Climate change: what is it and what's the problem

Hello,

I've noticed that we are always mentioning climate change. Not only us blog editors but also politicians, activists and so on. The words climate change are bounced around in the media and probably in your households, but do you actually know what it is or how it works? I know that for a long time, I didn't know what it really meant. I hope that this post changes that.

What is climate change and how does it work?

The words climate change describe a slow shift in the earth's temperature and changes in the weather patterns. Having a single warm winter does not instantly mean climate change. Climate change happens over a long period of time. If you look at a temperature graph over the years, it doesn't go up in one day and then stay the same for another hundred years. It curves up slowly but steadily.

This is a average temperature graph from 1880 to just after 2000. You can see how the temperature gradually gets warmer.

But why is it getting warmer?

Well, that's because of the greenhouse effect.

What's the greenhouse effect? What has climate change got to do with a greenhouse?

The greenhouse effect has nothing to do with actual greenhouses. The greenhouse effect works like this.

The warmth from the sun hits the earth's atmosphere.
Some of it reflects of the atmosphere, back into space and is irrelevant for us.
The rest of the sun's warmth comes in through the atmosphere.
Some of the warmth stays in the clouds.
The rest of it comes all the way down to earth.
Some of the warmth gets absorbed by the earth.
The rest of it gets reflected back into the atmosphere.
Some of the warmth doesn't make it out of the atmosphere. That's because of greenhouse gases. They keep the warmth in the atmosphere.
It gets warmer on earth.

Greenhouse gases include:

Water vapor
Carbon dioxide (CO2)
Methane
And many more

But the greenhouse effect isn't a bad thing. Greenhouse gases aren't bad things either. The greenhouse effect is natural. In fact, if the greenhouse effect didn't exist, the average temperature on earth would be -18°C rather than +15°C! So what's the problem?

There wasn't a problem, until humans started producing more greenhouse gases. The more greenhouse gases there are, the more warmth gets trapped in the atmosphere. And the more warmth get stuck in the atmosphere, the warmer it gets.

And that is climate change and how it works. It isn't actually that difficult. The problem is, what is does to our earth.

What's wrong with the earth warming up?

So the fact that the earth is warming up, may sound quite nice. But it definitely isn't nice in the long run! Here's a list of just a few of the things that climate change is doing:

1. Wildfires (because everything is drying up)

2. Rising sea levels (because the Artic and the Antarctic are melting into the ocean)

3. Deadly heatwaves (70 000 people died from a heatwave in Europe in 2003)

4. Floods (because glaciers are melting and the excess water is flowing into rivers)

5. Extreme weather (droughts, storms, heavy rainfall, …)

6. Ocean warming up (kills marine plants and animals)

So the earth warming up is just as bad as another ice age.

How do we stop the earth from warming up?

So the most obvious one is to stop emitting CO2. In fact we have a post with the different ways to slow CO2 emissions. However there are so many other ways to slow climate change.

Don't buy products containing palm oil.

Rainforests are being cut down to make space for palm oil plantations. Trees absorb CO2 so cutting them down is a bad idea.

Go on climate change protests

Ok, so this is probably a bad idea with Covid-19 still at large. But when the protests do start up again, make your voice heard. There are plenty of petitions going around if you don't want to go on an actual protest.

Reduce the amount of meat you eat

Again, rainforests are being chopped down to create space for pigs and cows. Also Methane is created in the stomachs of cattle. Methane is another greenhouse gas. It's effects are much worse than CO2. And the animals that we eat are usually kept in bad living conditions and suffer their whole lives long. It's as if they aren't even alive, they are just there for us to kill.

Our planet is dying and if we don't do something about it, we will die with it. This isn't right. How are governments still ignoring the signs? It's as if they only care about money and power. Is that true? Do they just want the money and the power?

Sources:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24021772
https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/what-is-climate-change
https://www.epa.gov/climatechange-science/basics-climate-change

Images:
Ice: This image, owned by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Temperature graph: This image, owned by Matt Lemmon (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
Palm oil: This image is owned by Ihsan Adityawarman on pexels.com.
Climate protest: This image is owned by Markus Spiske on pexels.com.

Comments

April Top Tips: ten tips for environmentally friendly travel

Hi Everyone! We haven't been very present on the blog again recently but we are back today with ten top tips for environmentally friendly travel. Most forms of travel over long distances (unless you are willing to put in a lot of physical effort) use fossil fuels and are generally not good for our planet. So today we will be giving you a few tips which although won't mean that your travel is 100% planet friendly, will be a good start to doing as much as you can. Your Green World Blog Team💚 1. Use trains and boats rather than planes where possible Planes are awful for the environment. They are, however, extremely practical and so easy to use, cheap...It's hard to avoid them! They are so quick too so you don't have to spend as much time travelling. However, they are really bad for the environment. For example, you could fly once to Edinburgh from Heathrow for the same carbon dioxide levels as driving to Edinburgh 336 times! 2. Fly...

October Top tips | homemade presents

Hi everyone, So today we're going to talk about sustainable homemade presents. If you start now, then some of these would make amazing Christmas presents. 1. Knitting, crochet, embroidery & more yarn items You can make some incredible presents by knitting or crocheting with wool or thick yarn. All you need are needles and wool/yarn. Wool can be expensive if you want good quality so check out this post about making your own yarn out a t-shirt! With thinner yarn you could make some amazing thing through embroidery. Here are some project ideas: Scarfs Socks Blankets Jumpers Pouch Dishcloths Table mat Headband Fingerless gloves Keychains Friendship bracelets Wall decorations Handles for hot pots and pans Figurines Bag designs 2. Origami Origami is an amazing way to show someone that you put time into what you made. You can use paper of any size, colour or pattern. Here are some ideas: Swans ...

March 2021 Factfile - some news from the past month, animals that YOU voted for and more!

Hi Everyone! We hope you are all okay and will enjoy this month's wrap up post. We have managed to post a little more this month but we are off school soon so we may be able to post more! News! Recent European droughts and heatwaves are said to be worst in 2000 years The British newspaper, 'The Guardian' reports that the series of droughts and heatwaves since 2014 have been the worst in 2000 years. These heatwaves have disastrous consequences such as early deaths, crop failure and forest fires. For more information, click here . This is definitely the final bit of proof that climate change exists and that it needs to be stopped! Rise in deforestation in 2020 A horrifying 42 000 squared km of forest was chopped down in 2020, making it the third worst year since 2002. The most affected areas were humid tropical forests such as the Amazon, the Congo and other forests in South America and South-East Asia. These forests a...

August 2021 Factfile - some news, animals and a plant

Welcome to our August factfile, News Bad news :( Fires in and around Athens Athens has been under siege this month, but not by any army. The forests all around the capital and in other parts of Greece and Turkey have gone up in flames. Houses have been destroyed and thousands have been evacuated. The reason is, of course, climate change . “It’s been crazy over here. Between the extreme heat and the wildfires, it feels apocalyptic,” Eleni Myrivili wrote in an email on Thursday as the army was deployed to assist firefighters. “Ash is raining down on us here in Athens.” England's lake district in peril Lake District, a popular holiday resort in the north of England, is now eroding faster as a result of climate change and an increased amount of walkers due to the pandemic. Paths that were once two meters wide are now at least 12 meters wide on some walks. Also visitors tend to walk off the path, endangering local wildlife. With...

Beavers and their dams: what effects do they have?

Hi everyone, Today we're talking about beavers and their effects on the surrounding ecosystems and environments. 'Beaver' referres to two species in the genus Castor . They are found in North America, Europe and Asia and are the largest rodents in those places and the second largest rodents in the world. Beavers grow up to 80 cm long with a flat, paddle-shaped tail up to 45 cm. They have a small head, large incisor teeth and fur lined lips to avoid inhaling water while cutting and transporting branches underwater. They weigh 16-30kg and are nocturnal. Beavers live in streams, rivers, marshes, ponds and lakes where they construct dams. These have earned them the title 'ecosystem engineers' but we'll talk about that later. The dams are constructed with branches, sticks and rocks. They create a calm pool with a higher water level on one side. Beavers make their homes (lodges) in these calm pools. Beaver dams are both have bot...

Announcement: Animal of the week

Animals 36-40 in our '50 incredible animals' series

Hi, As you probably noticed, we took a break from this series, mostly due to having just too much to do. But we're back now with the last three posts. 36. The Pinocchio frog The Pinocchio frog can be found in the Foja Mountains in Indonesia. They mainly eat insects, although little is known about them. They are named because the males have a spike on their noses. They were only discovered in 2008, and this was completely by accident! It remained unnamed scientifically until over ten years later when it was given the name " Litoria pinocchio " . There is very little information about them but Wikipedia states that "the male Pinocchio frog inflates its nose when calling, and the nose decreases in size when the frog is calm and quiet," which I think is hilarious and so interesting! 37. Snub-nosed monkey Especially noticeable due to their curious looks, the snub-nosed monkeys can be found in the forests of central China and northern...

06.09.2020 Animal Of the Week: Seven-spotted Ladybird

Hello Everyone, Welcome to this week's animal of the week post. This time about the ladybird, and personally I can't wait to find out more about these creatures. Enjoy! Which ladybird we are investigating today? Today, I am telling you about the seven-spotted ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata), which is the most common ladybird in Europe. Other species include the Two Spot Ladybird and other uncommon ladybirds such as the 16 Spot and other peculiar types. Habitat The seven-spotted ladybird lives in a variety of habitats such as meadows, gardens and hedgerows. They can also be found on farmland, especially with crops such as alfalfa, clover and wheat and corn before it grows too tall. Diet The seven-spotted ladybird feeds on a range of aphid species. This is why they are often referred to as a gardener's best friend as they eat these creatures who can damage plants. They can also eat white flies and anything else that is soft-bo...

10 animals on the edge of extinction you didn't know about no. 9 - South Island takahē

Hello Today we’re talking about the South Island takahē, porphyrio hochstetteri . They are flightless birds, endemic to New Zealand. Takahē are brightly coloured and weigh 2.3-3.8 kg. They have red legs and a large red beak. Their feathers are coloured blue and green. They have wings, but these are only used during courtship or rivalry displays. They are territorial, with one family’s territory reaching anywhere from 4 ha to 100 ha (0,04-1km^2). Pairs will live in the same territory each year. They breed once a year and will raise 1-3 chicks (normally 2) each year. Both parents raise the chicks together. In the wild, takahē live in native grasslands and have a lifespan of 16-18 years. If snow covers the ground then they will move into nearby forests. They eat tussock grasses, sedges and sometimes rushes. But they are opportunists, so they will occasionally go for insects or even ducklings and...

November Top Tips | sustainable activities and hobbies

Hello everyone, So this week, we are going to be talking about sustainable free time activities. This area can quite big when it comes to environmental impact, so here are some things that you can do in your free time, that are more sustainable. 1. Reading So reading is one of our favourite things to do. However, books are made of paper and the paper industry isn't great. Some ways you can get around this is by reading online (for example, on a kindle), or through borrowing books from a library or using book boxes. If there aren't any in your area then at least try to support independent bookshops! 2. Running If you love being active then this one is for you. Running is probably one of the most sustainable forms of sport. All you need are some running shoes and somewhere to run. There is obviously more high-tech gear but that isn't really necessary if it's just a hobby. 3. Gardening If you've got a small area of land o...

Green World

Search This Blog