essay hook about climate change

10 Example-Hooks for the Introduction to Climate Change College Essay

An essay is only as strong as its hook. If you can’t grab your reader’s attention right within the first few sentences, you won’t have it throughout the rest of the essay, either. Don’t bore your reader! Instead, use a captivating hook to ensnare them from the first few words.

A hook can be something that is intriguing, hilarious, or even shocking. The goal of a hook is to create a powerful emotional connection with the reader. As the writer, you have a few options. You might consider beginning with a series of questions, a challenging statement, a little-known fact, a quotation, or some fascinating background information. For an essay containing an introduction to climate change, consider a few of the following hooks.

Start with a Quote

Find out a famous person who has touched the discussed issue. Make your audience mull over his/her words as well as provide their own thoughts.

Start with a quote : “Climate change is happening, humans are causing it, and I think this is perhaps the most serious environmental issue facing us.”-Bill Nye
Start with a quote : “Humanity faces many threats, but none is greater than climate change. In damaging our climate, we are becoming the architects of our own destruction. We have the knowledge, the tools, and the money (to solve the crisis).”-Prince Charles, U.K.
Start with a quote : “Global warming isn’t a prediction. It is happening.”- James Hansen

Start with a Fact

Provide some interesting information about the particular issue you disclose. This will make your listeners and readers involved in the problem. Make sure the fact is on point and fresh that no one knows about.

Start with a fact : “The planet’s average surface temperature has risen by two degrees Fahrenheit since the 1900s. This change is unrivaled by any others in recorded–or estimated–history.”
Start with a fact : “2016 was the warmest year on record, with eight months setting record temperature highs around the globe.”

Start with a Question

Make your audience discuss the issue. This will help you not only make them interested in the problem but also present their own thoughts that might be also quite catchy to discuss.

Start with a question : “What have you done lately to help prevent global warming?”
Start with a question : “Think about how the weather has changed since you were a child. Has the weather gradually turned warmer? Colder? Perhaps you notice more snowfall or hotter summer temperatures. These are all caused directly by climate change and global warming.”
Start with a question : “How does climate change affect you personally?”

Shock Your Audience

Tell something that will shock your audience. It will make them interested. But again, this has to be a real shock, not something that everyone is talking about for the last three years.

Start with a shock : “Global sea levels have risen eight inches over the last century. In the last two decades alone, the rate of rise has nearly doubled. This is a direct cause of melting ice caps and increased global temperatures. If this rise continues, entire countries, such as Bangladesh, could be underwater.”
Start with a shock : “If everyone in the world lives as Americans do, it would take five Earths to produce enough resources. Just five countries, including the United States, contribute to more than 50 percent of the world’s harmful CO2 emissions.”

What do all of these hooks have in common? They tell you just enough information to get you interested but want to learn more at the same time. It is often difficult to write a stellar hook until you have already–or nearly–finished writing your essay. After all, you often don’t know the direction your paper is going to take until it is completed. Many strong writers wait to write the hook last, as this helps guide the direction of the introduction. Consider drafting a few sample hooks and then choose the best. The best essay will be the one that involves revision and updating–keep trying new hooks until you find the perfect, most intriguing, hook of them all.

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Argumentative Essay Writing

Argumentative Essay About Climate Change

Make Your Case: A Guide to Writing an Argumentative Essay on Climate Change

Published on: Mar 2, 2023

Last updated on: Jan 31, 2024

What is an Argumentative Essay about Climate Change?

The main focus will be on trying to prove that global warming is caused by human activities. Your goal should be to convince your readers that human activity is causing climate change.

To achieve this, you will need to use a variety of research methods to collect data on the topic. You need to make an argument as to why climate change needs to be taken more seriously.

Argumentative Essay Outline about Climate Change

An argumentative essay about climate change requires a student to take an opinionated stance on the subject.

The outline of your paper should include the following sections:

Argumentative Essay About Climate Change Introduction

The first step is to introduce the topic and provide an overview of the main points you will cover in the essay.

This should include a brief description of what climate change is. Furthermore, it should include current research on how humans are contributing to global warming.

An example is:

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Thesis Statement For Climate Change Argumentative Essay

The thesis statement should be a clear and concise description of your opinion on the topic. It should be established early in the essay and reiterated throughout.

For example, an argumentative essay about climate change could have a thesis statement such as:

Climate Change Argumentative Essay Conclusion

The conclusion should restate your thesis statement and summarize the main points of the essay.

It should also provide a call to action, encouraging readers to take steps toward addressing climate change.

For example,

How To Write An Argumentative Essay On Climate Change

Writing an argumentative essay about climate change requires a student to take an opinionated stance on the subject.

Following are the steps to follow for writing an argumentative essay about climate change

Do Your Research

The first step is researching the topic and collecting evidence to back up your argument.

You should look at scientific research, articles, and data on climate change as well as current policy solutions.

Pick A Catchy Title

Once you have gathered your evidence, it is time to pick a title for your essay. It should be specific and concise.

Outline Your Essay

After selecting a title, create an outline of the main points you will include in the essay.

This should include an introduction, body paragraphs that provide evidence for your argument, and a conclusion.

Compose Your Essay

Finally, begin writing your essay. Start with an introduction that provides a brief overview of the main points you will cover and includes your thesis statement.

Then move on to the body paragraphs, providing evidence to back up your argument.

Finally, conclude the essay by restating your thesis statement and summarizing the main points.

Proofread and Revise

Once you have finished writing the essay, it is important to proofread and revise your work.

Check for any spelling or grammatical errors, and make sure the argument is clear and logical.

Finally, consider having someone else read over the essay for a fresh perspective.

By following these steps, you can create an effective argumentative essay on climate change. Good luck!

Examples Of Argumentative Essays About Climate Change

Climate Change is real and happening right now. It is one of the most urgent environmental issues that we face today.

Argumentative essays about this topic can help raise awareness that we need to protect our planet.

Below you will find some examples of argumentative essays on climate change written by CollegeEssay.orgâs expert essay writers.

Argumentative Essay About Climate Change And Global Warming

Persuasive Essay About Climate Change

Argumentative Essay About Climate Change In The Philippines

Argumentative Essay About Climate Change Caused By Humans

Geography Argumentative Essay About Climate Change

Check our extensive blog on argumentative essay examples to ace your next essay!

Good Argumentative Essay Topics About Climate Change

Choosing a great topic is essential to help your readers understand and engage with the issue.

Here are some suggestions:

Should governments fund projects that will reduce the effects of climate change?
Is it too late to stop global warming and climate change?
Are international treaties effective in reducing carbon dioxide emissions?
What are the economic implications of climate change?
Should renewable energy be mandated as a priority over traditional fossil fuels?
How can individuals help reduce their carbon footprint and fight climate change?
Are regulations on industry enough to reduce global warming and climate change?
Could geoengineering be used to mitigate climate change?
What are the social and political effects of global warming and climate change?
Should companies be held accountable for their contribution to climate change?

Check our comprehensive blog on argumentative essay topics to get more topic ideas!

We hope these topics and resources help you write a great argumentative essay about climate change.

Now that you know how to write an argumentative essay about climate change, itâs time to put your skills to the test.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good introduction to climate change.

An introduction to a climate change essay can include a short description of why the topic is important and/or relevant.

It can also provide an overview of what will be discussed in the body of the essay.

The introduction should conclude with a clear, focused thesis statement that outlines the main argument in your essay.

What is a good thesis statement for climate change?

A good thesis statement for a climate change essay should state the main point or argument you will make in your essay.

You could argue that “The science behind climate change is irrefutable and must be addressed by governments, businesses, and individuals.”

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Climate Change Essay for Students and Children

500+ words climate change essay.

Climate change refers to the change in the environmental conditions of the earth. This happens due to many internal and external factors. The climatic change has become a global concern over the last few decades. Besides, these climatic changes affect life on the earth in various ways. These climatic changes are having various impacts on the ecosystem and ecology. Due to these changes, a number of species of plants and animals have gone extinct.

When Did it Start?

The climate started changing a long time ago due to human activities but we came to know about it in the last century. During the last century, we started noticing the climatic change and its effect on human life. We started researching on climate change and came to know that the earth temperature is rising due to a phenomenon called the greenhouse effect. The warming up of earth surface causes many ozone depletion, affect our agriculture , water supply, transportation, and several other problems.

Reason Of Climate Change

Although there are hundreds of reason for the climatic change we are only going to discuss the natural and manmade (human) reasons.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Natural Reasons

These include volcanic eruption , solar radiation, tectonic plate movement, orbital variations. Due to these activities, the geographical condition of an area become quite harmful for life to survive. Also, these activities raise the temperature of the earth to a great extent causing an imbalance in nature.

Human Reasons

Man due to his need and greed has done many activities that not only harm the environment but himself too. Many plant and animal species go extinct due to human activity. Human activities that harm the climate include deforestation, using fossil fuel , industrial waste , a different type of pollution and many more. All these things damage the climate and ecosystem very badly. And many species of animals and birds got extinct or on a verge of extinction due to hunting.

Effects Of Climatic Change

These climatic changes have a negative impact on the environment. The ocean level is rising, glaciers are melting, CO2 in the air is increasing, forest and wildlife are declining, and water life is also getting disturbed due to climatic changes. Apart from that, it is calculated that if this change keeps on going then many species of plants and animals will get extinct. And there will be a heavy loss to the environment.

What will be Future?

If we do not do anything and things continue to go on like right now then a day in future will come when humans will become extinct from the surface of the earth. But instead of neglecting these problems we start acting on then we can save the earth and our future.

Although humans mistake has caused great damage to the climate and ecosystem. But, it is not late to start again and try to undo what we have done until now to damage the environment. And if every human start contributing to the environment then we can be sure of our existence in the future.

{ “@context”: “https://schema.org”, “@type”: “FAQPage”, “mainEntity”: [ { “@type”: “Question”, “name”: “What is climate change and how it affects humans?”, “acceptedAnswer”: { “@type”: “Answer”, “text”: “Climate change is a phenomenon that happens because of human and natural reasons. And it is one of the most serious problems that not only affect the environment but also human beings. It affects human in several ways but in simple language, we can say that it causes many diseases and disasters that destroy life on earth.” } }, { “@type”: “Question”, “name”: “Can we stop these climatic changes?”, “acceptedAnswer”: { “@type”: “Answer”, “text”: “Yes, we can stop these climatic changes but for that, every one of us has to come forward and has to adapt ways that can reduce and control our bad habits that affect the environment. We have to the initiative and make everyone aware of the climatic changes.” } } ] }

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6.4 Annotated Student Sample: “Slowing Climate Change” by Shawn Krukowski

Learning outcomes.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

Identify the features common to proposals.
Analyze the organizational structure of a proposal and how writers develop ideas.
Articulate how writers use and cite evidence to build credibility.
Identify sources of evidence within a text and in source citations.

Introduction

The proposal that follows was written by student Shawn Krukowski for a first-year composition course. Shawn’s assignment was to research a contemporary problem and propose one or more solutions. Deeply concerned about climate change, Shawn chose to research ways to slow the process. In his proposal, he recommends two solutions he thinks are most promising.

Living by Their Own Words

A call to action.

student sample text The earth’s climate is changing. Although the climate has been changing slowly for the past 22,000 years, the rate of change has increased dramatically. Previously, natural climate changes occurred gradually, sometimes extending over thousands of years. Since the mid-20th century, however, climate change has accelerated exponentially, a result primarily of human activities, and is reaching a crisis level. end student sample text

student sample text Critical as it is, however, climate change can be controlled. Thanks to current knowledge of science and existing technologies, it is possible to respond effectively. Although many concerned citizens, companies, and organizations in the private sector are taking action in their own spheres, other individuals, corporations, and organizations are ignoring, or even denying, the problem. What is needed to slow climate change is unified action in two key areas—mitigation and adaptation—spurred by government leadership in the United States and a global commitment to addressing the problem immediately. end student sample text

annotated text Introduction. The proposal opens with an overview of the problem and pivots to the solution in the second paragraph. end annotated text

annotated text Thesis Statement. The thesis statement in last sentence of the introduction previews the organization of the proposal and the recommended solutions. end annotated text

Problem: Negative Effects of Climate Change

annotated text Heading. Centered, boldface headings mark major sections of the proposal. end annotated text

annotated text Body. The three paragraphs under this heading discuss the problem. end annotated text

annotated text Topic Sentence. The paragraph opens with a sentence stating the topics developed in the following paragraphs. end annotated text

student sample text For the 4,000 years leading up to the Industrial Revolution, global temperatures remained relatively constant, with a few dips of less than 1°C. Previous climate change occurred so gradually that life forms were able to adapt to it. Some species became extinct, but others survived and thrived. In just the past 100 years, however, temperatures have risen by approximately the same amount that they rose over the previous 4,000 years. end student sample text

annotated text Audience. Without knowing for sure the extent of readers’ knowledge of climate change, the writer provides background for them to understand the problem. end annotated text

student sample text The rapid increase in temperature has a negative global impact. First, as temperatures rise, glaciers and polar ice are melting at a faster rate; in fact, by the middle of this century, the Arctic Ocean is projected to be ice-free in summer. As a result, global sea levels are projected to rise from two to four feet by 2100 (U.S. Global Change Research Program [USGCRP], 2014a). If this rise actually does happen, many coastal ecosystems and human communities will disappear. end student sample text

annotated text Discussion of the Problem. The first main point of the problem is discussed in this paragraph. end annotated text

annotated text Statistics as Evidence. The writer provides specific numbers and cites the source in APA style. end annotated text

annotated text Transitions . The writer uses transitions here (first, as a result , and second in the next paragraph) and elsewhere to make connections between ideas and to enable readers to follow them more easily. At the same time, the transitions give the proposal coherence. end annotated text

student sample text Second, weather of all types is becoming more extreme: heat waves are hotter, cold snaps are colder, and precipitation patterns are changing, causing longer droughts and increased flooding. Oceans are becoming more acidic as they increase their absorption of carbon dioxide. This change affects coral reefs and other marine life. Since the 1980s, hurricanes have increased in frequency, intensity, and duration. As shown in Figure 6.5, the 2020 hurricane season was the most active on record, with 30 named storms, a recording-breaking 11 storms hitting the U.S. coastline (compared to 9 in 1916), and 10 named storms in September—the highest monthly number on record. Together, these storms caused more than $40 billion in damage. Not only was this the fifth consecutive above-normal hurricane season, it was preceded by four consecutive above-normal years in 1998 to 2001 (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2020). end student sample text

annotated text Discussion of the Problem. The second main point of the problem is discussed in this paragraph. end annotated text

annotated text Visual as Evidence. The writer refers to “Figure 6.4” in the text and places the figure below the paragraph. end annotated text

annotated text Source Citation in APA Style: Visual. The writer gives the figure a number, a title, an explanatory note, and a source citation. The source is also cited in the list of references. end annotated text

Solutions: Mitigation and Adaptation

annotated text Heading. The centered, boldface heading marks the start of the solutions section of the proposal. end annotated text

annotated text Body. The eight paragraphs under this heading discuss the solutions given in the thesis statement. end annotated text

student sample text To control the effects of climate change, immediate action in two key ways is needed: mitigation and adaptation. Mitigating climate change by reducing and stabilizing the carbon emissions that produce greenhouse gases is the only long-term way to avoid a disastrous future. In addition, adaptation is imperative to allow ecosystems, food systems, and development to become more sustainable. end student sample text

student sample text Mitigation and adaptation will not happen on their own; action on such a vast scale will require governments around the globe to take initiatives. The United States needs to cooperate with other nations and assume a leadership role in fighting climate change. end student sample text

annotated text Objective Stance. The writer presents evidence (facts, statistics, and examples) in neutral, unemotional language, which builds credibility, or ethos, with readers. end annotated text

annotated text Heading. The flush-left, boldface heading marks the first subsection of the solutions. end annotated text

annotated text Topic Sentence. The paragraph opens with a sentence stating the solution developed in the following paragraphs. end annotated text

student sample text The first challenge is to reduce the flow of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The Union of Concerned Scientists (2020) warns that “net zero” carbon emissions—meaning that no more carbon enters the atmosphere than is removed—needs to be reached by 2050 or sooner. As shown in Figure 6.6, reducing carbon emissions will require a massive effort, given the skyrocketing rate of increase of greenhouse gases since 1900 (USGCRP, 2014b). end student sample text

annotated text Synthesis. In this paragraph, the writer synthesizes factual evidence from two sources and cites them in APA style. end annotated text

annotated text Visual as Evidence. The writer refers to “Figure 6.5” in the text and places the figure below the paragraph. end annotated text

student sample text Significant national policy changes must be made and must include multiple approaches; here are two areas of concern: end student sample text

annotated text Presentation of Solutions. For clarity, the writer numbers the two items to be discussed. end annotated text

student sample text 1. Transportation systems. In the United States in 2018, more than one-quarter—28.2 percent—of emissions resulted from the consumption of fossil fuels for transportation. More than half of these emissions came from passenger cars, light-duty trucks, sport utility vehicles, and minivans (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], 2020). Priorities for mitigation should include using fuels that emit less carbon; improving fuel efficiency; and reducing the need for travel through urban planning, telecommuting and videoconferencing, and biking and pedestrian initiatives. end student sample text

annotated text Source Citation in APA Style: Group Author. The parenthetical citation gives the group’s name, an abbreviation to be used in subsequent citations, and the year of publication. end annotated text

student sample text Curtailing travel has a demonstrable effect. Scientists have recorded a dramatic drop in emissions during government-imposed travel and business restrictions in 2020. Intended to slow the spread of COVID-19, these restrictions also decreased air pollution significantly. For example, during the first six weeks of restrictions in the San Francisco Bay area, traffic was reduced by about 45 percent, and emissions were roughly a quarter lower than the previous six weeks. Similar findings were observed around the globe, with reductions of up to 80 percent (Bourzac, 2020). end student sample text

annotated text Source Citation in APA Style: One Author. The parenthetical citation gives the author’s name and the year of publication. end annotated text

student sample text 2. Energy production. The second-largest source of emissions is the use of fossil fuels to produce energy, primarily electricity, which accounted for 26.9 percent of U.S. emissions (EPA, 2020). Fossil fuels can be replaced by solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal sources. Solar voltaic systems have the potential to become the least expensive energy in the world (Green America, 2020). Solar sources should be complemented by wind power, which tends to increase at night when the sun is absent. According to the Copenhagen Consensus, the most effective way to combat climate change is to increase investment in green research and development (Lomborg, 2020). Notable are successes in the countries of Morocco and The Gambia, both of which have committed to investing in national programs to limit emissions primarily by generating electricity from renewable sources (Mulvaney, 2019). end student sample text

annotated text Synthesis. The writer develops the paragraph by synthesizing evidence from four sources and cites them in APA style. end annotated text

student sample text A second way to move toward net zero is to actively remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Forests and oceans are so-called “sinks” that collect and store carbon (EPA, 2020). Tropical forests that once made up 12 percent of global land masses now cover only 5 percent, and the loss of these tropical forest sinks has caused 16 to 19 percent of greenhouse gas emissions (Green America, 2020). Worldwide reforestation is vital and demands both commitment and funding on a global scale. New technologies also allow “direct air capture,” which filers carbon from the air, and “carbon capture,” which prevents it from leaving smokestacks. end student sample text

student sample text All of these technologies should be governmentally supported and even mandated, where appropriate. end student sample text

annotated text Synthesis. The writer develops the paragraph by synthesizing evidence from two sources and cites them in APA style. end annotated text

annotated text Heading. The flush-left, boldface heading marks the second subsection of the solutions. end annotated text

student sample text Historically, civilizations have adapted to climate changes, sometimes successfully, sometimes not. Our modern civilization is largely the result of climate stability over the past 12,000 years. However, as the climate changes, humans must learn to adapt on a national, community, and individual level in many areas. While each country sets its own laws and regulations, certain principles apply worldwide. end student sample text

student sample text 1. Infrastructure. Buildings—residential, commercial, and industrial—produce about 33 percent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide (Biello, 2007). Stricter standards for new construction, plus incentives for investing in insulation and other improvements to existing structures, are needed. Development in high-risk areas needs to be discouraged. Improved roads and transportation systems would help reduce fuel use. Incentives for decreasing energy consumption are needed to reduce rising demands for power. end student sample text

student sample text 2. Food waste. More than 30 percent of the food produced in the United States is never consumed, and food waste causes 44 gigatons of carbon emissions a year (Green America, 2020). In a landfill, the nutrients in wasted food never return to the soil; instead, methane, a greenhouse gas, is produced. High-income countries such as the United States need to address wasteful processing and distribution systems. Low-income countries, on the other hand, need an infrastructure that supports proper food storage and handling. Educating consumers also must be a priority. end student sample text

annotated text Source Citation in APA Style: Group Author. The parenthetical citation gives the group’s name and the year of publication. end annotated text

student sample text 3. Consumerism. People living in consumer nations have become accustomed to abundance. Many purchases are nonessential yet consume fossil fuels to manufacture, package, market, and ship products. During World War II, the U.S. government promoted the slogan “Use It Up, Wear It Out, Make It Do, or Do Without.” This attitude was widely accepted because people recognized a common purpose in the war effort. A similar shift in mindset is needed today. end student sample text

student sample text Adaptation is not only possible but also economically advantageous. One case study is Walmart, which is the world’s largest company by revenue. According to Dearn (2020), the company announced a plan to reduce its global emissions to zero by 2040. Among the goals is powering its facilities with 100 percent renewable energy and using electric vehicles with zero emissions. As of 2020, about 29 percent of its energy is from renewable sources. Although the 2040 goal applies to Walmart facilities only, plans are underway to reduce indirect emissions, such as those from its supply chain. According to CEO Doug McMillon, the company’s commitment is to “becoming a regenerative company—one that works to restore, renew and replenish in addition to preserving our planet, and encourages others to do the same” (Dearn, 2020). In addition to encouraging other corporations, these goals present a challenge to the government to take action on climate change. end student sample text

annotated text Extended Example as Evidence. The writer indicates where borrowed information from the source begins and ends, and cites the source in APA style. end annotated text

annotated text Source Citation in APA Style: One Author. The parenthetical citation gives only the year of publication because the author’s name is cited in the sentence. end annotated text

Objections to Taking Action

annotated text Heading. The centered, boldface heading marks the start of the writer’s discussion of potential objections to the proposed solutions. end annotated text

annotated text Body. The writer devotes two paragraphs to objections. end annotated text

student sample text Despite scientific evidence, some people and groups deny that climate change is real or, if they admit it exists, insist it is not a valid concern. Those who think climate change is not a problem point to Earth’s millennia-long history of changing climate as evidence that life has always persisted. However, their claims do not consider the difference between “then” and “now.” Most of the change predates human civilization, which has benefited from thousands of years of stable climate. The rapid change since the Industrial Revolution is unprecedented in human history. end student sample text

student sample text Those who deny climate change or its dangers seek primarily to relax or remove pollution standards and regulations in order to protect, or maximize profit from, their industries. To date, their lobbying has been successful. For example, the world’s fossil-fuel industry received $5.3 trillion in 2015 alone, while the U.S. wind-energy industry received $12.3 billion in subsidies between 2000 and 2020 (Green America, 2020). end student sample text

Conclusion and Recommendation

annotated text Heading. The centered, boldface heading marks the start of the conclusion and recommendation. end annotated text

annotated text Conclusion and Recommendation. The proposal concludes with a restatement of the proposed solutions and a call to action. end annotated text

student sample text Greenhouse gases can be reduced to acceptable levels; the technology already exists. But that technology cannot function without strong governmental policies prioritizing the environment, coupled with serious investment in research and development of climate-friendly technologies. end student sample text

student sample text The United States government must place its full support behind efforts to reduce greenhouse gasses and mitigate climate change. Rejoining the Paris Agreement is a good first step, but it is not enough. Citizens must demand that their elected officials at the local, state, and national levels accept responsibility to take action on both mitigation and adaptation. Without full governmental support, good intentions fall short of reaching net-zero emissions and cannot achieve the adaptation in attitude and lifestyle necessary for public compliance. There is no alternative to accepting this reality. Addressing climate change is too important to remain optional. end student sample text

Biello, D. (2007, May 25). Combatting climate change: Farming out global warming solutions. Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/combating-climate-change-farming-forestry/

Bourzac, K. (2020, September 25). COVID-19 lockdowns had strange effects on air pollution across the globe. Chemical & Engineering News. https://cen.acs.org/environment/atmospheric-chemistry/COVID-19-lockdowns-had-strange-effects-on-air-pollution-across-the-globe/98/i37

Dearn, G. (2020, September 21). Walmart said it will eliminate its carbon footprint by 2040 — but not for its supply chain, which makes up the bulk of its emissions. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/walmart-targets-zero-carbon-emissions-2040-not-suppliers-2020-9

Green America (2020). Top 10 solutions to reverse climate change. https://www.greenamerica.org/climate-change-100-reasons-hope/top-10-solutions-reverse-climate-change.

Lomborg, B. (2020, July 17). The alarm about climate change is blinding us to sensible solutions. The Globe and Mail. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-the-alarm-about-climate-change-is-blinding-us-to-sensible-solutions/

Mulvaney, K. (2019, September 19). Climate change report card: These countries are reaching targets. National Geographic . https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/09/climate-change-report-card-co2-emissions/

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (2020, November 24). Record-breaking Atlantic hurricane season draws to an end. https://www.noaa.gov/media-release/record-breaking-atlantic-hurricane-season-draws-to-end

Union of Concerned Scientists (2020). Climate solutions. https://www.ucsusa.org/climate/solutions

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2020). Sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse Gas Emissions. https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-emissions

U.S. Global Change Research Program (2014a). Melting ice. National Climate Assessment. https://nca2014.globalchange.gov/report/our-changing-climate/melting-ice

U.S. Global Change Research Program (2014b). Our changing climate. National Climate Assessment. https://nca2014.globalchange.gov/highlights/report-findings/our-changing-climate#tab1-images

annotated text References Page in APA Style. All sources cited in the text of the report—and only those sources—are listed in alphabetical order with full publication information. See the Handbook for more on APA documentation style. end annotated text

The following link takes you to another model of an annotated sample paper on solutions to animal testing posted by the University of Arizona’s Global Campus Writing Center.

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Introductory essay

Written by the educators who created Climate Change, a brief look at the key facts, tough questions and big ideas in their field. Begin this TED Study with a fascinating read that gives context and clarity to the material.

The greenhouse effect has been detected, and it is changing our climate now. James Hansen, June 24, 1988

The drought that crippled much of the U.S. and Canada in 1988-89 was the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history prior to Hurricane Katrina. It spawned dust storms in the Midwest and forest fires in Yellowstone National Park. That summer, thousands died during an intense heat wave.

It was against this backdrop, on a 101-degree day in the nation's capital, that NASA scientist James Hansen delivered his landmark testimony to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The next day, The New York Times ran a headline that read "Global Warming Has Begun, Expert Warns." Coverage of Hansen's testimony by the Times and other national and global media organizations transformed climate change from a relatively obscure scientific topic to one that people began to discuss over dinner, in the pub, at school and at work.

It remained newsworthy over the rest of that pivotal year. Days after Hansen's testimony, the World Meteorological Association (WMO) hosted a conference called "Our Changing Atmosphere," one of the earliest international climate change gatherings. 300 scientists and policy makers representing 46 countries attended. Participants called upon countries to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20 percent or more by 2005, and by the end of the year the WMO and the United Nations Environment Program had established the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher famously became one of the first world leaders to talk about climate change in a speech delivered that September to the Royal Society. "For generations, we have assumed that the efforts of mankind would leave the fundamental equilibrium of the world's systems and atmosphere stable," remarked Thatcher. "But it is possible that… we have unwittingly begun a massive experiment with the system of this planet itself." In this speech and others she gave during the remainder of her tenure, Thatcher advocated for expanded climate research and for policies that would safeguard the environment and promote sustainable development.

As global public awareness of the issue grew in the 1980s and beyond, the science and its significance were vigorously debated. Is there credible evidence that climate change is real? If it's real, when and how will we feel its effects? If it's real, what should be done, and who should do it? (Thatcher herself reversed position many years later, calling climate change "the doomsters' favorite subject" predicated on science that is "extremely obscure" and leading to "worldwide, supra-national socialism.")

Climate change is still hotly contested and the debate is often shrill, with skeptics branded as "climate deniers" and activists derisively labeled "warmists." Tensions are palpable, as when nearly 800 NGO representatives walked out of the 2013 international climate negotiations in Poland.

How has climate change become so politicized? It requires us to tackle thorny ethical and economic dilemmas, like how the least developed nations will cope with the effects of climate change and who should help them. It highlights serious structural issues like how to reckon with entrenched carbon-based industry interests and the connected yet complex resistances to decarbonization efforts. It calls for global governmental collaboration on an unprecedented scale. Atmospheric chemist Rachel Pike comments, "It goes, of course, to the top of our sky, but it goes to the bottom of the ocean, to every corner of the globe. It's every nation, every people. It's political, it's economic, it requires debate; it's scientific, it's engineering. It's the biggest problem you could ever imagine." It's no surprise, then, that climate change prompts a range of individual psychological and collective societal responses—avoidance, fatalism, denial, paralysis and wishful thinking, to name a few.

It's also not surprising that the scientific evidence is contested, given that the indicators of climate change -- like changing precipitation patterns over decadal time scales -- may be difficult for ordinary citizens to detect, and given what's at stake once we acknowledge that those indicators are correct. Initially -- and even today, despite the fact that we've reached the gold standard for scientific certainty -- some have questioned the quantity and quality of the evidence, feeding the public's perception that the science is half-baked. In reality, by the time Hansen delivered his congressional testimony in 1988, he'd been researching the relationship between atmospheric components and temperature since the 1960s, building upon a line of scientific inquiry stretching back at least a century.

A crash course on climate science

During the previous century, French physicist Joseph Fourier (1821) and Irish physicist John Tyndall (1861) described the Earth's natural "greenhouse effect" whereby water vapor and other gases in the atmosphere regulate the planet's surface temperatures. By the end of the 1800s, Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius had made the prediction that industrialized coal-burning would intensify the natural greenhouse effect. Remarkably, when Arrhenius calculated the quantitative effects on temperature his results were relatively close to what's predicted by modern climate change models.

In the 1930s, British engineer and citizen scientist Guy Callendar demonstrated that global temperatures were rising, using data from more than 140 weather stations around the world. Callendar argued that rising CO2 levels were to blame, but his hypothesis failed to gain widespread acceptance in the scientific community. Two decades later, American researcher Gilbert Plass analyzed the infrared absorption of various gases and created the early computational models suggesting that a 3- to 4-degree rise in temperature would result from doubling the concentration of atmospheric CO2. For the scientists aware of Plass's work, Dave Keeling's findings a few years later were undoubtedly unsettling: the American geochemist provided the first unequivocal proof that atmospheric CO2 levels were increasing, based on analysis of atmospheric samples he collected at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii.

Many scientists assumed that the world's oceans would absorb the extra atmospheric CO2 that human industry was producing, until American oceanographer Roger Revelle and chemist Hans Suess demonstrated otherwise. The authors of a 1957 National Academy of Sciences climatology report quoted Revelle: "In consuming our fossil fuels at a prodigious rate, our civilization is conducting a grandiose scientific experiment."

Revelle's subsequent testimony before a Congressional committee helped put climate change on the radar of elected officials. In 1965, a presidential advisory panel warned that the greenhouse effect was a "real concern," and the U.S. government's engagement deepened when Nixon established the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 1970. Political and scientific interest in climate change grew during the ‘70s, culminating in the First World Climate Conference sponsored by the WMO in 1979. The Second World Climate Conference a decade later paved the way for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in 1992, where the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was launched and the groundwork laid for subsequent international climate change negotiations.

The challenge of communicating climate change

The task of translating climate research for policymakers and the general public has been hampered by multiple definitions of climate change within and outside of the scientific community. As Roger Pielke Jr. argued in his 2005 article " Misdefining climate change: Consequences for science and action ," definitions used by the UNFCCC, IPCC and others profoundly influence public opinion and the range of probable policy choices. Additionally, the conflation of "climate change," "global warming" and "the greenhouse effect" in news coverage has fueled public confusion about how to diagnose and treat the problem. For our purposes here, "climate change" is any change in climate over time due to natural variability or as a result of human activity. This is consistent with the IPCC's use of the term.

Rachel Pike's comment that it's the "biggest problem you could ever imagine" reminds us that climate change is a dense and multifaceted issue. There are facets of climate science and policy where convergent agreement dominates, while in other areas, contentious disagreement has generated worthwhile debate and discussion. The media's conflation of these diverse dimensions into one sweeping issue has contributed to confusion and created a breeding ground for manipulation from outlier viewpoints to inadvertently or deliberately skew public opinion.

It's important that we critically assess who ‘speaks for climate change' and understand their agendas. To the extent that their claims are flatly reported, or that in the name of fairness and balance speakers are frequently placed on equal footing irrespective of their expertise, individuals and organizations have become empowered to speak with authority through mass media. This skews how citizens and policy makers understand climate change issues, the stakes involved and the spectrum of possible actions to take. Cognizant of this, in 2013 the L.A. Times announced it would no longer print letters from climate change detractors. L.A. Times letters editor Paul Thornton wrote, "Simply put, I do my best to keep errors of fact off the letters page; when one does run, a correction is published. Saying "there's no sign humans have caused climate change" is not stating an opinion, it's asserting a factual inaccuracy."

About this TED Studies collection

While poorly communicated information can hamper the ability to make important decisions related to climate change causes and consequences, accurate and engaging information accessed through these TED Talks gives you power: power to understand, power to share your understanding with others, and power to take action.

Here we'll consider the environment as our planet's renewable and non-renewable natural resources, and a support system for the quantity, quality and sustainability of human activities. We'll see science as a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge, sorting through the unceasing flow of human experience. We'll explore policy as guides for decision making about human management of environment, articulating the principles, intentions, and mandates about who gets what, when and how. And we'll contemplate values as systems of conduct and broad preferences (individual to societal) concerning the morality of outcomes.

We begin with three modules that center our considerations on the climate science. First, through science journalist Lee Hotz's TED Talk, we explore the evidence that the climate is changing. Next, photographer James Balog contributes additional compelling, visible, measurable documentation of certain climate change effects. Balog's talk also highlights critical elements of the certainty/uncertainty debate that has dogged the issue. Third, through the TED Talk by climate scientist James Hansen, we explore the convergent agreement in the scientific community that humans contribute to contemporary climate change.

We continue with three modules exploring the politics of taking action through mitigation, adaptation and cross-cutting market-based, risk-reduction regulatory measures. We start with a TED Talk from former United States Vice President Al Gore, who calls for various ways to reduce our emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere (mitigation). Next, we turn to the TED Talk by environmental lawyer Vicki Arroyo, who suggests ways in which human communities can reduce their vulnerability to climate change and increase resilience (adaptation). Then we consider cross-cutting, often market-based risk reduction efforts by way of a TED Talk from journalist Naomi Klein. Her talk opens a space where we can critically evaluate climate risk reduction endeavors such as the market-based cap and trade proposals that are considered an essential tool by some, and merely a shell game by others.

We finish with two modules that focus our attention on important values and ethics questions. First, former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown challenges us to build a stronger global society by cutting carbon emissions in a way that is beneficial and equitable to all nations. Finally we turn to sustainabily strategist Johan Rockström's TED Talk about how nine ‘planetary boundaries' (which include climate change) can usefully guide ecosystem and environmental protection for future generations.

Let's begin with a look at the scientific evidence that's being unearthed at" the South Pole; science journalist Lee Hotz takes us there via his TED Talk "Inside an Antarctic time machine."

Inside an Antarctic time machine

Relevant talks.

James Balog

Time-lapse proof of extreme ice loss.

James Hansen

Why i must speak out about climate change.

New thinking on the climate crisis

Vicki Arroyo

Let's prepare for our new climate.

Naomi Klein

Addicted to risk.

Gordon Brown

Global ethic vs. national interest.

Johan Rockström

Let the environment guide our development.

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Home / For Educators: Grades 6-12 / Climate Explained: Introductory Essays About Climate Change Topics

Climate Explained: Introductory Essays About Climate Change Topics

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Climate Explained, a part of Yale Climate Connections, is an essay collection that addresses an array of climate change questions and topics, including why it’s cold outside if global warming is real, how we know that humans are responsible for global warming, and the relationship between climate change and national security.

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Climate Change Basics: Five Facts, Ten Words

Backgrounders for Educators

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Why should we care about climate change?

Having different perspectives about global warming is natural, but the most important thing that anyone should know about climate change is why it matters.

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List: 15 essential reads for the climate crisis

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We — Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine Wilkinson — are climate experts who focus on solutions, leadership and building community.

We are a natural and a social scientist, a Northerner and a Southerner. We’re also both lifelong interdisciplinarians in love with words and the cofounders of The All We Can Save Project , in support of women climate leaders.

Our collaboration has led us to read widely and deeply about the climate crisis that’s facing humanity. Here are 15 of our favorite writings on climate — this eclectic list contains books, essays, a newsletter, a scientific paper, even legislation and they’re all ones we wholeheartedly recommend.

All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis coedited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine Wilkinson

We had the honor of editing this collection of 41 essays, 17 poems, quotes and original illustrations — so naturally we love it! But you don’t have to take our word for it. As Rolling Stone said : “Taken together, the breadth of their voices forms a mosaic that honors the complexity of the climate crisis like few, if any, books on the topic have done yet. … The book is a feast of ideas and perspectives, setting a big table for the climate movement, declaring all are welcome.” All We Can Save nourished, educated and transformed us as we shaped its pages, and we can’t wait for it to do the same for you.

Ghost Fishing: An Eco-justice Poetry Anthology edited by Melissa Tuckey

We count ourselves among those who can’t make sense of the climate crisis without the aid of poets, who help us to see more clearly, feel our feelings, catch our breath, and know we’re not alone. This anthology is a magnificent quilt of poems that are made for this moment and all its intersections.

“We Don’t Have to Halt Climate Action to Fight Racism” by Mary Annaïse Heglar

“Climate People,” as she likes to call us, should be grateful that Mary Annaïse Heglar decided a few years back to pick up her pen once more as a writer. All of her essays are necessary reading, but this one is especially so, crafted from Mary’s perspective as a “Black Climate Person.” It’s a powerful articulation of the inextricability of a society that values Black lives and a livable planet for all.

Sacred Instructions: Indigenous Wisdom for Living Spirit-Based Change by Sherri Mitchell — Weh’na Ha’mu Kwasset

Weh’na Ha’mu Kwasset means “she who brings the light,” and Sherri Mitchell does exactly that in this incredible tapestry of a book, which begins with Penawahpskek Nation creation stories and concludes with guidance on what it means to live in a time of prophecy. It is rare that a book so generously shares wisdom, much less wisdom about how we got to where we are, what needs mending, and what a path forward that’s grounded in ancestral ways of knowing and being might look like.

Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds by adrienne maree brown

How lucky are we to be contemporaries of adrienne maree brown? Very. This is a book that we come back to time and time again to ground and enliven our work. We love this line from her about oak trees: “Under the earth, always, they reach for each other, they grow such that their roots are intertwined and create a system of strength that is as resilient on a sunny day as it is in a hurricane.” That’s the kind of community we’re trying to nurture.

“Circumstances Affecting the Heat of the Sun’s Rays” by Eunice Newton Foote

Eunice Newton Foote rarely gets the credit she’s due — and she deserves a lot of credit. In fact, we like to think of her as the first climate feminist. In 1856, she connected the dots between carbon dioxide and planetary warming, but science and history forgot (dismissed?) her until recently. This is her original paper, which was published in The American Journal of Science and Arts . Foote was also a signatory to the women’s rights manifesto created at Seneca Falls in 1848, alongside visionaries like Frederick Douglass.

The Drawdown Review by Project Drawdown

Full disclosure: Katharine is The Drawdown Review’ s editor-in-chief and principal writer. But Ayana fully endorses this recommendation — it’s a valuable resource as we charge ahead toward climate solutions. We all need to know what tools are in the toolbox, and The Drawdown Review is the latest compendium of climate solutions that already exist. This publication is beautifully designed, grounded in research, and you can access it for free.

The Green New Deal Resolution by the 116th US Congress

It seems that almost everyone has an opinion about the Green New Deal, but few people have read the actual piece of legislation: House Resolution 109: Recognizing the Duty of the Federal Government to Create a Green New Deal, which was introduced by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Ed Markey. The big secret is that it’s only 14 pages! It makes a clear, compelling and concise case for what comprehensive climate policy should look like in the US. We’d love for everyone to read it so we can all have a more grounded discussion about what we might agree and disagree with and chart a course forward.

“Think This Pandemic Is Bad? We Have Another Crisis Coming” by Rhiana Gunn-Wright

Speaking of policy … this op-ed , penned by Rhiana Gunn-Wright, who is one of the policy leads for the Green New Deal, makes the connections between climate, justice, COVID-19 and our recession as clear as day. She lays out an ironclad case for the the need to address these issues together, and why. As she writes, “We need to design the stimulus not only to help the US economy recover but to also become more resilient to the climate crisis, the next multitrillion-dollar crisis headed our way.”

“How Can We Plan for a Future in California?” by Leah Stokes

In the midst of raging fires and continuing pandemic, UC Santa Barbara Professor Leah Stokes, who’s based in Santa Barbara, lays it plain in her piece : “I don’t want to live in a world where we have to decide which mask to wear for which disaster, but this is the world we are making. And we’ve only started to alter the climate. Imagine what it will be like when we’ve doubled or tripled the warming, as we are on track to do.” As she and others have been pointing out, journalists have been failing to make the critical connection: “What’s happening in California has a name: climate change.”

HEATED by Emily Atkin

This is the reading rec that keeps on giving, literally — it’s a daily newsletter that brings climate accountability journalism right to your inbox. It’s chock full of smarts, spunk, truth-telling and super timely writing that isn’t hemmed in by media overlords. If you’re pissed off about the climate crisis, Emily Atkin made HEATED just for you.

The July 20 2020 Issue of TIME Magazine

This entire issue, titled “One Last Chance”, is dedicated to coverage of climate, and it includes wise words from so many luminaries from politician Stacey Abrams to soil scientist Asmeret Asefaw Berhe , with a lead piece by Time ’s climate journalist Justin Worland. Ayana also has a piece in this issue called “ We Can’t Solve the Climate Crisis Unless Black Lives Matter .” To see all of this collected in one place — insights on topics from oceans to agriculture to politics to activism — was heartening. We hope there’s much more of this to come, from many magazines.

“Wakanda Doesn’t Have Suburbs” by Kendra Pierre Louis

A pop-culture connoisseur and expert storyteller, Kendra Pierre Louis takes up the topic of climate stories in her essay — the good, the bad, and the ugly. The good, she explains, are all too rare, and that’s a big problem because stories are powerful. Black Panther may be our best story of living thoughtfully and well on this planet, not least thanks to an absence of carbon-spewing suburbs. It’s going to take much better narratives, and many more of them, if humans are to, as she puts it, “repair our relationship with the Earth and re-envision our societies in ways that are not just in keeping with our ecosystems but also make our lives better.” !

“We Need Courage, Not Hope, to Face Climate Change” by Kate Marvel PhD

This piece by NASA climate scientist Kate Marvel is, as the kids say, a whole mood. Hope is not enough, hope is often passive, and that won’t get us where we need to go. Pretty much everyone who works on climate is constantly being asked what gives us hope — how presumptuous to assume we have it! But what we do have is courage. In spades. As Marvel writes in this poetic piece: “We need courage, not hope. Grief, after all, is the cost of being alive. We are all fated to live lives shot through with sadness, and are not worth less for it. Courage is the resolve to do well without the assurance of a happy ending.”

Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis

Admittedly, this last recommendation isn’t something to read, but to watch and listen to. This playlist of TED Talks by women climate leaders (who were all contributors to our anthology All We Can Save — read about it above) will inspire you, deepen your understanding, connect the dots and help you find where you might fit into the heaps of climate work that needs doing. It includes poignant talks by Colette Pichon Battle and Christine Nieves Rodriguez , which are respectively about communities in Louisiana and Puerto Rico recovering from hurricanes and rebuilding resilience and which broke our hearts open. We were so moved we invited them to adapt their talks into essays for All We Can Save . Christine’s piece — “Community is Our Best Chance” — is the final essay in the book and the note we want to end on here. It’s not about what each of us can do as individuals to address the climate crisis; it’s about what we can do together . Building community around solutions is the most important thing.

Watch Ayana Elizabeth Johnson’s TED Talk here:

Watch Katharine Wilkinson’s TED Talk here:

About the authors

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson PhD is a marine biologist, policy expert and Brooklyn native. She is founder of the nonprofit think tank Urban Ocean Lab, founder and CEO of the consultancy Ocean Collectiv and cocreator and cohost of the Spotify/Gimlet podcast How to Save a Planet. She coedited the anthology All We Can Save and cofounded The All We Can Save Project in support of women climate leaders. Her mission is to build community around climate solutions. Find her @ayanaeliza.

Katharine Wilkinson PhD is an author, strategist, teacher and one of 15 “women who will save the world,” according to Time magazine. Her writings on climate include The Drawdown Review, the New York Times bestseller Drawdown and Between God & Green. She is coeditor of All We Can Save and co founder of The All We Can Save Project, in support of women climate leaders. Wilkinson is a former Rhodes Scholar. Find her @DrKWilkinson.

ayana elizabeth johnson
climate change
katharine wilkinson
reading list
society and culture

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News from the Columbia Climate School

Climate and the Personal Essay — A Reading List

Hayley Martinez

The Earth Institute recently announced Mary Annaïse Heglar as its first writer-in-residence, a newly launched joint initiative of the Earth Institute and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Heglar, a noted climate justice essayist, will spend the next six months at Columbia exploring the intersection of climate science, art and literature.

Starting this Friday , Heglar will be leading a reading group for Columbia students that explores climate change topics through personal essays. Each week, students will read a few chosen pieces around a specific theme, with a particular emphasis on emotional depth and marginalized communities.

The climate crisis may be scientific and political, but it is also deeply emotional and personal, and Heglar seeks to create a safe space for students to explore that emotionality. Students will meet weekly to discuss the chosen essays, and will be encouraged to journal and invited to share their own writing. According to Heglar, “I’m hoping that participants, including myself, will be able to see ourselves in these stories and use that reflection to hone our own voices.”

While this seminar is only open to Columbia students, others can follow along. The nine-week reading list is below.

Week 1: Climate Grief

Under the Weather, by Ash Sanders
Endlings , by Harriet Riley

Week 2: The Problem with Hope

We Need Courage, Not Hope, to Face Climate Change, Kate Marvel
Is it Wrong to be Hopeful about Climate Change? Diego Arguedas Ortiz

Week 3: If Not Hope, What?

The Case for Climate Rage , Amy Westervelt
But the Greatest of These is Love , Mary Annaïse Heglar
Time to Panic , David Wallace Wells

Week 4: We’re Not Recreating the Wheel

Letter from a Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King
The Fire Next Time, James Baldwin
Climate Change Ain’t the First Existential Threat , Mary Annaïse Heglar

Week 5: Who’s Missing?

What Listening Means in the Time of the Climate Crisis , Tara Houska
Perhaps the World Ends Here , Julian Brave NoiseCat
Climate Darwinism Makes Disabled People Expendable , Imani Barbarin

Week 6: There Are No Heroes

When the Hero is the Problem , Rebecca Solnit

Week 7: Out with the Guilt

Who is the We in We Are Causing Climate Change , Genevieve Geunther
In Defense of Eco-hypocrisy , Sami Grover
On Being a Climate Person , Eric Holthaus

Week 8: The Great Impotence

The End Times Are Here and I’m at Target , Hayes Brown
What if We Stopped Pretending the Climate Apocalypse Can Be Stropped , Jonathan Franzen

Week 9: What Now?

Home is Always Worth It , Mary Annaïse Heglar
In 2030, We Solved the Climate Emergency. Here’s How , Eric Holthaus
Loving a Vanishing World , Emily Johnston

Students interested in attending the reading group can reach out to Cynthia Thomson at [email protected] .

Food Systems Expert Jessica Fanzo Reflects on Receiving One of Science’s Highest Honors

Congratulations to the 2024 Graduates of the Columbia Climate School

Rising Wheat Prices and Unprecedented Demonstrations: Pakistani Protestors Demand Autonomy

Columbia campus skyline with text Columbia Climate School Class Day 2024 - Congratulations Graduates

Congratulations to our Columbia Climate School MA in Climate & Society Class of 2024! Learn about our May 10 Class Day celebration. #ColumbiaClimate2024

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Yale Climate Connections

Essay: A student deals with hope and fear over climate change

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Essay on Climate Change

Climate Change Essay - The globe is growing increasingly sensitive to climate change. It is currently a serious worldwide concern. The term "Climate Change" describes changes to the earth's climate. It explains the atmospheric changes that have occurred across time, spanning from decades to millions of years. Here are some sample essays on climate change.

100 Words Essay on Climate Change

200 words essay on climate change, 500 words essay on climate change.

The climatic conditions on Earth are changing due to climate change. Several internal and external variables, such as solar radiation, variations in the Earth's orbit, volcanic eruptions, plate tectonics, etc., are to blame for this.

There are strategies for climate change reduction. If not implemented, the weather might get worse, there might be water scarcity, there could be lower agricultural output, and it might affect people's ability to make a living. In order to breathe clean air and drink pure water, you must concentrate on limiting human activity. These are the simple measures that may be taken to safeguard the environment and its resources.

The climate of the Earth has changed significantly over time. While some of these changes were brought on by natural events like volcanic eruptions, floods, forest fires, etc., many of the changes were brought on by human activity. The burning of fossil fuels, domesticating livestock, and other human activities produce a significant quantity of greenhouse gases. This results in an increase of greenhouse effect and global warming which are the major causes for climate change.

Reasons of Climate Change

Some of the reasons of climate change are:

Deforestation

Excessive use of fossil fuels

Water and soil pollution

Plastic and other non biodegradable waste

Wildlife and nature extinction

Consequences of Climate Change

All kinds of life on earth will be affected by climate change if it continues to change at the same pace. The earth's temperature will increase, the monsoon patterns will shift, the sea level will rise, and there will be more frequent storms, volcano eruptions, and other natural calamities. The earth's biological and ecological equilibrium will be disturbed. Humans won't be able to access clean water or air to breathe when the environment becomes contaminated. The end of life on this earth is imminent. To reduce the issue of climate change, we need to bring social awareness along with strict measures to protect and preserve the natural environment.

A shift in the world's climatic pattern is referred to as climate change. Over the centuries, the climate pattern of our planet has undergone modifications. The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has significantly grown.

When Did Climate Change Begin

It is possible to see signs of climate change as early as the beginning of the industrial revolution. The pace at which the manufacturers produced things on a large scale required a significant amount of raw materials. Since the raw materials being transformed into finished products now have such huge potential for profit, these business models have spread quickly over the world. Hazardous substances and chemicals build up in the environment as a result of company emissions and waste disposal.

Although climate change is a natural occurrence, it is evident that human activity is turning into the primary cause of the current climate change situation. The major cause is the growing population. Natural resources are utilised more and more as a result of the population's fast growth placing a heavy burden on the available resources. Over time, as more and more products and services are created, pollution will eventually increase.

Causes of Climate Change

There are a number of factors that have contributed towards weather change in the past and continue to do so. Let us look at a few:

Solar Radiation |The climate of earth is determined by how quickly the sun's energy is absorbed and distributed throughout space. This energy is transmitted throughout the world by the winds, ocean currents etc which affects the climatic conditions of the world. Changes in solar intensity have an effect on the world's climate.

Deforestation | The atmosphere's carbon dioxide is stored by trees. As a result of their destruction, carbon dioxide builds up more quickly since there are no trees to absorb it. Additionally, trees release the carbon they stored when we burn them.

Agriculture | Many kinds of greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere by growing crops and raising livestock. Animals, for instance, create methane, a greenhouse gas that is 30 times more potent than carbon dioxide. The nitrous oxide used in fertilisers is roughly 300 times more strong than carbon dioxide.

How to Prevent Climate Change

We need to look out for drastic steps to stop climate change since it is affecting the resources and life on our planet. We can stop climate change if the right solutions are put in place. Here are some strategies for reducing climate change:

Raising public awareness of climate change

Prohibiting tree-cutting and deforestation.

Ensure the surroundings are clean.

Refrain from using chemical fertilisers.

Water and other natural resource waste should be reduced.

Protect the animals and plants.

Purchase energy-efficient goods and equipment.

Increase the number of trees in the neighbourhood and its surroundings.

Follow the law and safeguard the environment's resources.

Reduce the amount of energy you use.

During the last few decades especially, climate change has grown to be of concern. Global concern has been raised over changes in the Earth's climatic pattern. The causes of climate change are numerous, as well as the effects of it and it is our responsibility as inhabitants of this planet to look after its well being and leave it in a better condition for future generations.

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Essay 05: Taking the fight to climate change – on time and on budget

Climate change isn’t just a scientific problem or a political challenge – it’s also a management issue. And there’s a lot project management can do to address the threats it poses.

“ It is hard to find any evidence of an SPA for climate change, at either national or international levels

December 2015 saw virtually all the world’s nations sign an agreement, now ratified as legally binding, to limit the rise in the Earth’s ambient temperature to 2°C above pre-industrial levels, and preferably to just 1.5°C. Positive though this was, there was almost nothing on how countries planned to achieve this target, nor was there any requirement to monitor and report progress in achieving this goal.

Roughly 25% of OECD countries’ GDPs is delivered by projects. Developed in the US defence-aerospace sectors in the 1950s and 1960s, project management was initially largely sheltered from environmental issues. Over the years, however, there have been many examples of projects being knocked off course by environmental issues. In the 1990s, sustainability became mainstream practice. Now the focus is shifting to the more existential crisis of climate change.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) calculates there is only a 50% chance of hitting the 2°C rise by 2030. To achieve this, everyone will have to cut CO2 emissions: six to four billion tonnes for developed countries – essentially halving their emissions; 15 to eight billion tonnes for developed countries. And of course things do not suddenly stabilise at 2030; we shall have to continue monitoring emission rates and, in fact, tighten targets further, to zero and into negative emissions. How can project management help in this? We can begin with the management of the overall effort, at national and international levels.

First, it can bring greater focus and drive through the creation of a ‘Single Point of Accountability’ (SPA). This is the place where all actions relevant to achieving a project’s objectives are focused. It is hard to find any evidence of an SPA for climate change, at either national or international levels.

A second fundamental support practice in project management is a PMO – a project or programme management office. At a minimum, this is the function that keeps information on the progress of projects being worked on, but it also acts as the keeper of best practices in the enterprise. Here, too, there is hardly anyone who has such a function for addressing climate change. The possibility exists, surely, for a pre-formed PMO to be prepared at the UN level down to help countries get started.

Climate change actions can be divided between those aimed at mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, such as replacing ‘dirty’ power generation plants such as coal, with clean ones such as gas or renewables, and those addressed at adapting facilities to the consequences of climate change, such as flood management. Much, maybe the majority, of mitigation projects addressing carbon emissions are doing so on a business-as-usual basis – such as developing electric vehicles – possibly boosted by ‘change projects’ that focus additionally on behaviour and people skills.

At the other end of the mitigation spectrum, project management has a role in big R&D projects, particularly in the energy sector, notably carbon capture and storage (CCS) and nuclear fusion. Many are investing a lot of hope in CCS, but there are technical, commercial and managerial issues, and so far CCS is not commercially viable. Hopes for fusion rest on a giant global project in France, Iter, which is late and over budget. We are still decades away from operational fusion.

Nuclear fission is really an adaptation technology. It is dirtier than fusion but is seen by most as a core response for meeting climate change goals. Yet the technological challenges are enormous: it is very, very expensive and, managerially, of world-class difficulty. The tortured negotiations between Électricité de France and the UK Government to build Hinkley Point C is proof of how complex the issues are.

Currently, we don’t have a plan for addressing climate change in the UK. We do have the National Adaptation Programme and a National Infrastructure Delivery Plan, but they are weak – little more than lists of risks and responsibilities. There is not the energy and drive needed to address the urgent challenges of climate change.

Project Management can, and is, contributing significantly in responding to climate change effectively. In doing so, it is revealing several areas of new development and promise in the discipline. That’s fortunate because climate change isn’t just a scientific problem or political challenge – it’s also a management issue. Project management integrates the work of other disciplines to deliver managed change effectively. And that’s what we need right now.

Professor Peter Morris was Head of the School of Construction & Project Management until August 2012. He is well-known as a leading authority on project management.

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Aerial view of the waterways of the barrier Islands of the Virginia Coastal Reserve.

Perspectives

Five Reflections on the IPCC Climate Change Report

October 24, 2018

By Justin Adams, Executive Director, Tropical Forest Alliance

In response to last week’s release of the UN’s IPCC report on the climate, which warned that “unprecedented” changes were needed to slow or stop global warming beyond 1.5C pre-industrial period, it’s easy judging by the headlines and subsequent global response to perhaps give up or sink into despair. “Terrifying.” “Time to Wake Up.” “Final Call”. “Ten years to Act ” were just some of the headlines. Could this report, as shocking as it is, actually be the much-needed catalyst for action we’ve all been waiting for? Letting the dust settle a little on this powerful series of findings endorsed by all the world’s governments, these are my top five reflections.

Could this report actually be the much-needed catalyst for action we’ve all been waiting for?

1. We now have a better understanding that every fraction of a degree counts

The report shows that every fraction of a degree of warming matters. Continued rising temperatures will exact a huge toll on people, natural ecosystems and the economy. The IPCC concludes the world will likely reach 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels as soon as 2030. It notes that 20-40 percent of the global population lives in regions that have already experienced warming of more than 1.5°C in at least one season.

The primary way to limit warming to less than 1.5°C is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions—and eventually reach net-zero emissions. According to the report, to limit warming to 1.5°C with “no or limited overshoot,” net global CO 2 emissions need to fall by about 45 percent from 2010 levels by 2030 and reach net zero by around 2050.

The report puts it this way: “By 2100, global sea-level rise would be 10 cm lower with global warming of 1.5°C compared with 2°C. The likelihood of an Arctic Ocean free of sea ice in summer would be once per century with global warming of 1.5°C, compared with at least once per decade with 2°C. Coral reefs would decline by 70-90 percent with global warming of 1.5°C, whereas virtually all would be lost with 2°C.”

However, here is the kicker. Even with the pledged emission cuts under the Paris Agreement, the world is nowhere near achieving the volume of necessary cuts. To do so, we would need “rapid and far-reaching transitions” across the entire global economy, including changes in the way we source and use energy, how we use land and grow food, and what types and quantities of food and materials we consume.

Aerial view of roads cutting through a forest of trees.

The Science of Sustainability

We can limit climate change and allow for further human development—but only if we act soon. Explore our latest research

2. We have a better understanding of deep mitigation pathways—and nature is the ‘forgotten solution’ we need to reach 1.5°C

A series of reports that qualify and quantify the power of nature as a climate solution have also been released. The CLARA Alliance just released its report , suggesting that shifting from industrial crop and livestock production toward more ecological methods would make a major contribution towards reducing emissions, while also feeding people fairly and empowering the world’s smallholder farmers, particularly women. It points out that the 1.5 degree goal can be met without relying on planetary-scale land-use change like BECCS (Bioenergy with Carbon Capture Storage) for carbon removal.

Further huge emissions savings can be made if sections of society that enjoy high levels of meat consumption shifted to consuming fewer animal products, and to a more plant-based flexitarian diet. A “less and better” approach to food production would go a long way toward cutting emissions, the report says, while still feeding the world fairly. Taken together, ecosystem-based approaches and transformative changes in land and agriculture sectors could deliver 11 Gt CO2-eq per year in avoided emissions, and a further 10 Gt CO2-eq per year in carbon sequestered into the biosphere by 2050.

Furthermore, a study by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and a group of other organizations published last year found that natural climate solutions like these could deliver a third of the required mitigation by 2030 to restrict global warming to 2 degrees. The key is that these natural solutions are affordable, actionable and scalable today . They do not involve technologies still under development with unknown costs. A forthcoming assessment on land use in the USA is also expected to show enormous potential.

Seedlings grow at a large, state-owned, tree nursery near the city of Guarapuava, Parana state, Brazil.

3. It’s one system

Protecting and increasing tropical forest cover is vital, since these regions cool the air and are key to generating regional rainfall that supports food production. Yet commodities like beef, soy, timber and palm oil are currently responsible for over half of tropical forest loss. What we eat and use matters. Soil leads the way as a carbon sink and is among the cheapest methods with the greatest potential. The IPCC found that by 2050, soil carbon sequestration could remove between two and five gigatons of CO2 a year , at a cost ranging from less than $0 to $100 per ton. It also helps us grow our food.

4. Action and money are needed now

We need to talk about how to shift capital. As mentioned above, one reading of scenarios presented in the report to stay below 1.5 C of warming shows that we only have until around 2030 to achieve net-zero emissions globally. That's essentially tomorrow when we're talking about the pace of change required in a complex, dynamic systems like energy, food and financial markets.

Most organizations working along and together now recognize that to stop or slow global warming, we will have to increase current levels of ambition. Natural climate solutions, which have long been overlooked by the international community, will have to play a much bigger role. In effect that means governments and companies must set specific targets for natural climate solutions in their commitments under Paris.

It also means a ramp-up in finance: right now, the land sector only receives around 3% of public climate funding. That will have to be targeted to leverage the scale of the private sector if the transition on land is to be successful.

Soybeans grow through a dense blanket of diverse cover crop residue in this Nebraska field.

5. This is no longer just an ‘environmental story’

Time’s up. It's time to take action now or pay for it later – indeed, not much later if current climate trends are any indication. To get to 2 degrees Celsius or under, all these solutions require unprecedented efforts to cut fossil-fuel use in half in less than 15 years and eliminate their use almost entirely within 30 years. Long siloed, the conversation at least this month took on a new urgency. Climate change is no longer just a political story. The science is clear, the impacts too obvious, the potentially irreversible repercussions as well as deployable solutions imminent. Now it's a business story, a legal story and, increasingly, a story about the potential contribution of both technology and nature working alongside each other.

The good news is that the future hasn’t already been set in stone. Climate change is an inescapable present and future reality, but the point of the IPCC report is that there is still a chance to seize the best-case scenario rather than surrender to the worst. This December, Poland hosts the next UN governmental meeting, and the UN Secretary General has asked global leaders to meet with him at a special summit in New York in September next year, citing alarm by the paralysis of world leaders on what he called the "defining issue" of our time. Grave threat, or unmissable opportunity for movement and funding? There is still time to decide, although the window is narrowing rapidly.

Originally Posted on Nature4Climate October 17, 2018 View Original

There is a Forgotten Solution to Climate Change That We Must Invest In: Nature

We have forgotten the role nature can play in mitigating climate change.

Fields and windmills in Mölsheim, Germany.

Climate Action from the Ground Up

There’s a groundswell of leadership on climate action happening at the local level.

Interstates cut through swaths of forest.

Can a unified path for development and conservation lead to a better future?

February 1, 2022

How Climate Change Will Hit Younger Generations

A new analysis shows that people born later will experience vastly more severe weather events

By Andrea Thompson

Detail of graphic shows projected increases in frequency of extreme climate events for people aged 60, 40, 20 and 0 in 2020.

Amanda Montañez

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If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing . By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

Babies born today will experience far more disruptions fueled by climate change than their parents or grandparents. In a study published in October 2021 Science , Wim Thiery of Vrije Universiteit Brussel in Belgium and his colleagues combined climate model projections under three global warming scenarios with demography data to calculate the lifetime exposure to six types of extreme weather for every generation born between 1960 and 2020. Even as a climate scientist acutely aware of the dangers of rising temperatures, “seeing the numbers as a person, as a parent, is a punch in the stomach,” he says. Young people in the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa and those in low-income countries will see the largest increases in exposure. These estimates examine only changes in the frequency of extreme events—they do not represent how those events may become more intense and longer-lived. Although “young generations have the most to lose if global warming reaches higher levels,” Thiery says, they also have the most to gain if greenhouse gas emissions can be reined in. “That is a key message of hope.”

Credit: Amanda Montañez; Source: “Intergenerational Inequities in Exposure to Climate Extremes,” by Wim Thiery et al., in Science , Vol. 374; October 8, 2021 ( data )

What Is Climate Change?

Climate change is a long-term change in the average weather patterns that have come to define Earth’s local, regional and global climates. These changes have a broad range of observed effects that are synonymous with the term.

Changes observed in Earth’s climate since the mid-20th century are driven by human activities, particularly fossil fuel burning, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth’s atmosphere, raising Earth’s average surface temperature. Natural processes, which have been overwhelmed by human activities, can also contribute to climate change, including internal variability (e.g., cyclical ocean patterns like El Niño, La Niña and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation) and external forcings (e.g., volcanic activity, changes in the Sun’s energy output , variations in Earth’s orbit ).

Scientists use observations from the ground, air, and space, along with computer models , to monitor and study past, present, and future climate change. Climate data records provide evidence of climate change key indicators, such as global land and ocean temperature increases; rising sea levels; ice loss at Earth’s poles and in mountain glaciers; frequency and severity changes in extreme weather such as hurricanes, heatwaves, wildfires, droughts, floods, and precipitation; and cloud and vegetation cover changes.

“Climate change” and “global warming” are often used interchangeably but have distinct meanings. Similarly, the terms "weather" and "climate" are sometimes confused, though they refer to events with broadly different spatial- and timescales.

What Is Global Warming?

Global warming is the long-term heating of Earth’s surface observed since the pre-industrial period (between 1850 and 1900) due to human activities, primarily fossil fuel burning, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth’s atmosphere. This term is not interchangeable with the term "climate change."

Since the pre-industrial period, human activities are estimated to have increased Earth’s global average temperature by about 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit), a number that is currently increasing by more than 0.2 degrees Celsius (0.36 degrees Fahrenheit) per decade. The current warming trend is unequivocally the result of human activity since the 1950s and is proceeding at an unprecedented rate over millennia.

Weather vs. Climate

“if you don’t like the weather in new england, just wait a few minutes.” - mark twain.

Weather refers to atmospheric conditions that occur locally over short periods of time—from minutes to hours or days. Familiar examples include rain, snow, clouds, winds, floods, or thunderstorms.

Climate, on the other hand, refers to the long-term (usually at least 30 years) regional or even global average of temperature, humidity, and rainfall patterns over seasons, years, or decades.

Find Out More: A Guide to NASA’s Global Climate Change Website

This website provides a high-level overview of some of the known causes, effects and indications of global climate change:

Evidence. Brief descriptions of some of the key scientific observations that our planet is undergoing abrupt climate change.

Causes. A concise discussion of the primary climate change causes on our planet.

Effects. A look at some of the likely future effects of climate change, including U.S. regional effects.

Vital Signs. Graphs and animated time series showing real-time climate change data, including atmospheric carbon dioxide, global temperature, sea ice extent, and ice sheet volume.

Earth Minute. This fun video series explains various Earth science topics, including some climate change topics.

Other NASA Resources

Goddard Scientific Visualization Studio. An extensive collection of animated climate change and Earth science visualizations.

Sea Level Change Portal. NASA's portal for an in-depth look at the science behind sea level change.

NASA’s Earth Observatory. Satellite imagery, feature articles and scientific information about our home planet, with a focus on Earth’s climate and environmental change.

Header image is of Apusiaajik Glacier, and was taken near Kulusuk, Greenland, on Aug. 26, 2018, during NASA's Oceans Melting Greenland (OMG) field operations. Learn more here . Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

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Earth Science in Action

Earth Science Data

The sum of Earth's plants, on land and in the ocean, changes slightly from year to year as weather patterns shift.

Facts About Earth

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How 5 N.Y.C. Neighborhoods Are Struggling With Climate Change

New data projects are linking social issues with global warming. Here’s what that means for these New York communities.

By Hilary Howard

Photographs by Jade Doskow

Some of the effects of climate change on New York City neighborhoods are clear: extreme heat. Persistent flooding.

But as city leaders explore which neighborhoods are most vulnerable to a warming world, they are also focusing on less obvious factors like poverty, chronic health conditions and language barriers that can deepen the impact of climate change.

Several new data-gathering efforts are helping shed light on how socioeconomic issues can add to a community’s overall risk as droughts, floods and wildfires become more extreme and sea levels rise.

The findings indicate that in the city, the neighborhoods most unprepared for climate change have a lot in common: They are poor; have congestion and histories of redlining or industrial pollution; and for many of their residents, English is a second language.

Two men stand in a green area with housing developments behind them.

“You find these same situations in all these locales: very little tree covering, heavily exposed pollutants and projects and industry that’s been zoned to be placed there,” said Mychal Johnson, a founding member of the nonprofit South Bronx Unite , which helped develop the U.S. Climate Vulnerability Index , an expansive mapping project that compiled public data from across the country.

And in April, the New York City Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice published a similar project and interactive map .

Using these tools and other similar indexes, here are some of the most vulnerable regions in the city.

‘A very vicious cycle’

Congestion in the south bronx.

The Cross-Bronx Expressway cuts off the South Bronx from the rest of the borough, with cars and trucks — over 187,000 daily — spewing pollution.

The construction of the thoroughfare in the middle of the last century displaced 60,000 residents and helped condemn much of the area around it to poverty, as well as elevated rates of asthma.

Disproportionate levels of health consistent with high levels of poverty make climate change harder on residents of the South Bronx, said Earle Chambers, an epidemiologist at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

Extreme heat, a major issue in the South Bronx , is especially tough on those with chronic illnesses. And New Yorkers with asthma were in danger last summer when wildfires in Canada turned the skies red over New York. Those with financial hardships were further challenged, visiting emergency rooms — a guaranteed way to seek treatment regardless of income or insurance — in record numbers.

In the South Bronx, where 94 percent of residents are Black or Hispanic, the percentage of residents living below the poverty level is about twice the city average, as is the percentage of adults 25 and over who did not graduate from high school, according to a census analysis of neighborhoods in the South Bronx region, including Grand Concourse, Melrose, Mott Haven, Point Morris and Hunts Point, by Social Explorer , a demographic data firm.

Adult asthma rates in the South Bronx are significantly higher than the city average — 6 percent compared with 3.8 percent citywide — and over a third of residents are obese and considered to be at risk for diabetes and heart disease.

Living near a congested highway can produce a domino effect of challenges, said Arif Ullah, the executive director of South Bronx Unite.

“If a child has asthma, there are more absences from school, which means a risk of not graduating, which could affect job prospects,” Mr. Ullah said. “It’s just a very vicious cycle.”

Ritchie Torres, the Democratic congressman who represents the area, along with Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, secured $2 million for the city and state to study covering parts of the expressway with parks and other amenities.

Such a project would help “right the historical wrong” of the expressway being built in the South Bronx to begin with, Dr. Chambers said.

‘Trees as a high-leverage solution’

The lack of forest cover in red hook, brooklyn.

Red Hook, an isolated, low-lying waterfront neighborhood, still affected by an industrial history and by emissions from a nearby cruise ship terminal , also has a shortage of trees.

In 2012, hundreds of trees were felled or damaged by Hurricane Sandy, which flooded the area and knocked out the power and water at the Red Hook Houses, New York City’s second-largest public housing complex. In order to make repairs there , officials cut down about an additional 400 trees.

Trees serve as a buffer for storm water, filter the air, provide oxygen and store carbon dioxide. In addition to shading people, they also shade buildings, which helps reduce energy consumption.

But trees struggle to thrive in Red Hook. The water table is high, meaning the ground is often saturated, and most of the soil is red clay, which can be dense, making it difficult for trees to take root.

(NYC Parks, which is behind a citywide tree-planting and maintenance effort , has planted 565 trees in the neighborhood since 2015, and intends to plant 40 more this spring.)

Some residents have taken it upon themselves to nurture the street trees. Red Hook Conservancy , a nonprofit, organizes groups to clean out tree beds and nourish them with mulch or compost.

Students are doing their part, too. Six graders at nearby Harbor Middle School undertook a project to design and build guards to protect tree beds.

Lynn Shon, a teacher at the school, led the project. “Students looked at data and discovered that flooding, sea level rise and extreme heat were problems disproportionately impacting Red Hook, along with the urban heat island effect ” (when cities tend to be warmer than rural areas), she said. “They were able to identify trees as a high-leverage solution.”

A food desert, surrounded by water

Edgemere, queens, lacks fresh produce (but has plenty of flooding)..

Shantae Johnson moved to Edgemere five years ago because of the cheap rent, she said. Ms. Johnson, a single mother, was on a tight budget, which revolved around feeding her seven children.

She soon realized there were no grocery stores in the flood-prone neighborhood. In Edgemere, a beach community, a simple chore like food shopping is already a major operation. But as flooding becomes more commonplace, navigating the waterlogged areas makes the task even more onerous.

“We have the double whammy effect,” said Sonia Moise, president of the area’s civic association , referring to flooding from two directions: the Atlantic Ocean to the south and Jamaica Bay to the north.

Every week, Ms. Johnson would lug her shopping cart onto the subway and travel from the Rockaway Peninsula in southern Queens to Union Square in Manhattan (over an hourlong trip) to do her grocery shopping.

“It took a toll on me,” she said.

But two years ago, Ms. Johnson caught a break. She stumbled upon a community garden during a walk. Soon, she had her own patch of land and was growing spinach and basil. She harvested so much squash last summer that she filled her freezer and gave away the rest.

The garden changed her life, Ms. Johnson said. “I get friendship, community, food and an oasis,” she said.

The Garden by the Bay is a precious resource in amenity-poor Edgemere, where the closest grocery store is over a mile away, Ms. Moise said.

The food desert here is just one problem, said Jackie Rogers, the president of the 15,000-square-foot garden, which has five community plots and 23 for individual use. “We check all the boxes when it comes to deserts,” she said. “Food, transportation, education, recreation, lack of infrastructure.”

On the food front, there is some good news: This fall, a 20,000 square-foot grocery store is scheduled to open. It will be part of a mixed-use affordable housing complex with over 2,000 apartments.

Ms. Rogers would like to see more amenities and infrastructure upgrades — like more raised streets — first. “I’m sounding the alarm,” she said. “We need resiliency here.”

A need for English classes and information

In throgs neck, the bronx, big demands on a little library.

During extreme weather, staying informed is key to staying safe. But for New Yorkers who do not speak English or lack internet services, doing so can be a challenge.

Public libraries can help. And in the event of a storm or flood, many libraries go into disaster relief mode, becoming communications hubs and distribution centers for clothing, food and medicine.

“Librarians are always collaborating to connect people to resources, that’s what we do,” said Emily Drabinski, president of the American Library Association.

But in Throgs Neck, an isolated community with little public transit, there is just one library for tens of thousands of people. The Throgs Neck Library, housed in a squat one-story building in the poorest part of the neighborhood just off the Cross Bronx Expressway, offers limited services.

Yet the need is there, said Leida Velazquez, the branch manager. Over the past year, she has seen an increase in patrons using the computers, as well as requests for assistance in applying for identification cards, jobs and food stamps benefits. “I’ll print applications for them,” she said.

With the recent influx of migrants, there is also a strong demand for English classes at the branch. But the building is too small to offer them, Ms. Velazquez said, so she often refers people to the Bronx Library Center. Getting there requires two buses and takes over an hour.

The demand for library services and support in this area of Throgs Neck underscores its need. According to Social Explorer, nearly a third of residents in the census tract closest to the library are below poverty level. And about one out of four residents has no other computing device besides a smartphone. Nearly half of people 5 and older speak a language other than English at home.

Across the city, budget cuts have caused many branches to make do with skeletal staffs and outdated HVAC systems, which could hamper their ability to function as cooling centers , said Lauren Comito, the executive director of Urban Librarians Unite. And more cuts could be on the way .

“If we want libraries to prepare for climate disaster, we will need more funding and to train staff,” she said.

‘Volatile and Dangerous’

A legacy of toxins in east williamsburg and greenpoint, brooklyn.

In the late 19th century, more than 50 oil refineries sat on the banks of Newtown Creek, a 3.8 mile waterway between Brooklyn and Queens. Now, the Brooklyn side of the creek is home to one of the largest oil spills in American history, and of two of the city’s four Superfund Sites (areas so toxic they qualify for government intervention).

But for Willis Elkins, the executive director of Newtown Creek Alliance , an environmental nonprofit, the most urgent threat to the area is a 117-acre storage facility.

There, two large tanks store liquefied natural gas, which can be converted to fuel for heating during cold-weather emergencies. “Liquefied gas is incredibly volatile and dangerous to store and transport,” Mr. Elkins said.

“The liquid gas is not even 1,000 yards from where we live,” said Elisha W. Fye, the vice president of the resident council of Cooper Park Houses, a public housing complex that sits next to the site.

Area residents have concerns about groundwater flooding people’s homes with toxins. Remnants of coal tar , a substance that was used when the site was an oil refinery, still bubble up at low tide, said Mr. Elkins, who added that other chemicals have also been detected around the site, which sits in a flood zone.

Mr. Fye, 70, has been part of several successful community efforts to block upgrades to the site, which is owned by National Grid, a company that provides gas to 1.9 million customers in New York City and on Long Island.

Several activists and energy experts want the site to shut down. But National Grid maintains that the site provides energy reliability in the event of extreme weather, and that the Greenpoint facility “meets or exceeds all safety regulations,” Karen Young, a spokeswoman for the company, said.

National Grid is investing millions in a new fire suppression system for the site; its old one was flooded and destroyed during Hurricane Sandy. And it is seeking millions more in proposed rate hikes for other upgrades.

If approved, residents in Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island could see their monthly heating bills increase by more than $65 by 2026, and local gas infrastructure would remain in place well into the 2080s, which is against the state’s climate goals, said Kim Fraczek, the director of the Sane Energy Project , a group that has helped shut down several of National Grid’s expansion efforts.

Ms. Young said that most of the revenue from increased rates would cover federal and state safety mandates .

But Ms. Fraczek would like to see a more specific accounting, she said. “It’s an economic issue, it’s an environmental justice issue.”

Hilary Howard is a Times reporter covering how the New York City region is adapting to climate change and other environmental challenges. More about Hilary Howard

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Ecological Impacts of Climate Change (2008)

Chapter: 1 introduction.

Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

1 Introduction The worldâs climate is changing, and it will continue to change throughout the 21st century and beyond. Rising temperatures, new precipitation patterns, and other changes are already affecting many aspects of human society and the natural world. Climate change is transforming ecosystems at extraordinary rates and scales. As each species responds to its changing environment, its interactions with the physical world and the creatures around it changeâtriggering a cascade of impacts throughout the ecosystem, such as expansion into new areas, the intermingling of formerly non-overlapping species, and even species extinctions Climate change is happening on a global scale, but the ecological impacts are often local and vary from place to place. To illuminate how climate change has affected specific species and ecosystems, this document presents a series of examples of ecological impacts of climate change that have already been observed across the United States. Human actions have been a primary cause of the climate changes observed today, but humans are capable of changing our behavior in ways that reduce the rate of future climate change. Human actions are also needed to help wild species adapt to climate changes that cannot be avoided. Our approaches to energy, agriculture, water management, fishing, biological conservation, and many other activities will all affect the ways and extent to which climate change will alter the natural worldâand the ecosystems on which we depend. What are ecosystems and why are they important? Humans share Earth with a vast diversity of animals, plants, and microorganisms. Virtually every part of the planetââthe continents, the oceans, and the atmosphereââteems with life. Even the deepest parts of the ocean and rock formations hundreds of meters below the surface are populated with organisms adapted to cope with the unique challenges each environment presents. In our era organisms almost everywhere are facing a new set of challenges; specifically, the challenges presented by rapid climate change. How have plants, animals, and microorganisms coped with the climate changes that have already occurred, and how might they cope with future changes? To explore these questions we start with a discussion of how plants, animals, and microorganisms fit together in ecosystems and the role of climate in those relationships. Earth has a great diversity of habitats. These differ in climate, of course, but also in soils, day length, elevation, water sources, chemistry, and many other factors, and consequently, in the kinds of organisms that inhabit them. The animals, plants, and microorganisms that live in one place, along with the water, soils, and landforms, make an ecosystem. When we attempt to understand the impacts of climate change, thinking about ecosystemsââand not just individual speciesââcan be helpful because each ecosystem depends on a wide array of interactions among individuals. Some of these involve competition. For example, some plants shade others or several animals compete for the same scarce food. Some involve relationships between animals and their prey. Others involve decomposition, the process of decay that returns minerals and organic matter to the soil. And some interactions are beneficial to both partners, for example, bees that obtain food from flowers while pollinating them. Climate influences ecosystems and the species that inhabit them in many ways. In general, each type of ecosystem is consistently associated with a particular combination of climate characteristics (Walter 1968). Warm tropical lands with year-round rain typically support

2 Introduction tall forests with evergreen broadleaved trees. Midlatitude lands with cold winters and moist summers usually support deciduous forests, while drier areas are covered in grasslands, shrublands, or conifer forests. In a similar fashion shallow tropical-ocean waters harbor coral reefs on rocky bottoms and mangrove forests along muddy shores, whereas temperate shores are characterized by kelp forests on rocky bottoms and seagrasses or salt marshes on sediment- covered bottoms. These major vegetation types or biomes can cover vast areas. Within these areas a wide range of subtly different ecosystems utilize sites with different soils, topography, land-use history, ocean currents, or climate details. Humans are an important part of most ecosystems, and many ecosystems have been heavily modified by humans. A plot of intensively managed farmland, a fish pond, and a grazed grassland are just as much ecosystems as is a pristine tropical forest. All are influenced by climate, all depend on a wide variety of interactions, and all provide essential benefits to people. The lives of animals, plants, and microorganisms are strongly attuned to changes in climate, such as variation in temperatures; the amount, timing, or form of precipitation; or changes in ocean currents. Some are more sensitive and vulnerable to climate fluctuations than others. If the climate change is modest and slow, the majority of species will most likely adapt successfully. If the climate change is large or rapid, more and more species will face ecological changes to which they may not be able to adapt. But as we will see later, even modest impacts of climate change can cause a range of significant responses, even if the changes are not so harsh that the organism dies. Organisms may react to a shift in temperature or precipitation by altering the timing of an event like migration or leaf emergence, which in turn has effects that ripple out to other parts of the ecosystem. For example, such timing changes may alter the interactions between predator and prey, or plants (including many crops) and the insects that pollinate their flowers. Ultimately we want to understand how climate change alters the overall functioning of the ecosystem and in particular how it alters the ability of the ecosystem to provide valuable services for humans. Ecosystems play a central role in sustaining humans (Figure 1) (Daily 1997; Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005). Ecosystems provide products directly consumed by people. This includes food and fiber from agricultural, marine, and forest ecosystems, plus fuel, including wood, grass, and even waste from some agricultural crops, and medicines (from plants, animals and seaweeds). Our supply and quality of fresh water also depends on ecosystems, as they play a critical role in circulating, cleaning, and replenishing water supplies. Ecosystems also regulate our environment; for example, forests, floodplains, and streamside vegetation can be critically important in controlling risks from floods; likewise, mangroves, kelp forests, and coral reefs dampen the impact of storms on coastal communities. Ecosystems provide cultural services that improve our quality of life in ways that range from the sense of awe many feel when looking up at a towering sequoia tree to educational and recreational opportunities. Ecosystems also provide natureâs support structure; without ecosystems there would be no soil to support plants, nor all the microorganisms and animals that depend on plants. In the oceans, ecosystems sustain the nutrient cycling that supports marine plankton, which in turn supply food for the fish and other seafood humans eat. Algae in ocean ecosystems produce much of the oxygen that we breathe. In general, we do not pay for the services we get from ecosystems, even though we could not live without them and would have to pay a high price to provide artificially.

Introduction 3 FIGURE 1 Ecosystem services. SOURCE: Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005). Ecosystem services rely on complex interactions among many species, so in most environments it is critical that they contain a diverse array of organisms. Even those services that appear to depend on a single species, like the production of honey, actually depend on the interactions of many species, sometimes many hundreds or thousands. Honey comes from honeybees, but the bees depend on pollen and nectar from the plants they pollinate. These plants depend not only on the bees but also on the worms and other soil animals that aerate the soil, the microorganisms that release nutrients, and the predatory insects that limit populations of plant- eating insects. Scientists are still at the early stages of understanding exactly how diversity contributes to ecosystem resilienceâthe ability of an ecosystem to withstand stresses like pollution or a hurricane without it resulting in a major shift in the ecosystemâs type or the services it provides (Schulze and Mooney 1993; Chapin et al. 1997; Tilman et al. 2006; Worm et al. 2006). But we are already certain about one thing. Each species is a unique solution to a challenge posed by nature and each speciesâ DNA is a unique and complex blueprint. Once a species goes extinct, we canât get it back. Therefore, as we look at the impacts of climate change on ecosystems, it is critical to remember that some kinds of impactsâlosses of biological diversityâare irreversible. What do we know about current climate change? Over the last 20 years the worldâs governments have requested a series of authoritative assessments of scientific knowledge about climate change, its impacts, and possible approaches

4 Introduction for dealing with climate change. These assessments are conducted by a unique organization, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Every five to seven years, the IPCC uses volunteer input from thousands of scientists to synthesize available knowledge. The IPCC conclusions undergo intense additional review and evaluation by both the scientific community and the worldâs governments, resulting in final reports that all countries officially accept (Bolin 2007). The information in the IPCC reports has thus been through multiple reviews and is the most authoritative synthesis of the state of the science on climate change. Earthâs average temperature is increasing In 2007 the IPCC reported that Earthâs average temperature is unequivocally warming (IPCC 2007b). Multiple lines of scientific evidence show that Earthâs global average surface temperature has risen some 0.75Â°C (1.3Â°F) since 1850 (the starting point for a useful global network of thermometers). Not every part of the planetâs surface is warming at the same rate. Some parts are warming more rapidly, particularly over land, and a few parts (in Antarctica, for example) have cooled slightly (Figure 2). But vastly more areas are warming than cooling. In the United States average temperatures have risen overall, with the change in temperature generally much higher in the northwest, especially in Alaska, than in the south (Figure 3). The eight warmest years in the last 100 years, according to NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, have all occurred since 1998 (http://www.giss.nasa.gov/research/news/20080116/). During the second half of the 20th century, oceans have also become warmer. Warmer ocean waters cause sea ice to melt, trigger bleaching of corals, result in many species shifting their geographic ranges, stress many other species that cannot move elsewhere, contribute to sea- level rise (see below), and hold less oxygen and carbon dioxide.

Introduction 5 FIGURE 2 Global trends in temperature. The upper map shows the average change in temperature per decade from 1870 to 2005. Areas in orange have seen temperatures rise between 0.1-0.2oC per decade, so that they average 1.35 to 2.7oC warmer in 2005 than in 1870. The lower map shows the average change in temperature per decade from 1950 to 2005. Areas in deep red have seen temperatures rise on average more than 0.4oC per decade, so that they average more than 2oC warmer in 2005 than in 1950. SOURCE: Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and Ocean, University of Washington.

6 Introduction FIGURE 3 Temperature trends in North America, 1955 to 2005. The darker areas have experienced greater changes in temperature. For example, the Pacific Northwest had average temperatures about 1oC higher in 2005 than in 1955, while Alaskaâs average temperature had risen by over 2oC. SOURCE: Created with data from Goddard Institute for Space Studies. Sea levels are rising Climate change also means that sea levels are rising. Not only do warmer temperatures cause glaciers and land ice to melt (adding more volume to oceans), but seawater also expands in volume as it warms. The global average sea level rose by just under 2 mm/yr (0.08in/yr) during the 20th century, but since satellite measurements began in 1992, the rate has been 3.1 mm/year (0.12in/yr)(IPCC 2007a). Along some parts of the U.S. coast, tide gauge records show that sea level rose even faster (up to 10 mm/yr, 0.39in/yr) because the land is also subsiding. As sea level rises, shoreline retreat has been taking place along most of the nationâs sandy or muddy shorelines, and substantial coastal wetlands have been lost due to the combined effects of sea- level rise and direct human activities. In Louisiana alone, 4900 km2 (1900 mi2) of wetlands have been lost since 1900 as a result of high rates of relative sea-level rise together with curtailment of the supply of riverborne sediments needed to build wetland soils. The loss of these wetlands has diminished the ability of that region to provide many ecosystem services, including commercial fisheries, recreational hunting and fishing, and habitats for rare, threatened, and migratory species, as well as weakening the regionâs capacity to absorb storm surges like those caused by Hurricane Katrina (Day et al. 2007). Higher sea levels can also change the salinity and water circulation patterns of coastal estuaries and bays, with varying consequences for the mix of species that can thrive there.

Introduction 7 Other effects are being seen Water Cycle Climate change is linked to a number of other changes that already can be seen around the world. These include earlier spring snowmelt and peak stream flow, melting mountain glaciers, a dramatic decrease in sea ice during the arctic summer, and increasing frequency of extreme weather events, including the most intense hurricanes (IPCC 2007b). Changes in average annual precipitation have varied from place to place in the United States (Figure 4). Climate dynamics and the cycling of water between land, rivers and lakes, and clouds and oceans are closely connected. Climate change to date has produced complicated effects on water balances, supply, demand, and quality. When winter precipitation falls as rain instead of snow and as mountain snowpacks melt earlier, less water is âstoredâ in the form of snow for slow release throughout the summer (Mote 2003), when it is needed by the wildlife in and around streams and rivers and for agriculture and domestic uses. Even if the amount of precipitation does not change, warmer temperatures mean that moisture evaporates more quickly, so that the amount of moisture available to plants declines. The complex interaction between temperature and water demand and availability means that climate change can have many different kinds of effects on ecosystems. FIGURE 4 Trends in precipitation from 1901 to 2006 in the United States. Areas in red are averaging some 30 percent less precipitation per year now than they received early in the 1900s. Dark blue areas are averaging 50 percent more precipitation per year. SOURCE: Backlund 2008. Created with data from the USGS and NOAA/NCDC. Extreme Events The character of extreme weather and climate events is also changing on a global scale. The number of frost days in midlatitude regions is decreasing, while the number of days with extreme warm temperatures is increasing. Many land regions have experienced an increase in days with very heavy rain, but the recent CCSP report on climate extremes concluded that âthere are recent

8 Introduction regional tendencies toward more severe droughts in the southwestern U.S., parts of Canada and Alaska, and Mexicoâ (Kunkel et al. 2008, Dai et al. 2004; Seager et al., 2007). These seemingly contradictory changes are consistent with a climate in which a greater input of heat energy is leading to a more active water cycle. In addition, warmer ocean temperatures are associated with the recent increase in the fraction of hurricanes that grow to the most destructive categories 4 and 5 (Emanuel 2005; Webster et al. 2005). Arctic Sea Ice Every year the area covered by sea ice in the Arctic Ocean expands in the winter and contracts in the summer. In the first half of the 20th century the annual minimum sea-ice area in the Arctic was usually in the range of 10 to 11 million km2 (3.86 to 4.25 million mi2) (ACIA 2005). In September 2007 sea-ice area hit a single-day minimum of 4.1 million km2 (1.64 million mi2), a loss of about half since the 1950s (Serreze et al. 2007). The decrease in area is matched by a dramatic decrease in thickness. From 1975 to 2000 the average thickness of Arctic sea ice decreased by 33 percent, from 3.7 to 2.5 m (12.3 to 8.3 ft) (Rothrock et al. 2008). Ocean Acidification About one-third of the carbon dioxide emitted by human activity has already been taken up by the oceans, thus moderating the increase of carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere and global warming. But, as the carbon dioxide dissolves in sea water, carbonic acid is formed, which has the effect of acidifying, or lowering the pH, of the ocean (Orr et al. 2005). Although not caused by warming, acidification is a result of the increase of carbon dioxide, the same major greenhouse gas that causes warming. Ocean acidification has many impacts on marine ecosystems. To date, laboratory experiments have shown that although ocean acidification may be beneficial to a few species, it will likely be highly detrimental to a substantial number of species ranging from corals to lobsters and from sea urchins to mollusks (Raven et al. 2005; Doney et al. 2008; Fabry et al. 2008). Causes of climate change Both natural variability and human activities are contributing to observed global and regional warming, and both will contribute to future climate trends. It is very likely that most of the observed warming for the last 50 years has been due to the increase in greenhouse gases related to human activities (in IPCC reports, âvery likelyâ specifically means that scientists believe the statement is at least 90 percent likely to be true; âlikelyâ specifically means about two-thirds to 90 percent likely to be true [IPCC 2007b]). While debate over details is an important part of the scientific process, the climate science community is virtually unanimous on this conclusion. The physical processes that cause climate change are scientifically well documented. The basic physics of the way greenhouse gases warm the climate were well established by Tyndall, Ahrrenius, and others in the 19th century (Bolin 2007). The conclusions that human actions have very likely caused most of the recent warming and will likely cause more in the future are based on the vast preponderance of accumulated scientific evidence from many different kinds of observations (IPCC 2007b). Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, human activities that clear land or burn fossil fuels have been injecting rapidly increasing amounts of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) into the atmosphere. In 2006 emissions of CO2 were about 36 billion metric tons (39.6 billion English tons), or about 5.5 metric tons (6.0 English tons) for every human being (Raupach et al. 2007). In the United States average CO2

Introduction 9 emissions in 2006 were approximately 55 kg (120 lb) per person per day. As a consequence of these emissions, atmospheric CO2 has increased by about 35 percent since 1850. Scientists know that the increases in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are due to human activities, not natural processes, because they can fingerprint carbon dioxide (for example, by the mix of carbon isotopes it contains, its spatial pattern, and trends in concentration over time) and identify the sources. Concentrations of other greenhouse gases have also increased, some even more than CO2 in percentage terms (Figure 5). Methane, which is 25 times more effective per molecule at trapping heat than CO2, has increased by 150 percent. Nitrous oxide (N2O), which is nearly 300 times more effective per molecule than CO2 at trapping heat, has increased by over 20 percent (Forster et al. 2007). Scientific knowledge of climate is far from complete. Much remains to be learned about the factors that control the sensitivity of climate to increases in greenhouse gases, rates of change, and the regional outcomes of the global changes. These uncertainties, however, concern the details and not the core mechanisms that give scientists high confidence in their basic conclusions.

10 Introduction Atmospheric concentrations of CO2, CH4 and N2O over the last 10,000 years (large panels) and since 1750 (inset panels). Measurements are shown from ice cores (symbols with different colors for different studies) and atmospheric samples (red lines). The corresponding radiative forcings (amount of energy trapped per unit area) relative to 1750 are shown on the right hand axes of the large panels. Source: IPCC 2007d. FIGURE 5: Historical concentrations of greenhouse gasses CO2, CH4, and N2O over the past 10,000 years. For each of these greenhouse gases, the characteristic âhockey stickâ shape of the

Introduction 11 curve is the result of large increases in the concentrations of these gases very recently, compared to their relatively stable levels over the past 10,000 years. SOURCE: IPCC 2007d. What do we expect from future climate change? Evidence of rising atmospheric and ocean temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, rising sea levels, and decreasing sea ice is already clear. Average temperatures will almost certainly be warmer in the future. The amount of future climate change depends on human actions. A large number of experiments with climate models indicate that if the world continues to emphasize rapid economic development powered by fossil fuels, it will probably experience dramatic warming during the 21st century. For this kind of âbusiness as usualâ future the IPCC (IPCC 2007b) projects a likely range of global warming over 1990 levels of 2.4-6.4ÂºC (4.3-11.5ÂºF) by 2100 (Figure 6, scenario A1F1). If greenhouse gas emissions grow more slowly, peak around the year 2050, and then fall, scientists project a likely warming over 1990 levels of 1.1-2.9ÂºC (2.0- 5.2ÂºF) by 2100 (Figure 6, scenario B1).5 Temperature increases at the high end of the range of possibilities are very likely to exceed many climate thresholds. Warming of 6Â°C (10.8Â°F) or more (the upper end of the projections that the 2007 IPCC rates as âlikelyâ) would probably have catastrophic consequences for lifestyles, ecosystems, agriculture, and other livelihoods, especially in the regions and populations with the least resources to invest in adaptationâthat is, the strategies and infrastructure for coping with the climate changes. Warming to the high end of the range would also entail a global average rate of temperature change that, for the next century or two, would dramatically exceed the average rates of the last 20,000 years, and possibly much further into the past. Mean seawater temperatures in some U.S. coastal regions have increased by as much as 1.1Â°C (2Â°F) during the last half of the 20th century and, based on IPCC model projections of air temperature, are likely to increase by as much as 2.2-4.4Â°C (4-8Â°F) during the present century. âBusiness as usualâ emissions through 2100 would likely lead to oceans with surface temperatures that are 2-4ÂºC (3.6-7.2ÂºF) higher than now and surface waters so acidified that only a few isolated locations would support the growth of corals (Cao et al. 2007). Most marine animals, especially sedentary ones, and plants are expected to be significantly stressed by these changes (Hoegh-Guldberg et al. 2007). Some may be able to cope with either increased temperatures or more acidic waters, but adjusting to both may not be feasible for many species. 5 Projections of warming are given as a range of temperatures for three reasons. First, gaps in the scientific understanding of climate limit the accuracy of projections for any specific concentration of greenhouse gases. Changes in wind and clouds can increase or decrease the warming that occurs in response to an increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases. Loss of ice on the sea or snow on land increases the amount of the incoming sunlight that is absorbed, amplifying the warming from greenhouse gases. Second, the pattern of future emissions and the mix of compounds released to the atmosphere cannot be predicted with high confidence. Some kinds of compounds that produce warming remain in the atmosphere only a few days (Ramanathan et al. 2007). Others, like CO2, remain for centuries and longer (Matthews and Caldeira 2008). Still other compounds tend to produce aerosols or tiny droplets or particles that reflect sunlight, cooling the climate. Third, there is substantial uncertainty about the future role of the oceans and ecosystems on land. In the past, oceans and land ecosystems have stored, at least temporarily, about half of the carbon emitted to the atmosphere by human actions. If the rate of storage increases, atmospheric CO2 will rise more slowly. If it decreases, then atmospheric CO2 will rise more rapidly (Field et al. 2007).

12 Introduction Continued emissions under the âbusiness as usualâ scenario could lead by 2100 to 0.6 m (2 ft) or more of sea-level rise. Continuation of recent increases in loss of the ice caps that cover Greenland and West Antarctica could eventually escalate the rate of sea-level rise by a factor of 2 (Overpeck et al. 2006; Meehl et al. 2007; Alley et al. 2005; Gregory and Huybrechts 2006; Rahmstorf 2007). There will also be hotter extreme temperatures and fewer extreme cold events. An increase in climate variability, projected in some models, will entail more frequent conditions of extreme heat, drought, and heavy precipitation. A warmer world will experience more precipitation at the global scale, but the changes will not be the same everywhere. In general, the projections indicate that dry areas, especially in the latitude band just outside the tropics (for example, the southwestern United States), will tend to get drier on average (IPCC 2007b; Kunkel et al. 2008). Areas that are already wet, especially in the tropics and closer to the poles, will tend to get wetter on average. Increased climate variability and increased evaporation in a warmer world could both increase the risk and likely intensity of future droughts. Changes in the frequency or intensity of El NiÃ±o events forecast by climate models are not consistent (IPCC 2007b). El NiÃ±os are important because they are often associated with large-scale drought and floods in the tropics and heavy rains just outside the tropics, but projecting how the interaction between climate change and El NiÃ±o events will affect precipitation patterns is difficult. Another example of inconsistent results from models is that model simulations indicate that future hurricane frequency and average intensity could either increase or decrease (Emanuel et al. 2008), but it is likely that rainfall and top wind speeds in general will increase in a world of warmed ocean temperatures. For all of these different factorsââtemperature, precipitation patterns, sea-level rise and extreme eventsââboth the magnitude and speed of change are important. For both ecosystems and human activities, a rapid rate of climate change presents challenges that are different from, but no less serious than, the challenges from a large amount of change (Schneider and Root 2001).

Introduction 13 Solid lines are multi-model global averages of surface warming for scenarios A2, A1B and B1, shown as continuations of the 20th-century simulations. These projections also take into account emissions of short-lived GHGs and aerosols. The pink line is not a scenario, but is for Atmosphere-Ocean General Circulation Model (AOGCM) simulations where atmospheric concentrations are held constant at year 2000 values. The bars at the right of the figure indicate the best estimate (solid line within each bar) and the likely range assessed for the six SRES marker scenarios at 2090-2099. All temperatures are relative to the period 1980-1999. SOURCE IPCC 2007b. FIGURE 6 Projected future temperatures. This figure shows projected trends of average global surface temperature, based on output from all of the major climate models, shown as continuations of the 20th century observations (with the average for 1980-1999 plotted as 0). The pink line represents what would happen if CO2 concentrations could be held constant at year 2000 levels. Scenarios B1, A1B and A2 represent alternative possible futures. A1B and B1 are futures with modest population growth, rapid economic growth, and a globally integrated economy, with A1B focusing on manufacturing and B1 focusing on service industries. A2 is a world with more rapid population growth but slower economic growth and less economic integration. The bars to the right of the graph represent the likely range of average global temperature from the same models in the years 2090-2099 for a wider range of possible futures, with the horizontal bar in the middle indicating the average across the models. As of 2006, actual CO2 emissions were higher than those in the A2 scenario, making the full range of scenarios look like underestimates, at least for the first years of the 21st century. (IPCC 2007b, Raupach et al. 2007).

14 Introduction Climate change can impact ecosystems in many ways Hundreds of studies have documented responses of ecosystems, plants, and animals to the climate changes that have already occurred (Parmesan 2006; Rosenzweig et al. 2007). These studies demonstrate many direct and indirect effects of climate change on ecosystems. Changes in temperature, for example, have been shown to affect ecosystems directly: the date when some plants bloom is occurring earlier in response to warmer temperatures and earlier springs. Extreme temperatures, both hot and cold, can be important causes of mortality, and small changes in extremes can sometimes determine whether a plant or animal survives and reproduces in a given location. Changes in temperature, especially when combined with changes in precipitation, can have indirect effects as well. For many plants and animals soil moisture is critically important for many life processes; changes in precipitation and in the rate of evaporation interact to determine whether moisture levels remain at a level suitable for various organisms. For fish and other aquatic organisms both water temperature and water flow are important and influenced by the combined effects of altered air temperatures and precipitation. For example, warmer, drier years in the northwestern United States, often associated with El NiÃ±o events and anticipated to be more common under many climate scenarios, have historically been associated with below- average snowpack, stream flow, and salmon survival (Mote 2003). Some salmon populations are especially sensitive to summer temperatures; others are sensitive to low stream-flow volumes in the fall (Crozier and Zabel 2006). The fact that climate change leads to rising seas means that organisms and ecosystems located in coastal zones between the ocean and terrestrial habitats are squeezed, especially when the coastal land is occupied by buildings or crops. The ecological impacts of climate change are not inherently beneficial or detrimental for an ecosystem. The concept that a change is beneficial or detrimental has meaning mainly from the human perspective. For an ecosystem, responses to climate change are simply shifts away from the state prior to human-caused climate change. Measured by particular ecosystem services, some changes could be beneficial; for example, warmer temperatures extend the growing season in some latitudes, and higher CO2 levels increase the growth of some land plants, with higher potential yields of food and forestry products (Nemani et al. 2003). Others are detrimental, for example, western mountain areas with a longer snow-free season are experiencing increased wildfires, reduced potential wood harvests, and loss of some recreational opportunities (Westerling et al. 2006). In some settings uncertainty about future ecosystem services may be a cost in itself, motivating investments that may not turn out to be necessary or that may be insufficient to effectively address changing needs. To date, many species have responded to the effects of climate change by extending their range boundaries both toward the poles (for example, northward in the U.S.) and up in elevation, and by shifting the timing of spring and autumn events. Plants and animals needing to move but prevented from doing so, for example, because appropriate habitat is not present at higher elevations, are at greater risk of extinction. Shifting species ranges, changes in the timing of biological events, and a greater risk of extinction all affect the ability of ecosystems to provide the critical servicesâproducts, regulation of the environment, enhanced human quality of life, and natural infrastructureâthey have been providing.

Introduction 15 Ecosystems can adjust to changeâover time Ecosystems are not static. They are collections of living organisms that grow and interact and die. Ecosystems encounter an ever changing landscape of weather conditions and various kinds of disturbances, both subtle and severe. Whatever conditions an ecosystem encounters, the individual organisms and species react to the changes in different ways. Ecosystems themselves do not move, individuals and species do; some species can move farther and faster than others, but some may not be able to move at all. For example, a long-lived tree species may take decades to spread to a new range, while an insect with many hatches per year could move quickly. A species that already lives on mountaintops may have nowhere else to retreat. Rapid and extreme disturbances can have major and long-lasting ecological impacts. For example, a severe drought, wildfire, or hurricane can fundamentally reshape an area, often for many decades. In one of the most dramatic examples the impact of an asteroid 65 million years ago is believed to have so radically changed conditions on Earth that the dominant animals, the dinosaurs, died off and were supplanted by mammals (Alvarez et al. 1990). On longer time scales, most places on Earth have experienced substantial climate changes. During the peak of the last ice age, approximately 21,000 years ago, most of Canada and the northern United States were under thousands of feet of ice (Jansen et al. 2007). Arctic vegetation thrived in Kentucky, and sea levels were about 120 m (400 ft) lower than at present. Over the past million years Earth has experienced a series of ice ages, separated by warmer conditions. Global average temperatures during these ice ages were about 4-7Â°C (7.2-12.6Â°F) cooler than present, with the cooling and warming occurring over many thousands of years (Jansen et al. 2007). These ice ages triggered extensive ecological responses, including large shifts in the distributions of plants and animals, as well as extinctions. The massive changes during past ice ages certainly pushed ecosystems off large swaths of Earthâs surface as ice- dominated landscapes advanced. However, these changes were generally slow enough that surviving species could move and reassemble into novel, as well as familiar-looking, ecosystems as the ice retreated (Pitelka et al. 1997; Overpeck et al. 2003). The 10,000 years since the last ice age have seen substantial regional and local climate variation, but on a global scale climate was relatively stable, and these regional climate changes did not drive species to extinction nor result in the scale of global ecosystem change seen during glacial-to-interglacial transitions. Even when the global climate is not changing noticeably, regional climate variability (droughts, storms, and heat waves) can have dramatic regional (often short-term) impacts. In a period of climate change it is important to remember that this climate variability will continue to occur on top of the more long-term human-caused climate changes. Data on ecosystem responses to disturbances in the distant past can provide valuable information about likely responses to current and future climate change. But it is important to recognize that the current rate of increase of CO2 in Earthâs atmosphere is faster than at any time measured in the past, indicating that human-caused global climate change in the current era is likely to be exceedingly rapid, many times faster than the long-term global changes associated with onset and termination of the ice ages (Jansen et al. 2007). One of the big concerns about the future is that climate changes in some places may be too fast for organisms to respond in the ways that have helped sustain ecosystem services in response to natural changes in the past. Understanding how quickly ecosystems can and cannot adjust is one of the key challenges in climate change research.

16 Introduction Climate change, other stresses, and the limits of ecosystem resilience Climate change is not the only way humans are affecting ecosystems. Humans have a large and pervasive influence on the planet. We use a substantial portion of the land for agriculture and the oceans for fishing (Worm et al. 2006; Ellis and Ramankutty 2008). Many rivers are dammed to provide water for crops or people, or they are polluted with fertilizer or other chemicals. Chemical residues and the by-products of industrial activity, from acid precipitation to ozone, affect plant growth. Human activities, especially land and ocean use, limit some opportunities for species migrations while opening routes for other species. Globally humans have moved many non-native species from one ecosystem to another. Ecosystems operate in a context of multiple human influences and interacting factors. Earthâs ecosystems are generally resilient to some range of changes in climate. A resilient ecosystem is one that can withstand a stress like pollution or rebuild after a major disturbance like a serious storm. A resilient ecosystem can cope with a drought or an unusually hot summer in ways that alter some aspects of ecosystem function but do not lead to a major shift in the type of ecosystem or the services it provides. Thus, a resilient ecosystem may not appear to be affected by modest or slow climate changes. But this resilience has limits. When a change exceeds those limits, or is coupled with other simultaneous changes that cause stress, the ecosystem undergoes a major change, often shifting to a fundamentally different ecosystem type. There is a threshold point when dramatic ecosystem transformations may occur (Gunderson and Pritchard 2002). These thresholds are like the top of a levee as the water level rises. As long as the water level is even slightly below the top of the levee, function is normal. But once it rises above the levee, there is a flood. This kind of threshold response is common in ecosystems, where extreme events like heat waves often serve as triggers for an irreversible transition of the ecosystem to a new state. Currently plants and animals are responding to rapid climate change while simultaneously coping with other human-created stresses such as habitat loss and fragmentation due to development, pollution, invasive species, and overharvesting. How do we know climate change itself is causing major changes in ecosystems? First, species changing their ranges in the Northern Hemisphere are almost uniformly moving their ranges northward and up in elevation in search of cooler temperatures (Parmesan and Yohe 2003; Parmesan 2006; Rosenzweig et al. 2007). If any or all of the other stressors were the major cause of ecosystem changes, plants and animals would move in many directions in addition to north, and to lower as well as higher elevations. Second, when we look at the association over time of changes between species ranges and temperatures modeled using only natural variation in climate, such as sunspots and volcanic dust in the stratosphere, the relationship is poor. When temperatures are modeled using natural variability as well as human-caused drivers, such as emission of CO2 and methane, the association is very strong. Consequently, humans are very likely causing changes in regional temperatures to which in turn the plants and animals are responding (Root et al. 2005).

The world's climate is changing, and it will continue to change throughout the 21st century and beyond. Rising temperatures, new precipitation patterns, and other changes are already affecting many aspects of human society and the natural world.

In this book, the National Research Council provides a broad overview of the ecological impacts of climate change, and a series of examples of impacts of different kinds. The book was written as a basis for a forthcoming illustrated booklet, designed to provide the public with accurate scientific information on this important subject.

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1 Introduction
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