’s actions have started conversations, raised awareness and is making a difference, she is not the only one with a passion for change. In 1992, Severn Cullis-Suzuki, aged 12, had the same concerns regarding climate change and was dubbed the girl who “silenced the world for 5 minutes” with her powerful speech. It’s interesting how this was over 2 decades before, yet it’s the same message.
Celebrities have also voiced the same concerns such as Leonardo DiCaprio who does not shy away from sharing his views. In 2016 Leonardo dedicated his acceptance speech to climate change after winning his first Oscar. Additionally, he set up an organisation dedicated to protecting the wellbeing of all earth’s inhabitants and addresses the issues surrounding climate change whilst helping those affected from disadvantaged backgrounds (I STAN, an environmentally conscious man)! You can check out his website here.
Other respected figures have also taken a stand to address the issues we face in a plead to make changes. Notable people such as the legend that is Sir David Attenborough desperately tried to warn us of the detrimental and irreversible effects on our planet if we don’t take action now in his 8-part series “our planet” in which he narrated. Sir David Attenborough has been known for his works with nature and his passion and knowledge for over half a century and has gained global respect. I’m not alone when I say that he’s like a grandfather to us, and his opinions are greatly valued.
“We are seeing unprecedented temperatures, unrelenting storms, and undeniable science.” - N. Secretary General António Guterres
In more recent years, Attenborough has shown more and more concern for our planet which has been expressed in his work. He presented “climate change - the facts” in which experts and activists were interviewed to showcase what is already happening and the scientific predictions. You can watch the 4-minute summary or watch the full episode here.
In his latest work: “our planet” which was released by Netflix in April 2019, the 93-year-old’s tone was a lot more firm and concerned than we’ve heard him before. His unsettling undertones urged this generation to take action promptly to slow down the speed of climate change and its inevitable and irreversible effects. Humans have severely impacted on its decline and our actions are crucial for the Earth’s survival. After its release, it sparked conversations amongst the youth on social media. The problem is it’s becoming increasingly harder for scientists to predict our future when changes are more rapid than initially anticipated.
Now, I’m aware that this is (lowkey) propaganda and maybe, their time-frame is exaggerated, however, what they’re saying has truth. We must also take things with a pinch of salt and remember that although we may love Sir Attenborough, in these spaces he is just the presenter and views may not be entirely his own. There’s a reason he was used to convey these messages...
Regardless, humans have contributed significantly to global warming through our use of fossil fuels mainly. As I’ve heard since I was in infant school, there’s a hole in the ozone layer which is only getting bigger, little protection from temperature rises, so we must be aware of our actions to avoid a catastrophic future. The truth is, the world is getting hotter and will one day become too hot for human inhabitants.
What have results said?
The results are not surprising. The weather is changing and we are experiencing extreme weather changes such as flooding and droughts (tell me something new eh?). The rainforests are burning, oceans are losing oxygen and becoming more acidic, temperatures are rising and we are losing ecosystems as a result. Morbid stuff I know but I won’t be surprised if you haven’t witnessed at least one of these things first hand by now.
I can say that I have seen coral reefs dying with my own eyes when I was snorkelling in Thailand and I have experienced enhanced activity around the ring of fire through Earthquakes, mini Tsunamis and Volcano eruptions in Indonesia (I did hear something about the governments drilling to cause earthquakes in politic… nvm what do I know?). Last year you may remember the fires in Portugal and the recent damage in the Bahamas caused by Hurricane Dorian.
Now more than ever we are seeing the results as life becomes a little more unpredictable! Italy’s Mont Blanc glacier is at risk of collapse due to global warming and there was a dust storm in Nairobi only today which lasted around 10-15 minutes! Here in the UK, we await more and more thunderstorms, torrential rain, landslides and the arrival of Hurricane Lorenzo. If this is happening now, what will the future look like?
Results from Goldman Sachs’ recent 2019 climate change report “warned of "significant" potential risks to the world's largest cities, which are especially vulnerable to more frequent storms, higher temperatures, rising sea levels, and storm surges.” These are things we are already seeing yet it is expected to become even more terrifying.
Key warnings include more intense and longer heatwaves, destructive weather, changing disease patterns, Shifting agriculture patterns, food shortages, and water changes. Additionally, the Washington Post has also expressed their concerns on the future of this planet. Everyone seems to be saying the same thing, but how different is it from the findings decades before?
Already we have seen the impacts of floods, droughts, and wildfires on crops which has affected supply and productivity. We are seeing more use of genetically modified food and food covered with pesticides in an attempt to meet consumers’ needs. Not only does this have a negative impact on our health and nutrition but we have no idea what other consequences this may have if used as an alternative long-term solution. Farmers in all counties have suffered as a result, with those in poorer countries suffering considerably more.
For farmers in Africa:
A free AI app has been developed recently that can be downloaded on smartphones. The app is called Plant Village Nuru and will help farmers diagnose crop diseases as well as providing prevention methods and advice on crop varieties and affordable irrigation methods. This app will hopefully guide farmers through climate changes and allow them to adapt effectively. Read more here.
So what can we do to help?
1. Plastic bag bans
The world’s attempts to reduce the use of plastic is visible in every continent with over 90 countries adapting their usage. Some continents have done more, however, it appears that slowly, everyone has started to adapt the way they view and use plastic bags.
Plastic bag bans across the globe - See more here
Photo cred:The Economist
Africa has taken the plastic bag ban seriously and leads with most of the counties from the continent implementing the ban with serious consequences if breached. Nearly all of East Africa has a full ban, Most of the South and West Africa. These countries include, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Mali, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Morocco, South Africa, Rwanda, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Madagascar, Botswana, Seychelles, Namibia, amongst others with Kenya imposing one of the toughest bans with 4 years jail time or a $40,000 fine.
In Asia, a plastic ban or restriction/ under consideration is China, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Pakistan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Taiwan. Similarly in Europe, plastic bag bans are not necessarily in place, however, charges and restrictions are in place. Denmark was the first country to charge for bags in 1994, which reduced usage and encouraged recycling. Other counties include Ireland, England, Wales, Scotland, Germany, Albania, Greece, Italy, etc, however, for 1st and 2nd world countries, (in my opinion) enough is not being done compared to their 3rd world counterparts. If countries in Africa can use alternative to bags and recycle, those of us who are privileged must stop being entitled and assist in the fight for change. Does that suggest that it’s not as urgent as we may think?
South America has made attempts to reduce plastic use with recycling schemes and other alternatives such as biodegradable bags. The countries that have started to do this include Argentina, Chile, Peru, Paraguay, Uruguay, the French Guiana, and Colombia. Brazil remains unchanged, despite being the biggest country in this continent.
Sadly America and Canada really need to step up their game regarding plastic bag bans. Canada has visions to implement some bans as early as 2021 but this is still not good enough. I urge anyone in this continent to try and write to local authorities to try and implement change, at least locally! With up to a 90% reduction in plastic use found as a result of these bans, it’s clear that this is working! We must do better and we can… it’s just not being put in place. How can it be the case that such a large and influential continent, with perhaps some of the biggest offenders of climate change is doing so little regarding plastic and waste? What makes this continent exempt from the rest?
2. Carbon emission reduction
This has played a massive role on the impacts we see today. Fossil energy is key to reducing the impacts and there has been an increasing focus to source alternative fuels. With the uprise of electric cars and with a successful plane flight powered by electricity, we are certainly moving in the right direction, however, this isn’t always sustainable or within the needs of the majority’s budgets… at least not now. Alternative fuels include biofuels, steam, kinetic energy, heat, hydrogen, Air, nitrogen, and LPG yet these are still to be developed.
For now, big cities are doing more and are attempting to tackle climate change and its effects.
Yet in a new ranking just 7% – 43 out of 596 cities – receive a top ranking for their climate leadership and action to cut emissions. They include New York, Washington DC, San Francisco, Denver, Boston, Cleveland and Seattle in the US, along with global cities such as London, Paris, Barcelona, Melbourne, Cape Town and, Hong Kong. Twenty-one of them are in North America, nine in Europe, four in Australia, just one in Latin America (Buenos Aires) and Africa (Cape Town), and four in East Asia.
Extracted from Forbes June 2019 report. Read more here.
Those of you in London will be aware of the Congestion and Low Emission Zones and the newly added Ultra Low Emission Zone (which is charged 24/7 every day) for drivers in an attempt to encourage people to use public transport within the capital and encourage use of the public bikes to get around and reduce their carbon footprint. Work schemes have also encouraged this with the cycle to work programmes and car-pooling (sharing) alternatives.
Only the other day, (yesterday to be exact), Aljazeera reported about the Haitian crisis with fuels. With little access to fuels, importance on alternative fuels has been brought to light. Not only is this in the interest of our climate crisis, but it serves as an economical solution for others As a country that relies heavily on fuel to run its economy, access to resources is imperative for growth especially when it becomes political. You can read more about the crisis in Haiti here.
3. Personal Footprints
You may know of a few ways to reduce your carbon footprint. This may be by cutting out meat, reducing your driving, walking/cycling more, saving water, recycling properly, picking up litter, reducing packaging, recycling more, limiting your flights by flying directly or using alternative modes of transports, planting trees and raising awareness amongst many other things.
If you feel like your community can do better in tackling climate change, then write to your local councils and reach out top the local resources you have. Some places encourage this such as garden centres who may donate seeds or small plans for people to plant for free. I’ve seen more and more people plant trees especially in different continents and most of these have been donated for free. Some people have planted thousands of trees alone and it’s something I believe we could all contribute to, even if it’s one! I personally will try and plant trees from now on to help the cause too! Trees are the lungs to this earth and the lungs are dying.
It’s best to check your footprint to see what you can do to cut down your emissions. You can check yours here.
Due to the fear of how long we have left, people are fearing not only for our generation, but the next one to come. It has got to a point where some people have seriously considered having children as they don’t want to bring children into the mess we have left.
“Many people are now wondering if they can have children at all. Will the offspring have to live as adults in a ruined planet? Every child and occupant is a source of emissions. Actually, can I even have children?”
I’ve had this conversation with a few friends who are concerned about what to do in the future and if they should raise a family. Whilst some may argue that this is valid, there are many on the other side, stating that although our planet is declining and conditions becoming more challenging, the world is not dying any time soon, but rather adapting and changing its conditions. To not have children will not make much difference and there is still enough time despite what we might be told. The only thing we should prepare ourselves is for change and we should adapt (and we will adapt) to these changes. You can read this side of the argument here and here.
Even if it’s all speculation and hype, surely we could argue that at least more people are aware and are consciously thinking of their footprints. Even if the world doesn’t end, at least we acted in the best interest of our planet? So what if we plant thousands and thousands of trees? That will be better for us too. Even if this was a big old hoax, at least we’re doing something that will benefit us in our future. There is definitely something happening and we can’t deny that so the least we can do is try. We only get one planet (for now) after all! I wouldn’t be surprised if all this NASA research is really to find another world for us to migrate to though… but anyways, this is our situation for now.
I won’t stand here (sit? type?…nvm you get it) and be a hypocrite. I could certainly be more conscious of my carbon footprint so I’m by no means the best. Anyone that knows me knows that I drive to most places and have a strained relationship with public transport, but despite my dislike, I have started to drive less, use public transport more or simply walk despite the weather. When going to different counties, I usually take direct flights or alternative transport such as coach, car, train or boat and I try to buy things that aren’t wrapped in plastic and try to recycle as much as I can… I can definitely do better but I will make a conscious effort to research more and do my part.
If you would like to read up or research on Climate change or climate news you could look at Greenpeace, Fridays for future or you can click here for a list of useful links.
Thank you for reading! I hope this helps.
Liz x