By Sarah Akers, JMU ’20 Justice Studies, with Isabella Lindblad, Biology ’24 and Alexandra Berens, Sociology ’22
Introduction
Climate change has been called the “defining crisis of our time.” Previously, climate change has been discussed in the context of the distant future; people were encouraged to reduce, reuse, and recycle, so the Earth will be saved for our grandchildren’s grandchildren. However, the reality is a bit more frightening. We are indeed experiencing the effects and consequences of climate change now. However, it may not be discussed openly since it does not affect everyone equally.
Between 97% and 99% of climate scientists have concluded that climate change is occurring and that it is caused by human activity. However, less than 60% of the American public believe the same to be true. Unfortunately, climate change concerns more than just scientific fact; it is a contentious, political matter.
Climate Science
The United Nations has defined climate change as “long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. These shifts may be natural, but since the 1800s, human activities have been the main driver of climate change, primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels (like coal, oil, and gas) which produces heat-trapping gases.”
Currently, the Earth is currently warming ten times faster than the ice age recovery warming. Since the late 19th century, the average temperature has risen 1.62° Fahrenheit and 0.85° Celsius. To put this into perspective, for each 1° Celsius of temperature increase, grain yields decline by approximately 5%.
Furthermore, Greenland has lost 286 billion tons of ice sheets every year since 1993, and Antarctica has lost 127 billion tons every year in that same time frame. This has contributed significantly to the sea level rising approximately 8 inches in the last century. Within the past two decades, the sea level has risen at double the rate of the previous century and will continue to accelerate at this pace. Finally, global emissions of carbon dioxide have increased by almost 50% since 1990. The acidification of the oceans has increased by 30% since the industrial revolution, which is a direct result of carbon emissions.
Unfortunately, as more science comes in, the bleaker the diagnosis gets. In 2009, leaders of the international community agreed to limit global temperature rise to 2° Celsius above pre-industrial levels. However, since that meeting in Copenhagen, scientists have agreed that a 2°C rise would be disastrous. Consequently, international leaders met again in Paris in 2015 and agreed to “pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C.” Unfortunately, if current global climate policies continue, scientists expect the result to be a 3.1° to 3.5°C temperature rise. Even if current pledges and promises from national governments are implemented and goals are met, the temperature would still rise approximately 2.7° to 3.0°C.
As result, we can expect mass extinctions and some parts of the planet would be uninhabitable, which would cause mass migration. Sea level rise would displace hundreds of millions of people. Extreme weather and erosion would be the new norm, devastating the agricultural sector and creating food crises. The UN has recognized that developing nations would be the hardest hit by the effects of climate change, despite their very limited role in creating it. They have also recognized that the impacts of climate change will greatly exacerbate the inequalities between the rich and poor.
The United Nations has also stated, “If no action is taken, entire districts of New York, Shanghai, Abu Dhabi, Osaka, Rio de Janeiro, and many other cities could find themselves underwater within our lifetimes, displacing millions of people.” If people think 2020 was a disastrous year, it would be absolutely nothing compared to this future.
Climate Politics
Even with the overwhelming consensus in the scientific community, there are still large portions of the general population, as well as members of Congress, who do not believe in climate change. In the media, there are several sources of misinformation. For a long time in the United States, the dominant model was a form of balanced news reporting that gave equal airtime to both sides of an issue. This model is still used by some major media outlets today. Unfortunately, when it is applied to climate change, it gives equal time to scientific fact as it does to skeptics and conspiracy theorists. To viewers, it can be difficult to distinguish which side has more valuable information since the media is presenting it to them as if the two sides are equal.
Confirmation bias also plays a major role. When people become aware of new information, they sort it into their pre-existing notions and perceptions and interpret the new information in a way that supports their desired conclusion.
However, the majority of the problem contributing to a lack of consensus is the creation of a countermovement against efforts to mitigate climate change. This countermovement is responsible for the effort to discredit climate scientists. When cigarettes were found to cause cancer, the tobacco industry did everything in their power to discredit the science behind this finding, so their profits would not decrease. Oil and gas companies have been using the same strategy for decades to spread misinformation to make the public believe that there is no scientific consensus on the matter.
Climate Action
As the 2nd largest carbon emitter, the U.S. has a responsibility to commit to climate action. Furthermore, the United States is in no way immune to the effects of climate change.
In 1960, scientists discovered that humans were causing more greenhouse gases to be trapped in the atmosphere. Nineteen years later, scientists discovered that this would change the Earth’s climate and have negative effects. It was this same year, 1979, that the First World Climate Conference was held. The official declaration stated, “Carbon dioxide plays a fundamental role in determining the temperature of the earth’s atmosphere, and it appears plausible that an increased amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere can contribute to a gradual warming … but the details of the changes are still poorly understood.”
In 1988, United Nations established the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to “provide policymakers with regular scientific assessments on the current state of knowledge about climate change.” The IPCC released the Working Group I contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) entitled Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis on August 9, 2021. In the report, the 234 authors from 66 countries assessed the science of climate change and concluded “some of the changes already set in motion—such as continued sea level rise—are irreversible over hundreds to thousands of years. However, strong and sustained reductions in emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases would limit climate change.”
According to the report, without “immediate, rapid and large-scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions”, it will be nearly impossible to limit the increase in global temperatures to the target of 1.5° to 2°C above pre-industrial levels set out in the Paris Agreement in 2015 so as to mitigate devastating climate impacts. The Paris Agreement was historic. Representatives from 197 countries signed the agreement committing to creating a trillion-dollar fund to assist with the building of necessary adaptive infrastructure, a strong effort to keep the rise in temperature at or below a 1.5°C rise from the pre-industrial era, and the goal of reaching net zero in carbon emissions by 2050. Countries also committed to making national plans for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, called Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), and would update their plans every five years and present them at the next Conference of the Parties.
The U.S. signed the Paris Accords in 2015, left in 2017, and rejoined in 2021. While the agreement was almost entirely symbolic, leaving created increased distrust among other nations. Being the second largest carbon emitter, the United States has a baseline responsibility to be a part of the effort to curb the effects of climate change. Fortunately, the United States participated in the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP 26) in Glasgow, Scotland.
The goal of COP 26 is to bring more than 190 leaders from all around the world to discuss climate change and to generate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are several techniques we already know work to mitigate the effects of climate change, especially drastically decreasing our dependence on fossil fuels and ending deforestation. Around 2.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide, 1/3 of the CO2 released from burning fossil fuels, is absorbed by forests every year.
Taking Individual Action
The most important action we can take now is to educate ourselves. The subject of climate change is very daunting. Many people suffer from what is known as eco-anxiety. This can include worries about the future of Earth, and a sense of hopelessness or despair about the planet and environmental issues. Remember that it is not just on you to solve climate change, it will take collective and systemic action along with individual action and no one person is solely responsible. Understanding the science as well as the politics of it is only the first step. We need to create a plan for how to implement just transitions and mitigation and adaptation efforts. It will take all of us to save the future.
- Educate yourself and others! Read articles, follow the news, and start conversations with your friends and family.
- Recycling is important but try to reduce and reuse as much as possible.
- Switch to more ethical brands by using the app Buycott – it gives you info about a company’s ethics by just scanning a barcode.
- Support local businesses and buy from thrift stores whenever possible.
- Get involved in local efforts. Find grassroots organizations here.
- Vote for leaders who make informed decisions based on the best available and evolving body of knowledge from science.
Discussion Questions:
- What comes to mind when you think about climate change?
- What are some barriers that you face when trying to live more sustainably? How can these barriers be addressed by JMU and our local, state, and federal government?
- Ex. biking to class can be incentivized by our local government creating more safe bike paths
- Ex. organic vegetables and meat alternatives are expensive, and can be subsidized by our government
- Ex. JMU can start recycling so that on-campus students can as well
- What will you do as an individual to share accurate information about climate change and to make personal changes to address the issue?
Additional Sources
- https://www.nrdc.org/stories/global-climate-change-what-you-need-know
- https://www.globalchange.gov/climate-change
- https://climate.nasa.gov
- https://www.globalclimatechangeweek.net/about
- https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/science/key-findings
- https://www.un.org/en/un75/climate-crisis-race-we-can-win
- https://ukcop26.org/
- https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/
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