The ISCFC is all about reducing our individual and collective contributions to climate change.
But is climate change really happening? Is it mostly caused by human activity, including our production of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases?
In the United States and elsewhere, there are people who are not convinced by the science. But the great thing about science is that we use evidence to evaluate scientific questions. So what is the evidence related to climate change?
Are you or are you not convinced by the majority of climate scientists who say that climate change is real and largely human caused? Why are you convinced/not convinced? What evidence might change your mind one way or the other?
Is Climate Change Real & Human-Caused? >
Climate change is worsening by the minute. Is it preventable?
According to the Keeling Curve, a database of the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the Earth has heated up and cooled down since the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution had a major impact globally by transitioning from labor to machines. These machines, fossil fuels, and tons of nonrenewable resources have been used globally to produce energy for things for work. This sounds like a positive thing but has impacted our atmosphere, causing the Earth to warm up. The Greenhouse Effect is the process by which the sun’s radiant heat is trapped in the atmosphere because of the greenhouse gas. These gasses consist of carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone, and several other gasses. As these machines produce energy and more stuff we have, they release greenhouse gasses that are stored in the atmosphere. When carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses are released into the atmosphere, it traps more heat, causing the world to warm up.
The IDP ice core working group investigates and analyzes the ice cores that are drilled out of the surface for study. Carbon dioxide is stored underground and so these ice cores show carbon dioxide levels throughout history. The Keeling Curve has been appended to the ice cores for more information on carbon dioxide levels. The given information states that in the 1960s, the amount of carbon dioxide was 310 ppm, but in 2023, it has majorly increased to about 420 ppm. 800 thousand years ago it was at 190 ppm, emphasizing that the globe is heating at a fast rate. Human-made objects that create greenhouse gasses contribute to climate change. Some evidence of climate change you will witness is oceans getting warmer, sea levels rising, ice sheets shrinking, the global temperature rising two degrees Fahrenheit since the Industrial Revolution, more clouds forming, and more natural disasters occurring. If we don’t focus on or prevent the amount of carbon dioxide being put in the air, then the world will be very warm, climate change will affect us worse, and lots of life on earth will die.
There is no way to stop global warming from increasing but there are ways to prevent it. In 1999, Klaus Lackner discovered a way to capture carbon dioxide directly from the air. He designed a machine called the Direct Air Capture that captures the carbon dioxide in the air. This Direct Air Capture has little significance globally, but doing something like riding your bike instead of driving everywhere with a gas-fueled engine will reduce the amount of carbon in the air. Transitioning to electricity like using solar panels or electric cars can also reduce carbon dioxide because they are not fueled by gas. There are several creative ways to reduce your carbon footprint because it will help the globe in the future so the next generations can live in a green environment.
Sources:
https://climate.nasa.gov/global-warming … change.%22
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