The Changing Climate: Looking Ahead to a World of Problems

This week I was reading Mike Davis’ Ecology of Fear: Los Angeles and the Imagination of Disaster. In the book, Davis examines the natural phenomena that have plagued the planet. Then he offers a historical analysis of Southern California’s development, which he uses to predict some of the problems we may face in the foreseeable future. Reading this caused me to ask myself a number of questions. How widespread is this type of information and how is it being spread? Why is it difficult to incite the change that could prevent environmental disasters? What will it take to cause this change? Lastly, what can people to everyday to reduce their carbon emissions, and do those numbers even matter?

What is going to happen to the earth? The disasters that are already happening are indicators of how the earth has been affected by climate change. Global temperatures are rising, and flooding is becoming a greater threat especially for coastal cities. Oceans are warming and glaciers are melting at faster and faster rates. Carol Auer, an oceanographer with the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration says, “Because sea level rises have made everything a little higher, when a storm hits that makes for more vulnerability. The higher sea level gives a storm surge a boost to reach further inland.” Auer speaks to an unfortunate trend, that environmental problems tend to cause or fuel others. At Live Science I encountered a timeline that lists problems by the year that they emerged, and then predicts the slow, painful descent of the earth’s condition in detail over the next hundred years. While I do believe that eco-friendly lifestyles are on the rise, carbon emission numbers are still soaring. One has to wonder what it will take to inspire the kind of change that will truly alter the condition of the planet.

Whose responsibility is it to work to ensure a healthier earth? And who is doing their part? In recent years global warming has become a popular topic for discussion fueled in part by different forms of the media. The Internet is an important vehicle for accessing environmental programs and data. Celebrities, regardless of their reasons, have played a large role in popularizing and funding global issues. This type of endorsement is very important in terms of stimulating public interest in those who might not otherwise be interested. Like celebrities, politicians are another group of people with the power and money to significantly affect the cause. However, many of them are motivated by wealth rather than the health of the planet. Ultimately the government will shoulder the blame for neglecting to recognize climate change as a serious issue and taking more preventative measures. Even if political officials have the power to make large changes, the responsibility falls on everyone who contributes carbon emissions to educate themselves and do what they can.

Despite increased interest and availability of information on climate change, many people choose to remain uninformed on ways that they can help the environment. Perhaps they are merely set in their ways. Perhaps they believe that being environmentally conscious will be more costly. Maybe they do not know how simple it is to reduce emissions or they do not think that one person can make a difference. I suspect that for the average person, it is difficult to imagine or feel threatened by the potential disasters that could occur when the earth still seems mostly healthy on a day to day basis. However, this does not negate the continuing deterioration of the planet.

So can one person make a difference? What can they do and how much does it help? To delve further into this I visited a website called My Carbon Footprint. In quiz form you answer which changes you would be willing to make in your daily life, many of which would hardly be noticeable. Then it calculates how much you can realistically reduce your carbon emissions. I was surprised by the numerous options and their simplicity. Not allowing the water to run as your brush your teeth. Bringing your own grocery bags to the store. A willingness to use public transportation on longer trips rather than a car. These acts may seem insignificant, but in some small way each person can contribute to a much larger and necessary change. Oh, and of course, ride your bike!

Recommended Reading:

Our Changing Planet: The View from Space a book of satellite pictures that make visible the changes that cannot be seen from Earth.