Global Warming and Climate Change
Abstract
A small part of the society contests global warming with baseless claims that lack scientific endorsement, and others believe in the conspiracy theories. Then, addressing the issue of global warming and promoting reliable information strengthen people’s critical sense. A debate on this crucial topic is essential to foster action for the future of our planet. The temperature average on our globe has risen by 1.8ºF (1.0ºC) since the 1800s. Although it does not seem significant when considering an average of 0.13ºF (0.07ºC) per decade, humans’ activities have increased the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, amplifying the earth’s natural greenhouse effect. Our activities generate several greenhouse gases, but carbon dioxide (CO2) has caused the most concern among scientists because it has the potential to cause more damage than all the other gases combined. If greenhouse emissions were reduced, the increase in temperature could be limited to 3.6ºF (2ºC) or less. However, there are biased groups that cast doubt about Global Warming by publishing partial articles. Misinformation makes the real situation unclear, and inputs doubt whether the underlying issue is true or not. We are not close to agreeing on what is causing the global-warming; however, solutions must be created to prevent a crisis of inaction.
Keywords: Global Warming, Climate Change, Greenhouse Gas, Emissions, Fossil Fuels, Sea-Level Rise, Global average temperature.
We are approaching the end of 2021. And we have evolved quickly, living in a time in which we can access information from our devices anywhere, anytime. Yet, the issues regarding global warming and climate change are broadly discussed by society. It is surprisingly intriguing how people do not believe that global warming is a real issue. Furthermore, a small part of the society contests global warming with baseless claims that lack scientific endorsement, and others believe in the conspiracy theories. So, the main goal here is to address this issue and promote reliable information to strengthen people’s critical sense. Promoting an effective discussion on this crucial topic is essential to foster action for the future of our planet.
Before we dig deep into this topic, let’s contextualize the slight difference between global warming and climate change. Global warming refers to the long-term increase of the temperature caused by human activities widely; In contrast, climate change refers to the climate system caused by human or natural factors, local, regional, or global. Not all climate change is global warming, but all global warming is climate change (Taylor, 2014).
Global warming can cause issues for longer than we can imagine, mainly because of the accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere that cannot be easily removed, contributing to increasing temperature. According to Binnaser (2021), “These daily emissions of greenhouse gases will lead to climate change in the future for long periods as the effects cannot be reversed quickly, some of these gases remain only for a few hours in the atmosphere or for days, while others remain for decades, centuries or thousands of years” (p. 221). This issue needs to be addressed, and plans need to be made. If no action was taken and the temperature continues to increase, even just a few degrees. It’s expected that roughly 30 percent of marine life will disappear, and as well the human food supply will be affected (Binnaser, 2021).
The accumulation of CO2 is also well-known as the greenhouse effect. Moreover, since the 19th century, scientific society has been observing them. At the pace we burn fossil fuels and clear our forests, the accumulation of green gases we produce is equivalent to hundreds of years or more, which will be noticed only in the future. But with the average temperature rising in the past decades, efforts to keep the average temperature increase at 1.5C are already being made.
Meantime, climate change continues to interfere with our environment. For instance, the climate patterns in the Pacific Ocean that can affect weather worldwide, popular as El Niño and La Niña, have changed, resulting in ice loss in both Antarctica and Greenland (Butler, 2018). Also, based on the USGCRP (2017) studies, our planet has been warming rapidly, the temperature average on our globe has risen by 1.8ºF (1.0ºC) since the 1800s. Although, it does not seem significant when considering an average of 0.13ºF (0.07ºC) per decade. We have encountered records showing that the warmest years were since 2014, more precisely in 2019 and 2020, where humans’ activities have increased the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, amplifying the earth’s natural greenhouse effect.
Nonetheless, all these changes are associated with climate change caused by human activities, in which carbon dioxide is the principal responsible. The amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere by human activities between 1800 and nowadays is 70 percent more than the last ice age, more than 11.000 years ago. The evidence is from the isotopic fingerprint of the CO2 found in the atmosphere, which is correspondent to fossil fuels identification (USGCRP (2017). Our activities generate several gases. Indeed, carbon dioxide has caused the most concern among scientists because it offers more damage than all other gases combined. Whether greenhouse gases were reduced in the atmosphere, the temperature could be limited to 3.6ºF (2ºC) or less this century (Monnin et al., 2001).
Without a doubt, natural disasters, environmental changes, and phenomena that we cannot understand have been observed for a long time. As Butler (2018) study found the following:
The 1989 editorial stated, “global warming, increased ultraviolet flux, and higher levels of tropospheric ozone will reduce crop production, with potentially devastating effects on world food supplies. Malnutrition (sic) might then become commonplace, even among developed nations, and armed conflicts would be more likely as countries compete for a dwindling supply of natural resources”. In the New England Journal of Medicine, Leaf warned, also in 1989, of sea-level rise, especially in the southeastern U.S. state of Florida, higher precipitation, millions of environmental refugees, an increased risk of drought, and the possibility that warming at higher latitudes would not fully compensate for the climate-change-related loss of agricultural productivity towards the equator. The third paper published that year was even more direct, warning of “catastrophic” consequences to human health and well-being.
However, global warming and climate change bring some attenuation for our safety, such as civilization collapse or population displacement. It’s not believable that this only phenomenon would be responsible for our civilization and economy to ruin (Butler, 2018).
USGCRP (2017) explained that some well-known agencies and groups of scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have recorded temperature data abroad for more than a century. And comparing their data, the results were the same, which attested to the reliability of the data. Beyond the data, observing nature reveals that migration patterns have changed, birds are migrating earlier, marine life is moving to the north, plants are blooming earlier in the spring, etc. Supporting the narrative that climate change has interfered with the environment and its inhabitants, reasons why actions are necessary to bear the ongoing release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Importantly, COVID-19 has much in common with climate change. Both are global issues that require global actions. In other words, both individuals and government must work together in solutions to achieve the same goal. COVID-19 has touched us with some valuable lessons; likewise, we cannot wait for political solutions. It’s necessary to open a dialogue for people and politics to define actions for both sides, state and citizens, resulting in concrete steps (Howarth et al., 2020). COVID-19 has generated positive results for climate changes that need to be explored. Furthermore, according to Howarth et al. (2020):
COVID-19 has increased our awareness of how vulnerable we can be in the face of global phenomena, and how without foresight and planning, we are left ill-prepared. We have been made aware of our co-dependence and how we are citizens in society as well as individuals in an economy. The pandemic has strengthened the case for an economic recovery that puts emissions reduction, and indeed climate resilience, at its heart. (p. 1113)
In this campaign, not all seem genuine. There may be some groups or individuals with power and influence among industries and politics, for example, organizations in which can use scientists that can mock-up doubt in any field or product. By doing so, they can create their own narrative of the facts changing the subject to what they want. Creating misinformation and chaos allows them to achieve their business goal, letting the real problem behind, as the tobacco industries have done (Steirer, 2021). For instance, the tobacco industry creates a precedent way to cast doubt on scientific evidence, causing a disturbance to promote their sides. This particular way to diminish the credibility of other studies is more frequently observed nowadays, especially on hot topics. It seems that misinformation is building people’s opinions, according to Steirer (2021):
Five years of research and sixty-five pages of references in small print back up every detail on numerous efforts to produce doubt. The “tobacco industries’ key insight, that you could use normal scientific uncertainty to undermine actual scientific knowledge” is a revelation to understanding our current and disquieting relationship with science. It seems that misinformation has now gone too far and derailed decision-makers during crises ranging from power generation technologies to deadly pandemics. We balk at foreign nations who undermine their citizen’s freedom of speech but here at home we seem to have found disinformation nearly as effective at manipulating sentiment by taking inconvenient facts as matters of opinion, and reducing massive scientific inquiries to calls for inaction. (p. 287)
As reported by Gardner (1998), Global warming and climate change are global trending topics. Thus, there are those who believe it’s true, and there are those who believe that it is not. Although there is no common sense yet, and it seems that this battle will last for a long time. Some facts need to be considered in this debate that can refute that global warming it’s caused by human activities. Many scientists disagree that global warming is happening. They claim that scientists know less than climatologists who have the proper qualification to talk about this topic.
Moreover, they said that it’s caused by pressure from environmental groups who have some political interest. Because of that, they have created uncertain scientific theories to cause noise, making people believe in unproven facts. While there are no facts or proves about global warming, all are based on speculation. Even more dangerous, there is a suggestion of corruption in the peer-review process that leads to false information (Gardner, 1998).
Sorman (2019) also states the main fact that carbon dioxide is the leading cause of global warming; it’s not true. Nobody denies that, in fact, it contributes to warming, but not at the same level that is the subject of intense scientific debate. One recent point that caused the planet to warm during 1910 and 1940 can’t be blamed by the industry or carbon dioxide because the industry was insignificant at that period. And there was almost any burning of fossil fuel. So, global warming stated been observed after 1900 before carbon dioxide became large. Then, the natural causes must be the problem. All the models of tests and data presented by the scientists cannot explain the older trends, nor explain why the planet cooled between 1950 and 1970. So, all the facts presented by them can be refuted. The truth is that scientists are human beings guided by ambition. The desire for public funding, scientific grant, and promotions lead them to generate false testimony about this topic.
Even though we have no common sense on this topic, reducing CO2 is a matter of environmental challenge that needs to be handled. Companies’ initiatives are paramount for helping to decrease the amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere. In addition, it’s an excellent opportunity for managers to face this challenge wisely and lead essential decisions, showing their excellence. Some companies, such as ST Microelectronics, have started by being committed to reducing CO2 emission by 50 percent (Borial, 2006).
Furthermore, Borial (2006) states that anticipating the impacts of global warming and succeeding efficiently in reducing greenhouse gas emissions could be an indicator of the quality of management in an organization. Additionally, it could explain the predominance of the win-win justification in recent empirical studies on the economic impact of environmental initiatives. Along with this, it is not necessarily ecological initiatives in greenhouse gas reduction that will eventually contribute to improving financial performances. Therefore, more importantly, the excellence of managers, their vision, and their decisions leading to reasonable economic, as well as environmental interpretations, will bring extraordinary results (Borial, 2006).
In the final analysis, these facts bring to our attention that we no longer can be lenient with this topic. It looks like there is no silver bullet to save the planet. Moreover, all messages warn us that we need to start now before it’s too late to start doing anything. For instance, by doing small actions such as using less our cars, giving preference for public transportation, or using clean energy, we will reduce the amount of CO2 launched in our atmosphere. By doing our part, mother nature will take care of the rest, and then, we can ensure a better future for further generations.
References
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