Download The Effects of Global Warming

The Effects of Global Warming
Dr. Joseph Costa, D.H.Sc., PA-C
Health Policy and Management
MPH 525
Brianna Loeck
April 2013
Table of Contents
Chapter
Page
1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………….3
2. The Concern…………..........................................................……………………………...…...4
3. Actions to be pursued……...…………………………………………………………………...6
4. Communicating to the public…………..………………………………………………………8
5. Theories.……………………………………………………………………………………… 10
6. Summary………..……………………………………………………………………………..11
Recommendations………………………………………………………………………………..12
References……………………………………………………………………………..…………13
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Chapter 1
Introduction
For the past several decades, global warming has been a very controversial topic. The
issues are: whether global warming is actually occurring, what are the causes of global warming
and how it is affecting our world. Lastly, what types of actions should be taken. Some people
would call it a hoax, but there are several people who truly believe this is happening and actions
need to be quickly taken.
The two terms, climate change, and global warming are interchangeable. However, some
people will say they have two completely different meanings. Both of these terms follow one
from the other.
According to the U.S Environmental Protection Agency, global warming is defined as:
“An average increase in the temperature of the atmosphere near the Earth’s surface and in the
troposphere, which can contribute to changes in global climate patterns. Global warming can
occur from a variety of causes, both natural and human induced. In common usage, “global
warming” often refers to the warming that can occur as a result of increased emissions of
greenhouse gases from human activities.”
While climate change is more local, it measures the effects of the continual warming
trend by temperature, rainfall, snow and wind patterns over the past decades.
This paper will be viewed from a public health professional standpoint on the effects of
global warming such as actions that should be taken towards prevention, and ways to inform and
communicate to the public on this subject matter. The author will also canvass, Communication
for Persuasion Theory, Cultivation Theory of Mass Media, Mass Community Theory, and how
they apply in getting the message out regarding global warming.
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Chapter 2
The Concern
Global warming resulting into climate change has numerous impacts in our communities
such as water resources, forests, agriculture, coastal areas, and wildlife. Additionally, major
health effects regarding humans.
The concern with global warming is our planet is slowly increasing in temperature. The
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates that our earth has warmed 1.2 to
1.4 degrees over the past century and projects a further 3 to 7 degrees over the 21st century (EPA,
2009). This is causing several noticeable environmental problems within the earth. The (NRDC)
Natural Resources Defense Council (2005) lists some of these particular issues in brief detail:
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Melting glaciers, early snowmelt and severe droughts will cause more dramatic water
shortages in the American West.
Rising sea levels will lead to coastal flooding on the Eastern seaboard, in Florida, and in
other areas, such as the Gulf of Mexico.
Warmer sea surface temperatures will fuel more intense hurricanes in the southeastern
Atlantic and Gulf coasts.
Forests, farms and cities will face troublesome new pests and more mosquito-borne
diseases.
Disruption of habitats such as coral reefs and alpine meadows could drive many plant and
animal species to extinction.
It has been known that the greatest concern is human-caused impacts towards the climate.
The growth of the human population is constantly increasing. People are continuously burning
fossil fuels such as oil, gas, and coal, which release a tremendous amount of greenhouse gas,
subsequently trapping more heat near the earth’s surface. The greenhouse effect is a natural
occurrence that helps regulate the temperature of our planet (EPA, 2009).
The greenhouse gas emissions cause the warming trend are likely to continue into the
future. The levels of these gases are increasing at faster rates then at any time in history. New
technology, alternative energy sources, and carbon markets have been developed to help reduce
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greenhouse gas emissions. However, among these developments it does not quickly solve the
issue at state here. It is very important to be educated regarding science behind global warming,
politics, and lifestyle choices, which influence trend in reducing emissions in the future.
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Chapter 3
Actions to be pursued
There are several ways to minimize emissions contributing to global warming. It is as
simple as using energy-efficient products within a home. Energy-efficient products classified as
Energy Star are becoming more popular without sacrificing features or functionality. Though it
may be an investment upfront, an individual and/or family will save money in the long run.
Energy Star is a government-backed program helping businesses and individuals protect the
environment through superior energy efficiency.
Appliances such as refrigerators, freezers, furnaces, air conditioners and water heaters
utilize a great deal of energy. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists (2012) “If each
household in the United States replaced its existing appliances with the most efficient models
available, we would save $15 billion in energy costs and eliminate 175 million tons of heattrapping gases.”
Exchanging light bulbs with energy-saving light bulbs such as compact fluorescents will
tremendously decrease heat-trapping pollution and increase savings on electric bills. “If
every household in the United States replaced one regular light bulb with an energy-saving
model, we could reduce global warming pollution by more than 90 billion pounds over the life of
the bulbs; the same as taking 6.3 million cars off the road” notes Union of Concerned Scientists
(2012).
The Union of Concerned Scientists (2012) mentions, “Each gallon of gas utilized is
responsible for 25 pounds of heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere.” Based on a full 20-gallon
tank, that is approximately 500 pounds of gases being emitted per vehicle. This is why
carpooling, walking, riding a bicycle, or public transportation are highly encouraged in
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communities because they are much more friendly towards the environment. Electric vehicles
are in production; electric cars provide a clean and safe alternative to internal combustion
engines. There are many pros and cons regarding electric cars. Electric vehicles are known for
faster acceleration but shorter-range distance. They produce no exhaust but require long
charging time.
When it comes to purchasing a vehicle, it is wise to look into a variety of vehicles. To
name a few, Honda Civic Hybrid, Toyota Prius, and the Kia Soul are extremely great on gas
mileage and will greatly cut down on contributing to global warming.
Another economical alternative is to expand the amount of plants and trees. Plants and
trees absorb CO2 as they grow carbon naturally, which then increases the amount of gases we
take out of the atmosphere. According to the Arbor Day Foundation, planting not only benefits
the climate, but also provide cooling shade, block cold winter winds, attract birds and wildlife,
purify our air, prevent soil erosion, clean our water, and add grace and beauty to homes and
communities.
If each person in the world was to partake in one or several of these actions listed above,
it would drastically cut down on the amount of emissions humans contribute towards global
warming. Each step would create a healthier world, as well as slow down the global warming
process.
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Chapter 4
Communicating to the public
Health communication is crucial to the field of public health in effecting behavior
change. The most important concept is to deliver the message to the public. There are several
effective tools for distribution of information such as: pamphlets, brochures, newsletters,
webpages, social networking, media, news stations, newspapers, flyers, radio stations and mobile
devices. The utmost essential is to ensure wide distribution to the public.
From a public health professional’s perspective, the target audience would be anyone
who has a home or business and utilizes electricity. It would be sensible to send emails, flyers,
brochures, pamphlets or new letters to local organizations, businesses, homes, schools as well as
public health facilities to guarantee information is being widely distributed across the
community. For educational purposes, professional speakers can go out to schools and present
knowledge and information on global warming.
Some individuals and/or families within communities who may be considered lowincome may not have access to numerous forms of technology. Broadcasting the message in
other forms such as delivering newspapers, pamphlets and distribution of flyers.
While global warming is a universal issue, it would be appropriate to reach out to
communities across the United States, as well as other countries if possible. Reaching out to
community centers, as well as local and state officials would be useful into connecting with
higher organizations such as the World Health Organization and Environmental Protection
Agency whom are extremely experienced.
A majority of people benefit greatly from a visual perspective when referring to behavior
change such as, attitudes, motivation and people's beliefs about their capabilities. For this reason
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being, the author believes it would be wise to utilize several types of visual resources. People
then become informed on how to assist the community as well as our nation, by partaking in
simple habits to cut down on the use of energy.
Good communication can rally support, calm a nervous public, provide much needed
information, encourage cooperative behaviors and help save lives. Poor communication can fan
emotions, disrupt economies and undermine confidence (WHO, 2005). Good communication
also consists of accurate, honest, credible and appropriate information. Without these features it
could lead to inaccurate and misunderstood information and responses. Incorporating facts,
statistics and pictures is also beneficial to receive the visual perspective. Another factor would
be to seek feedback on how well the message was delivered from which source the person had
read or heard. Be willing to be open for suggestions as well as criticism and pay attention to
your audience.
Though the topic of global warming is a concern to people, it has been relevant for
several decades and will continue throughout the future. The author believes that global
warming would not be considered an emergency action message compared to an emergency,
such as, an outbreak of a new unheard disease or main water source contaminatation in a
community. However, it would be necessary to send out periodic public messages and
information so people are reminded and are up-to-date.
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Chapter 5
Theories
The first theory regarding communication is the Communication for Persuasion Theory.
Persuasion is a process by which people use messages to influence others. McGaan (2010)
believes there are terms for persuasion, they list: Belief, value, motive, attitude, and behavior.
By incorporating each of these terms into a message it can help persuaders analyze the situation
and effectively create the message.
Next is the Cultivation Theory, which was developed by George Gerbner, a professor of
the University of Pennsylvania in the 1970’s. According to Shrum & Bischak (2001) “The
Cultivation theory is based on the premise that both the ubiquity and consistency of television
portrayals in American society have made it the primary source of information about the social
world.” Though this theory can have negative and positive impacts on how people comprehend
information, in this case regarding global warming, it would be positive. Viewers would benefit
from watching programs such as National Geographic and the Discovery Channel, as well the
local and national news. These stations are reliable and very informational which would aid in
carrying the message out.
The final theory is the Mass Communication Theory. The concept is, “when a source,
typically an organization, employs a technology as a medium to communicate with a large
audience” (Baran & Davis, 2010). Large, well-known organizations such as World Health
Organization (WHO) or Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are more likely to
grab the attention of viewers due to their quality and reliable material. An example of applying
mass communication would be the WHO using newsletters, flyers, or webpages to reach out to a
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large population on the topic of global warming. Once these types of organizations receive
information, they have the necessary tools and proper technology to successful deliver messages.
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Chapter 6
Summary
In conclusion, global warming and climate change are certainly affecting our world as
well as all the way down to us individuals. The world can truly benefit from people partaking in
many actions to prevent furthering global warming from occurring. Worthy, effective
communication is what can truly deliver a message towards the audience and will likely result in
the message being heard and understood. What would the viewer what to hear and see? Will the
information truly benefit them? The more you pay attention to your audience, the more chance
you have of getting them to hear the message you want.
Recommendation
The author of this paper recommends recognizing the resources that are available.
Though technology has and will always keep expanding, people should not only rely on new
developments to cut down on energy, humans have become a major contribution towards global
warming. There are several ways to reduce energy usage such as: using energy-saving light
bulbs, purchasing Energy Star appliances, carpooling or taking other ways of transportation. Inn
addition, tree and plants are a great benefit towards the community and atmosphere.
When communicating a message on global warming to the public, it is key to emphasis
the habits people can develop and continue through out their lives. If every household were to
gain one positive habit to reduce emission, it would significantly decrease the amount of pounds
we release to the atmosphere, which in turn will make it a much safer and healthier world to live
in.
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References
Baran, J.S., & Davis, K.D. (2010). Mass communications theory: foundations, ferment, and
future. Retrieved from http://site.iugaza.edu.ps/mamer/files/Mass-CommunicationTheory2.pdf
Environmental Protection Agency. (2009, April). Frequently ask question about global warming
and climate change: back to the basics. Retrieved from
http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/Downloads/wycd/Climate_Basics.pdf
McGaan, L. (2010). Introduction to persuasion. Retrieved from
http://department.monm.edu/cata/saved_files/Handouts/PERS.FSC.html
Natural Resources Defense Council. (2005, October). Global warming basics. Retrieved from
http://www.nrdc.org/globalwarming/f101.asp
Shrum, L.J., & Bischak, V.D. (2001, April). Mainstreaming, resonance, and impersonal impact.
Retrieved from http://cultivationanalysisrtvf173.pbworks.com/f/ResonanceJS.pdf
Union of Concerned Scientists. (2012). Global warming. Retrieved from
http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/what_you_can_do/ten-personal-solutions-to.html
World Health Organization. (2005, July). Effective media communication during public health
emergencies. Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/csr/resources/publications/WHO%20MEDIA%20HANDBOOK.pdf
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