Download Global Climate Change and Social Justice

Past Climate Change
Changes in climate are not new
 Earth has experienced long cycles of
global warming and cooling
 Scientists have theories about why the
climate changes over long periods of
time
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 Sun intensity, earth’s tilt, etc.
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The past 1000 years have been very
stable – but the last century has
encountered extremely unusual trends
Greenhouse Effect
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The sun and the greenhouse gasses in the
earth troposphere keep earth warm and
hospitable
 Water, Carbon Dioxide, Methane, Nitrous Oxide
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The greenhouse effect keeps us alive
Last century greenhouse gas emissions have
skyrocketed
More greenhouse gasses in our atmosphere
trap the heat of the solar rays that reach earth
So, the more greenhouse gasses the more
heat stays on earth
Human Impact of Climate
Change
Clear link between our emissions and the
rise in global temperature
 Industrial Revolution sent CO2 emissions
and the global temperature on a rapidly
increasing trend
 We add to global warming by:
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 Using fossil fuels, burning coal for electricity,
cutting down forests, burning waste, and in tons
of other ways – these are the most common and
easily understood ways
Indicators of Climate Change
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The earth is the hottest it has even been in 1000
years
Since 1900, the average global temperature has
risen .6-.8°C with most of this increase since 1980
10 warmest years since the 1800s has been since
1990
In the last 50 years, arctic temperatures have risen
twice as fast as the temperature over the equator
Glaciers and sea ice are melting at alarming rates
“Permanent” Permafrost is melting in Alaska and
Siberia
Over the last century the sea level rose 20cm
Some Effects of Climate Change
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Melting snow and ice
 Will cause sea levels to rise and throw off currents
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Rising sea levels
 Will displace millions and harm our ability to produce food
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Changing ocean currents
 Will alter weather patterns and make inhabited areas uninhabitable and farmable
areas useless
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Warmer and more acidic seas
 Will also alter weather patterns and have catastrophic effects like those of the
changing ocean currents
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Changes in weather
 Will make inhabited areas uninhabitable or un-farmable
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Lowering of biodiversity
 Will cause extinctions – the extinction rate is already 1000x what it was 1000
years ago
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Overall decrease in farming and fishing
 Lower our ability to produce food and feed the growing population
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Increase death rate
Severely harm people’s way of life
Rising Sea Levels
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By 2100
 High projection +88cm
 Medium projection +50cm
 Low projection +10cm
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Flooding of coastal areas with massive
populations:
 Ex. New York, London, Buenos Aires,
Shanghai, etc.
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Submerge low-lying islands in Pacific
 Ex. Maldives
Rising Sea Levels Continued
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Contaminate coastal aquifers with
saltwater
 Would leave many developing countries
without water
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Flood agricultural lowlands and deltas in
southeast Asia
 Displacing millions of people
 Destroying Asia’s main food source (rice)
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Disrupt other food sources
 Agriculture and Fisheries
Effects on People
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Heat stress will be more frequent and kill more and more
people – especially elderly and sick
The spread of malaria, dengue fever, and yellow fever will
increase – especially in developing countries
More insects, and pests that will harm human populations
and food sources
Flooding and drought will produce 150-250 million
environmental refugees
An estimated 150,000 people die from a cause linked to
climate change
 Number expected to double by 2030
 Number expected to be in the millions by the next century
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Cultures are being destroyed and populations, especially in
developing countries, and starting to feel the effects of
climate change, but this is only the beginning
Highland Dwelling People of Peru
The potato is a very important crop
for the highland dwelling people of
Peru
 Climate change has lead to warmer
temperatures for this region which
has made the potatoes susceptible to
a plant disease that caused the Irish
potato famine
 Similarly to Ireland, for these people
the potato is not just a food but it is a
part of their culture and a necessity
that they cannot live without
 Communities in the mountains of
Peru that are being effected by the
loss of the potato are being forced to
move – those who are not are facing
many deaths in their communities due
to lack of food
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Indigenous Tribes of the Amazon
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Deforestation in the Amazon to
make roads not only eliminates
trees that clean CO2 out of the
atmosphere but also aids in the
spread of Malaria
The road construction creates
puddles that are perfect habitats
for infected mosquitoes
This is a prime example of how
the contributors of global warming
such as deforestation and air
pollution not only cause global
warming but hurt people as well –
this is a very common trend in
global warming contributors
Greek People of Crete
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This summer a heat wave
hit Crete that the islanders
will never forget
Temperatures caused
wildfires, electricity
blackouts and deaths
Farmland on the island has
dried up, some of which
has not recovered for this
years farming season
This is a great example of
how a slight change in
weather patterns can
greatly impact a community
Kenyan Tribes
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Water is becoming scarcer in
many parts of Africa due to an
increasingly dryer climate due
to climate change
Kenya is one place where
water is becoming a source of
conflict
Kenyan tribes are battling and
raiding each other’s villages
killing tons of people for
access to resources
The resources are shrinking
and water wars are not just
anticipated, they have started
Tuareg Tribes of the South
Sahara
The Tuareg people have a
culture of being nomads who
wander around Africa just south
of the Saharan desert
 They live off their animals and
survive by breeding and trading
them
 Recently, the Tuareg people
have been forced to settle down
and farm in one place due to
drought caused by an
increasingly dryer climate in
northern Africa – their traditional
way of life is no longer
sustainable
 This is a good example of how
climate change can even
destroy cultures and traditional
ways of life
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Residents of the Niger Delta
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Nigeria is Africa’s top oil exporting nation
The gas companies located in Nigeria
have been burning off unwanted natural
gas released during oil production
This flaring of unwanted gas emits more
CO2 and greenhouse gases more than
any other single source in Africa south of
the Sahara
The residences living around the area are
feeling the effects of the oil companies
doing this
Many chronic health and environmental
problems have been increasingly
problematic in the surrounding areas
The burning off of this unwanted gas is
ruining lives and adding to global climate
change – a very common trend
Tibetan Buddhists
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The Mingyong glacier is melting on the
Tibetan plateau.
Scientists project that the glacier is
receding at about 150 feet per year
The residences of a small village
surrounding the glacier are Buddhist, and
the glacier is one of the most holy peaks in
the Buddhist tradition
The disappearance of this holy place will
be a disaster for the Buddhist religion
In addition, if the glacier shrinks or
disappears, the number of people that will
go through the village will diminish and the
village’s source of income will be gone
This is an example of how even a religion
can be hurt as an effect of climate change
and global warming
People of the Maldives
The Maldives is a nation
in the Indian Ocean
made up of small lowlying islands
 80% of the 1,192 islands
that make up the nation
lie less than 1 meter
above sea level
 If sea levels rise at the
project rate, the country
will be under water and
its 295,000 inhabitants
will be forced to migrate
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Urban Populations of Developed
Countries
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70,000 Europeans died during a
heat wave four summers ago
Chicago, London, Athens and Tokyo
have had epidemics of fatal heat
stroke
These heat waves will become more
and more frequent and become
more and more intense as climate
change continues
Large cities toward the equator will
be hit the hardest, but the heat will
spread north and south from the
equator
The developed world is not exempt
from the effects of global warming
though we have resources to make
it less of a bother
Farmers in Australia
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Australia is the driest
inhabited continent
Most of Australia is getting
even drier, putting most
ranchers at risk of their
farmland becoming useless
while a few ranchers are
actually seeing an increase
of rain on their farm
This is common and a trend
that will be seen around the
world – some may actually
benefit from the changes (i.e.
Canada), but most will not
The cons heavily outweigh
the pros
Venetians
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Venetians no longer live on
the ground floor
Rising sea levels have
caused the entire city to move
upstairs
The water is now 11 inches
higher than it was 100 years
ago
This has caused many of the
buildings to flood and become
useless
A vital part of Italian culture
will soon have to be
abandoned if climate change
continues on its current path
Dealing With Global Warming
Cutting fossil fuels
 Shift to more efficient energy sources
 Transfer energy efficiency to developing
countries
 Reduce deforestation
 Use more sustainable agriculture
 Reduce poverty
 Slow population growth
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What You Can Do
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Drive a fuel-efficient car, bike, carpool, and use mass
transit
Use energy efficient windows
Use energy efficient appliances and lights
Heavily insulate your home
Use compact fluorescent light bulbs
Plant trees
Wash laundry in warm or cold water
Use low-flow shower head
Buy products from companies who support the
environmental movement
Demand that government make climate change an
urgent priority
Our Duty
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We are the one’s who are capable of making this
change
It is our duty to do so for the sake of all those who
will be the most greatly impacted – the
impoverished
We do not feel the consequences, but it is our duty
to ameliorate the situation
Do your part, in every way you are helping prevent
climate change you are helping the impoverished
people of the world
It is all of our duties to be a steward of the earth
Take part in a mission trip through your own home
– go green!
Sources
http://www.npr.org
 http://www.epa.gov
 http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ab
outcc/
 www.edf.org
 www.globalwarming.org
 www.cosum.org/global_warming_as_a
_stewardship.html
 Living Justice and Peace
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