Climate Change

From December 7 until December 18 there will be a conference held in Copenhagen where 192 countries will come together to discuss climate change. “It has been billed as the last-chance saloon; a final opportunity for the world to seal a deal to prevent catastrophic climate change.” Their goal is to create a deal that will decrease global greenhouse gas emissions and also that will prevent a rise in temperature by more than two degrees Celsius. “Scientists believe that any increase above this level would be the tipping point for irreversible damage…” Even though this temperature increase is extremely small, it could have devastating effects for thousands of people.

“Governments want the new treaty to encompass more nations and more sources of greenhouse gases, such as forestry and changing land use. They also want to create a framework for wealthy countries to supply money and technology to poor nations to help them to adapt to and reduce the inevitable impacts of climate change. They are keen to refine a global trading regime for carbon emissions to help to cute greenhouse gases from industry.”

This new treaty not only calls for the large carbon emitters, to decrease their emissions but for the more developed and advanced neighbors to help those not as well off as they are.

The other day in class we discussed how it would take a drastic and large change to have any chance of “saving” the Earth. This meeting is a great example of how people are starting to realize this. Although the article did say that “Copenhagen may merely mark the start of a long period of uncertainty over global carbon regulation that may take years to resolve” at least someone is starting to make a change. This meeting may just be the beginning of making a change, but at least it is something.

The article, Fight Global Warming: Wear a Condom, discusses how some think that the rapid population growth is leading to an increase in global warming. It is obviously true that humans do have an effect on global warming. As humans have increased their energy usage, they have also changed atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases, Earth’s climate, increased population from the millions to billions, greatly increased per capita energy usage, and reduced available resources. Overall they have drastically changed their own overall lifestyle. However, it is also true that humans are the only ones who can solve this problem they have created for themselves. This conference is hopefully a key step to helping the population make a change and hopefully reduce emissions, and help control climate change.

• Help Fight Global Warming: Wear a Condom by Maria Cheng

• Times online

20,000 people, 192 countries. Welcome to the carbon circus by Robin Pagnamenta

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/science/earth-environment/article6888246.ece

• The Human Side of Climate Change, Part 1, Class lecture