...Austin Ogden 19 November 2014 Position paper SOS 220 Coral Reefs vs. Climate Change Corals reefs around the world have been fighting climate change for just over two centuries. This problem hasn’t caught much attention to the average human eye, but it’s about time everybody realizes how this is affecting their everyday lives as well. Coral bleaching is one of the main concerns with coral reefs around the world. Coral bleaching can be fatal to coral reefs, which in return could hurt us in the future. Ocean acidification is another problem that coral reefs are facing around the world. Not only is it harmful to the coral reefs but harmful to marine life as well. Although these are all negative actions towards coral reefs there can be a bright...
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...relationship shared between gender and climate change. Bearing in mind the analyses of the articles differ in perspective but share the same definitions. The highlighting points that will be thoroughly discussed in chronological order are human rights, health issues, vulnerability, and agricultural sector. The premise this paper will illustrate is that natural disasters do not affect both genders equally and that there is a lack of attention to gender issues in developing countries. Depending on the exposure of the climate change, inequalities for resilience in access to resources and opportunities may vary and will most likely render the disadvantaged more vulnerable to the disaster. As stated in ‘The Missing Component of the Response to Climate Change’ article “most societies, particularly in developing countries, women have lower incomes and fewer opportunities than men. Thus their adaptive and mitigative capacity is lower than those of males. Climate policies are thus not automatically gender neutral.” (Lambrou, Piana, 2007, p.2) By understanding how climate change affects men and women through their role, social expectations, status and power will develop proper actions taken to reduce vulnerability and increase resiliency after a natural disaster. Human Rights The U.N. Human Rights Council study has shown and proven that climate change is negatively impacting the enjoyment of specific human rights in varying countries around the world. These human rights that are being impacted...
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...Terrible New Math” the effect of climate change and its devastating consequences on our environment were outlined. More specifically it was illustrated how developing countries are at a greater disadvantage than developed countries when it comes to adapting to climate change. This can be due to their geographical location and concepts such as space and place can explain why they’re more vulnerable. Additionally, the history of the countries development also plays a role in determining how these countries are unable to adapt to a climate crisis. Another factor that can be taken into consideration is the particular countries global processes. This brings me to my argument that developing countries struggle with adapting to...
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...CLIMATE CHANGING AND THE EFFECT IT HAS ON YOU Dijonne King PSC 140 December 1, 2013 Climate change is the climate patterns attributed largely to the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels. Climate change has recently become a huge issue here on Earth. The use of fossil fuels has largely affected the world as we see it today. Temperatures are rising, snow and rainfall patterns are shifting and extreme climate events such as heavy rainstorms and record high temperatures are highly affecting our environment. Through evidence of this climate change, scientists have come to realize the causes and effects of climate change. Through learning about what creates climate change, learning how climate change impacts you, and taking action, I believe climate change can definitely have a positive impact on everyone. Through scientific evident it is clear that climate change has affected the planet Earth as we know it. Most of these climate changes are attributed to very small variations in Earth’s orbit that change the amount of solar energy our planet receives. The average temperature at the surface of the Earth has been increasing over the past century, mostly due to human activities. Warmer surface temperatures lead to increasing evaporation from the ocean and land, leading to an increase in global precipitation. Scientific studies have shown that extreme weather is more likely to become more intense with time. Human activities are...
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...Causes of Climate Change Climate change is a long-term shift in weather conditions identified by changes in temperature, precipitation, winds, and other indicators. Climate change can involve both changes in average conditions and changes in variability, including, for example, extreme events. The earth's climate is naturally variable on all time scales. Factors that cause climate change can be divided into two categories - those related to natural processes and those related to human activity Natural Causes The Earth's climate can be affected by natural factors that are external to the climate system, such as changes in volcanic activity, solar output, and the Earth's orbit around the Sun. Human Causes Very few people doubt that it is normal for there to be climate change. The rotation of the earth on a tilted axis leads to this, as well many natural events, like volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and hurricanes. However, human activities are having a much greater impact on climate change. For example, the jump in earths’ population from 1950 through 1985 more than doubled from 2.5 billion to over 5 billion. (Meyer, 1996: 24) The importance of this growth is a drain on the Earths’ resources causing even more altering. It is not as much the altering of these resources that are causing climate change but the type of human activities which are taking place, and the way in which they are impacting the climate. The earth is naturally surrounded by gases the added human processes...
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...Human activity has become so widespread, invariably contributing to the changes in global climate, which are consequently having a negative effect on weather patterns and the frequency and severity of weather related natural disasters. Global warming has become alarming recently. Over the past decades, research has been conducted on climate change and its impact and how it directly or indirectly influences the health and well being of the planet and its inhabitants. This essay will cover the risk and impacts of climate (weather) – related natural disasters such as storms, floods, droughts, rainfall and extreme temperature. Research over the past few decades has done much to clarify the evidence that global climate is changing and these changes are largely due to human influence. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change(IPCC),(2014) linked the risks of climate change to the increase in emission of greenhouse gas through human activities resulting from increased in population and economic growth. According to World Health Organization (WHO), (2014) the increase in human activities has impose dextra force on the climate system, most especially the burning of fossil fuels result in the emission of greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide. They accumulate and cause extra heat on the surface temperature, increasing the climate variability and influencing climate change.As the atmosphere accumulates energy, it yields to the increasing greenhouse gas concentration causing climate change...
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...Global Warming and Health Jessica Parks APA Format PSY/460 There are many current events plaguing environmental psychologist, possibly more now than ever before. This is one of the ideals that are causing environmental psychology to become such a demanding field of study. This essay will tackle one small corner of the problem, global warming and the affects it will have on the health of the human race. Global warming is a phenomenon that is causing the general temperature of the earth to rise. This is affecting the earth’s atmosphere and oceans. Scientists have noted significant changes developing more rapidly in the last thirty years. These changes are a counteraction to global warming that is affecting life on the entire planet. No one or nothing is safe from the impact of global warming, plants animals, humans we are all subject to server changes of evolutionary proportion. One might ponder how global warming affects the average man; some say they see no difference. The changes are not apparent in ones day to day routine unless you become aware of the signs or symptoms of a changing planet (Time, 2006). Time magazine recently did a story called Global Warming: How It Affects Your Health. This article puts the affects of global warming on humans very plainly. According to this article the death toll that is related to climate change is going to double by the year 2030. The climate change is going to cause the population to encounter more frequent...
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...There are many global issues facing the world today, from the present financial crisis to the change in the world’s climate. A financial crisis is applied broadly to a variety of situations in which some financial institutions or assets suddenly lose a large part of their value (Wikipedia, 2009). Climate change, on the other hand, is described as the buildup of man-made gases in the atmosphere that trap the sun’s heat, causing changes in weather patterns on a global scale (Enviro- glossary). Larger countries are not the only ones that have been affected by these two issues, as smaller islands have also been affected. One such country is the small island state of Grenada. Developing countries and developed countries are all inter-connected, in that, any effect whether positive or negative on the economies developed countries affects the economy of developing countries. The first and second world countries have felt the ‘thump’ of the global financial crisis which have caused an increase in the rate of unemployment, decrease in consumer demand and spending and investments into developing markets. “The current global financial crisis is having an adverse impact on our country and on the performance of its economy” (Hon Tillman Thomas, 2009). The financial crisis has forced the Grenadian government to focus on ways to boost the economy from within, spending excessive amounts of money on stimulation packages for the economy. Unfortunately, because of this same crisis...
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...awareness of global warming and how our planet’s atmosphere is overloaded with heat trapping carbon dioxide (CO2), which threatens wide-ranging disorder in climate with devastating consequences. Global warming is an environmental issue that affects human health, ecosystem, etc. and this study is summed up into basic responses and opposing viewpoints. I. What are the causes of global warming? • CO2 emissions and increased concentration of greenhouse gases • Human activity is causing the Earth to get hotter • Global warming is a natural occurrence of nature a. Deforestation and natural resources are part of the earth’s cycle b. Negative conception due to media c. Lack of scientific evidence II. Global warming causes serious concern. • Record-breaking extreme weather a. Severe droughts b. Damaging wildfires c. Rising sea levels, warmer temperatures d. Heat waves; diseases • Clean Air Act (CAA), Endangered Species Act, and the Clean Water Act (CWA) that addresses pollution from sewage systems and storm water run-off • NRDC examines long-range consequences if issue is not addressed III. Solving global warming will improve our lives. • Set practical and feasible limits on global warming pollution; in accordance with EPA standards • Think “green” a. Smart cars b. Public transportation c. Communities and buildings d. Stricter efficiency requirements for appliances IV. Curbing climate change • Administration’s National Climate Action Plan a. Technologies...
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...about the devastating impact that human related greenhouse gases is having and will continue to have on the environment. Many do not realize the how global warming affects the environment. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the effects of global warming on the weather, overall health, and on wildlife. Global Warming on Weather Patterns The increase in water temperatures in the ocean has generated more energy into what used to be normal tropical storms, causing them not only to be more frequent, but a lot stronger and sometimes very destructive. As we have seen within the last decade, there has been a marked increase in the number of hurricanes at the four and five category level. For instance, Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005 and was said to be the second strongest and one of the deadliest hurricanes ever recorded in the U.S. The loss to the economy was a whopping $125 billion (“Weather Patterns,” n.d.). In addition to the hurricanes, the warmer temperatures have led to drought conditions and the increase of fires throughout the western United States. In 2006, new records were set in the amount of reported fires as well as acres burned (“Weather Patterns,” n.d.). The cost for fighting these fires has been increasing yearly in the amount of $1 billion. Another effect of global warming is the intense rainstorms that we have been experiencing. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports the increase is due mostly to human-induced global warming (“Weather...
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...environmental security simply means how our surrounding is being protected to avoid damage and depletion of the resources. Many of the natural resources include water, land, air, soil, energy, minerals and all those that are in the resources. Environmental security entails the basic protection of the most important resources that we have e.g. the ecosystem service and have a complete assurance that there will be a constant supply of the resource in the near future without depletion. The human society and its natural surrounding is being threatened by the new global pressures that have been posing challenges on degradation an depletion of the natural resources. The global pressures may include competition to access of water, land, minerals and other fundamental resources, increase in the population of various countries thus posing pressure in land, there has been an increase in the demand for energy due to increased number of people thus having many industries for provision of employment and manufacture of food. Thus our vital resources face danger of depletion and damage if no proper regulations and rules are not set to allow these resources to be protected. Demand for natural resource will increase by the year 2050 mostly in developing countries. Eradication of poverty in the developing countries may pose pressures to the natural available resources. The impact of this will be degradation of water, clean air, soil, forest, wet lands and cause global climate all these...
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...Climate Change and How the Media Portrays It The average educated person would define climate change as the average weather changing or global warming. It is patterns of temperature, precipitation, humidity, wind and seasons. Climate is what makes up all natural ecosystems and is what helps sustain these ecosystems. The climate change today is changing the world. It’s affecting the natural ecosystems negatively. This is because climate is tied to almost everything. The change in climate will change the way people, animals, and plants have to survive. For example, a change in the usual timing of rains or temperatures can affect when plants bloom, when certain bugs hatch, or when streams are at their highest level. This can affect pollination of crops, food for migrating birds, spawning of fish, water supplies for drinking, forest health, and much more. Many people mistake global warming and climate change to be the same thing. Although they are very similar, global warming is what causes climate change. Global warming is the rising of global temperature and ocean temperature. This is what causes the climate change events listed above. Global warming is a global event while climate change is a more regional change in the atmosphere. There are many people who think climate change is not happening. The National Academy of Science has studied climate change and confirmed that it is real and humans are causing it. According to the Climate Impacts Group at the University...
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...the Media Task 1 Public concerns about science in the media * Climate Change * Stem Cells * Gmos * Recreation of The Big Bang * End of the World * Pesticides Task 2 Concerns of Climate change raised in the media and justification * Global temperatures would continue to rise for decades. IPCC states, "the range of published evidence indicates that the net damage costs of climate change are likely to be significant and to increase over time” – concerns are raised as the extent of climate change effects on individual regions will vary over time and with the ability of different environmental systems to adapt to change. * Due to climate change getter worse, a global concern has been raised as this would affect sea levels rising and consists of longer and intense heat waves. “This increase in heat waves creates serious health risks, and can lead to heat exhaustion, deadly heat stroke, and aggravate existing medical conditions” – scientists around the world have come together and discussed possibilities to the raised concerns of climate change that affects the environment and human beings. “Global warming is now accelerating the rate of sea level rise, increasing coastal flooding risks to low-lying communities and high-risk coastal properties” – scientists have revealed since 1880 sea levels have risen 8 inches and is expected to rise more over upcoming years due to climate change. * Over the next century temperatures to rise by 2.5% to...
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...While the world has struggled with oil, globalization, and strife, the new crisis that is being increasingly important is the health and capacity of the water supply. Taken for granted, the rising population primarily in developing countries along with the declining freshwater reserves will lead to conflict. In addition there is the issue of climate change, the anthropological effect and how the hydrological cycle suffers because of it. And the supply of trade and food will also be increasingly fragile when the health of ocean ecosystems and its marine life is consistently threatened. In the past people have fought for water in the beginning of their colonization. After the conflicts regarding territories, alliances, and now currently oil, the global economy along with its citizens will again fight for the control of the dwindling water supplies in the face of an increasing population. “Many environmental scientists warn that declining water supplies could lead to wars between nations” (Cunningham, p. 384). If the specifics are studied closely in current international conflicts, the fight for the new oil, water, has already begun. The familiar Middle East conflicts that the United States is engaged in has often been regarded as a way to help secure our oil supply. However some neighboring countries are already moving on to a more striking issue that humans as a species simply aren’t paying enough attention to. “Already, we’ve seen skirmishes—if not outright warfare—over water access...
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...EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON WOMEN Introduction Definition of basic terms What is Weather? The term weather describes the state of the air at a particular place and time – whether it is warm or cold, wet or dry, and how cloudy or windy it is, for example. It affects many of the things that we do, from the clothes we wear and the food we eat, to where we live and how we travel. As a result, the weather is of great interest to people everywhere, from meteorologists, the scientists who study it in great depth, to you and I in our everyday lives. In fact, one of the main topics of conversation is often what the weather will do next the .Weather is very changeable and unpredictable. What is Climate? The normal pattern of weather experienced in a particular area over a long period of time is known as the climate. The climate tells us how hot, cold or wet it is likely to be in different parts of the world at different times of year. For example, tropical countries have hot climates and the Antarctic has a cold climate. The climate may include four seasons a year - spring, summer, autumn and winter - or a wet and a dry season. Our climate depends on our position on the earth and our distance from the sun. We will learn more about this in the Days and Seasons section. What is weather forecasting? Weather experts use computer technology and data from stations and satellites all over the world to predict the weather. By carefully monitoring weather conditions it is possible to predict...
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