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CLIMATE CHANGE

Excess greenhouse gas emissions are throwing our planet’s climate way out of balance, to the point where natural disasters are starting to feel a lot less natural, and in fact are a lot more deadly.
The good news is: we have the tools to slow down and even reverse climate change, and build a healthier, more equitable world in the process. 

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what is the simplest definition of climate change?

Basically, climate change refers to significant shifts in Earth’s long-term weather patterns (either warming up or cooling down). For example, our planet has experienced several ice ages. The climate crisis we’re facing today has been caused by rapid warming.

Burning fossil fuels like coal and oil for energy spews out carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases into the Earth’s atmosphere. For most of our planet’s long history, carbon has gone through its cycle in the environment and the atmosphere at a steady rate. There is now far more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and the ocean, than these natural systems can handle and cycle back through.

What are some impacts of climate change?

Around the world, we’re already experiencing more extreme weather conditions: longer, hotter heat waves; heavier rainfall; frequent, severe droughts; persistent wildfires; and more violent hurricanes. 

Rising temperatures also affect many regions that grow food. When certain regions become hotter than their average temperature, many crops can no longer survive there, which often displaces the farmers whose livelihoods depend on crop cultivation.

Sea levels are also rising. Polar ice caps and glacier are melting at an alarming rate due to the Earth’s warming. Normally, the Earth’s ice acts as a natural defense mechanism against warming, since the white color of the ice reflects the rays of the sun. Darker surfaces, like younger ice and ocean water, absorb more heat. So rising ocean temperatures are melting the adjacent ice, in a vicious cycle.

The Artice Ice Project is working to restore the ice in the Arctic by using an organic substance, that is white, as a coating on the ice to help build its capacity to stay frozen. 

WHAT IS THE HISTORY OF CLIMATE CHANGE?

For anyone wondering how to stop climate change, it is helpful to first review the history of climate change. As with most things, when we understand the context and the root causes, we’re better at implementing the right solutions.

Below are excerpts from a BBC News report providing a short history of climate change, up until 2013. Note: they do not include the work of Eunice Newtown Foote, a woman whose scientific inquiries predicted the root cause of global warming way back in 1856. 

1896
Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius concludes that industrial-age coal burning will enhance the natural greenhouse effect.

1900
Another Swede, Knut Angstrom, discovers that even at the tiny concentrations found in the atmosphere, CO2 strongly absorbs parts of the infrared spectrum. Although he does not realize the significance, Angstrom has shown that a trace gas can produce greenhouse warming. 1927 Carbon emissions from fossil fuel burning and industry reach one billion tonnes per year.
1938
Using records from 147 weather stations around the world, British engineer Guy Callendar shows that temperatures had risen over the previous century. He also shows that CO2 concentrations had increased over the same period and suggests this caused the warming of the Earth. The "Callendar effect" was, at the time, widely dismissed by meteorologists.

1955
Using a new generation of equipment including early computers, U.S. researcher Gilbert Plass analyses in detail the infrared absorption of various gases. He concludes that doubling CO2 concentrations would increase temperatures by 3-4 degrees Celsius.
1958
Charles David (Dave) Keeling begins systematic measurements of atmospheric CO2 at Mauna Loa in Hawaii and Antarctica. Within four years, the project (which continues today) provides the first unequivocal proof that CO2 concentrations are rising.

1965
A US President's Advisory Committee panel warns that the greenhouse effect is a matter of "real concern".

1972
First UN environment conference, in Stockholm. Climate change hardly registers on the agenda. The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) is formed as a result.

1975 US scientist Wallace Broecker puts the term "global warming" into the public domain in the title of a scientific paper.
1988
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) formed to collate and assess evidence on climate change.

1989
Carbon emissions from fossil fuel burning and industry reach six billion tons per year. CO2 concentration, as measured at Mauna Loa, has risen steadily.

1990
IPCC produces First Assessment Report. It concludes that temperatures have risen by 0.3-0.6C over the last century, that humanity's emissions are adding to the atmosphere's natural complement of greenhouse gases, and that the addition would be expected to result in warming.
1995
IPCC Second Assessment Report concludes that the balance of evidence suggests "a discernible human influence" on the Earth's climate. This has been called the first definitive statement that humans are responsible for climate change.

1998
Strong El Niño weather conditions combine with global warming to produce the warmest year on record. The average global temperature reached 0.52C above the mean for the period 1961-90 (a commonly used baseline).

2001
IPCC Third Assessment Report finds "new and stronger evidence" that humanity's emissions of greenhouse gases are the main cause of the warming seen in the second half of the 20th Century.
2006
The Stern Review concludes that climate change could damage global GDP by up to 20% if left unchecked, while curbing it would cost about 1% of global GDP.

2006
Carbon emissions from fossil fuel burning and industry reach eight billion tons per year.

2007
The IPCC's Fourth Assessment Report concludes it is more than 90% likely that humanity's emissions of greenhouse gases are responsible for modern-day climate change. The IPCC and former US vice-president Al Gore received the Nobel Peace Prize "for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change."
2008
Half a century after beginning observations at Mauna Loa, the Keeling project shows that CO2 concentrations have risen from 315 parts per million (ppm) in 1958 to 380ppm in 2008.

2011
Data shows concentrations of greenhouse gases are rising faster than in previous years.

2012
Arctic sea ice reaches a minimum extent of 3.41 million sq km (1.32 million sq mi), a record for the lowest summer cover since satellite measurements began in 1979.
2013
The Mauna Loa Observatory on Hawaii reports that the daily mean concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has surpassed 400 parts per million (ppm) for the first time since measurements began in 1958.

The first part of the IPCC's fifth assessment report says scientists are 95% certain that humans are the "dominant cause" of global warming since the 1950s.
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1896
Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius concludes that industrial-age coal burning will enhance the natural greenhouse effect.
1900
Another Swede, Knut Angstrom, discovers that even at the tiny concentrations found in the atmosphere, CO2 strongly absorbs parts of the infrared spectrum. Although he does not realize the significance, Angstrom has shown that a trace gas can produce greenhouse warming.
1900
Another Swede, Knut Angstrom, discovers that even at the tiny concentrations found in the atmosphere, CO2 strongly absorbs parts of the infrared spectrum. Although he does not realize the significance, Angstrom has shown that a trace gas can produce greenhouse warming.
1927
Carbon emissions from fossil fuel burning and industry reach one billion tonnes per year.
1938
Using records from 147 weather stations around the world, British engineer Guy Callendar shows that temperatures had risen over the previous century. He also shows that CO2 concentrations had increased over the same period and suggests this caused the warming of the Earth. The "Callendar effect" was, at the time, widely dismissed by meteorologists.
1955
Using a new generation of equipment including early computers, U.S. researcher Gilbert Plass analyses in detail the infrared absorption of various gases. He concludes that doubling CO2 concentrations would increase temperatures by 3-4 degrees Celsius.
1958
Charles David (Dave) Keeling begins systematic measurements of atmospheric CO2 at Mauna Loa in Hawaii and Antarctica. Within four years, the project (which continues today) provides the first unequivocal proof that CO2 concentrations are rising.
1965
A US President's Advisory Committee panel warns that the greenhouse effect is a matter of "real concern".
1972
First UN environment conference, in Stockholm. Climate change hardly registers on the agenda. The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) is formed as a result.
1975
US scientist Wallace Broecker puts the term "global warming" into the public domain in the title of a scientific paper.
1988
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) formed to collate and assess evidence on climate change.
1990
IPCC produces First Assessment Report. It concludes that temperatures have risen by 0.3-0.6C over the last century, that humanity's emissions are adding to the atmosphere's natural complement of greenhouse gases, and that the addition would be expected to result in warming.
1995
IPCC Second Assessment Report concludes that the balance of evidence suggests "a discernible human influence" on the Earth's climate. This has been called the first definitive statement that humans are responsible for climate change.
1998
Strong El Niño weather conditions combine with global warming to produce the warmest year on record. The average global temperature reached 0.52C above the mean for the period 1961-90 (a commonly used baseline).
2001
Strong El Niño weather conditions combine with global warming to produce the warmest year on record. The average global temperature reached 0.52C above the mean for the period 1961-90 (a commonly used baseline).

what are greenhouse gases?

Carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide are considered greenhouse gasses.

Greenhouse gasses are given this name because they do to the Earth the same thing that the glass walls in a greenhouse do— they allow the sun to provide heat and warmth, while preventing that heat/warmth from escaping. Unfortunately, when too many greenhouse gases are produced, Earth’s atmosphere gets clogged up and starts to overheat.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “Human activities are responsible for almost all of the increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere over the last 150 years.” In the United States, burning fossil fuels is the main source of greenhouse gasses.

The EPA compiled the following climate change statistics on the primary sources of greenhouse gas emissions in 2018:
28% of the greenhouse gas emissions can be attributed to burning fossil fuels in cars, trucks ships, trains, and planes.
29% comes from coal and natural gas used for electricity.
22% comes from industry. This includes the fossil fuels that are burned for energy and also the chemical reactions that happen when goods are produced.
12.3% come from fossil fuels burned to heat homes and businesses.
9.9% come from agriculture, including cows, agricultural soils, and rice production.
11.6% come from land and forests that absorb more CO2 than they emit. 

There are many books you can read that explain the role of greenhouse gasses and other factors of climate change. 

WHAT PLACES IS CLIMATE CHANGE AFFECTING THE MOST?

The rate of rising sea levels has accelerated. It’s estimated that a 2 to 3 degrees Fahrenheit increase could cause the global sea-level rise by about three feet by 2100. This has the potential to displace approximately 56 million people around the world. It can also displace coastal wildlife such as birds, fish, invertebrates, and more.

1. LAGOS, NIGERIA
This city is considered one of the fastest-growing cities in the world. Located on the Gulf of Guinea, rising sea levels could lead to coastal erosion and harm potable water. Climate change could also negatively impact agriculture in the countryside and harm the large fishing industry.
2. Haiti
The rising sea levels, which are caused by climate change, could lead to saltwater contaminating freshwater. This would harm a major source of income for Haitians, agriculture. Haiti is also located in an area prone to hurricanes and studies show hurricanes are becoming wetter and more intense, because of climate change.
3. Yemen
A United Nations report showed famine caused by wars are often made worse by natural disasters. The civil war that happened in Yemen in 2015 has resulted in famine, poor sanitation, and lack of clean water. The country has a long coast, making it susceptible to rising sea levels.
4. Manila, Philippines
A flood in 2009 submerged 80% of the city. However, the Philippines created a Climate Change Commission to manage future floods.
5. Kiribati
This Pacific island nation is only six feet above sea level. Rising sea levels could threaten the island’s existence. They purchased 5,000 acres of land in Fiji in case they need to relocate.
6. The United Arab Emirates
Like other countries on this list, the UAE’s location causes many climate change problems. However, they have the financial means to look at ways to combat climate change such as produce its freshwater, develop crops that can withstand hotter temperatures, and build temperature-controlled spaces.
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WHAT are some solutions to climate change?

In order to slow down climate change, and eventually reverse it, we must end the era of fossil fuels and achieve carbon neutrality in every sector of our society: energy, agriculture, buildings, transportation, etc. 

Big companies and institutions have most of the responsibility and the ability to make big changes. If you’re interested in these broader systemic solutions, check out Project Drawdown— though they also have resources for communities and individuals!

We also found a good list of climate-positive individual actions from The Years Project:

1. Use solar or wind to power your home.
2. Eat less meat, choose local foods, and purchase foods with less packaging.
3. Use less water. (e.g. switch to high-efficiency showerheads, sink faucets, dishwasher, etc.)
4. Choose public transportation, ride a bicycle, walk, or carpool to work.
5. Reduce the number of items you purchase; this will shrink the carbon footprint related to the transportation of those goods.
6. Recycle and re-use products.
7. Install a smart thermostat in your home.
8. Switch your lightbulbs to those that use CLF or LED bulbs.
9. Purchase appliances, electronics, and office equipment with the ENERGY STAR label because these are proven to be more efficient.
10. Have an energy audit performed on your home.
11. Insulate your home to reduce energy consumption.
12. Compost food scraps. Approximately 18 percent of methane pollution comes from food scraps in landfills.
13. See if you qualify for Property Assessed Clean Energy to finance climate-smart building upgrades.
14. Use this carbon calculator from The Nature Conservancy to see what your biggest sources of emissions are, so you know how to reduce your footprint.
15. Eliminate your junk mail. (Saves paper/trees!).
16. Plant trees. Trees help to pull carbon out of the air.
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