Global Warming: Tackling the climate-change crisis

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Global warming has been a reality for many years. We have noticed increasingly hot summers and shorter and less severe winters. The year 2020 was the hottest year on record, and also the year of the highest carbon dioxide emissions. Also in 2020, the relentlessly cold Siberia temperatures rose to 100.4 degrees Farenheit.

What is Climate Change and How it affects us?

Climate change is a long-term change in temperature and typical weather patterns. Climate here indicates an area’s seasonal temperature and average rainfall and wind patterns, which vary according to the area.

One of the major signs and result of global warming is escalated water shortages in many countries. Predictions have been made that many regions will be hotter and have declining rains, causing many countries to fall below the water poverty line set by the United Nations.

The United Nations has been giving warnings about the rising populations and food demands, scarcer water and land resources, leading to increased food prices, exhausting of local crops, and farmers losing their livelihoods which might lead to civil unrest in some developing countries.

Climate Change Affects Public Health.

Increased spread of infectious diseases has been noticed as a result of global warming. Drying out and stagnation of large bodies of water breed mosquitoes, bringing in diseases like Dengue, malaria, West Nile disease and more. In the U.S. and Canada, hotter temperatures have bred ticks leading to Lyme disease.

Global warming has also led to longer allergy seasons, higher allergy symptoms, and more pollen.

More importantly, global warming has affected mental health, escalating the risk of aggressive behavior, post-traumatic stress disorder, and suicidal tendencies. Extreme heat often leads to higher levels of irritability, aggression and violent behavior.

Climate change is also affecting heart health of populations. The increased heat in the past 10 years has caused increased sweating, higher heart rate, higher blood pressure and systemic inflammation, leading to increased risk of heart disease, heart attacks and strokes.

Prolonged heat exposure can lead to higher incidence of dehydration, kidney stones and other chronic kidney diseases.

What is Climate Restoration?

Climate restoration, different from efforts at reducing future carbon dioxide emissions, is about the enormous mass of carbon dioxide which has been collecting in the atmosphere for two centuries. Climate restoration efforts will remove and store excess greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide.

Historically, oceans have been known to absorb a huge amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Cultivating seaweed on a large scale, restoring coastal ecosystem, planting more trees, creating more green surfaces, and cleaning up oceans would become part of climate restoration efforts. Ways to reduce atmospheric methane by 40 percent have to be discovered.

Climate restoration, today, also includes keeping a happy and healthy lifestyle. An individual’s happiness affects his or her interaction with the environment. This attitudinal change requires loving, respecting and enjoying the environment. According to a study by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Happiness Report (WHR), Denmark, Switzerland, Finland, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden and Austria ranked high on both the GDP and Happiness, while U.K., France and Germany ranked high on GDP. Happiness was measured by income, health, social support, freedom, generosity, and trust in public institutions.

Climate Change Solutions

There is still time. The need of the hour is to work together and focus on the solutions. One way to deal with climate change and bring agricultural stability on individual level is to regulate water usage, reduce unnecessary consumption of water, and eliminate water-waste. Governments would have to improve water management and make agricultural method and city planning a high priority.

Decreasing dependence on fossil fuels is an urgent need. Both public and private sectors of a country’s economy would have to invest in non-polluting and future-oriented technologies and agriculture, together with education and awareness.

Climate Change Solution is a Collective Effort

Governments around the world have engaged in many green policy initiatives, but their progress is not up to the mark of their promises. Overcoming climate change is possible only if everyone is involved.

Along with governments making policy changes and allocating funds towards implementation of new technologies, private sectors, including businesses, inventors, investors, and financial markets will have to work to bring about a significant change. Governments will have to provide incentives to individuals and businesses to create and innovate green technologies. Individuals will have to take the warming threat seriously and do their part in reducing waste and emissions, and contributing to public hygiene.

Educating and Raising Awareness

An important step towards getting everyone involved is educating and raising awareness. Earthday Organization, the global organizer of Earth Day, formed a Climate Education Coalition in November 2022. The coalition is made of more than 100 organizations and individuals around the world who will work to promote climate education for Earth Day 2023. The coalition’s goal is to establish compulsory climate education in schools globally.

As stated by the U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres, “The world is facing a grave climate emergency. Climate disruption is happening now, and it is happening to all of us.”