Environmental Post: Global Warming

From http://www.climatehotmap.org/powerpoint/mapslide.ppt#256,1,Slide 1:

In this post, I will be talking about the issue of global warming and how it links us to globalization due to the different processes of this issue, the cause, effect and how we solve it.

Global warming is the “observed increase in the average temperature of the Earth’s near-surface air and oceans in recent decades and its projected continuation”, as quoted from Wikipedia.

Above, is a map from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2001, illustrating the early warning signs about the global nature of climate changes. In its 2001 assessment, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concluded that, an increasing body of observations gives a collective picture of a warming world and other changes in the climate system."

As we can see from the map, areas which exhibit the highest density of indicators are the North America and Europe, where science and technological advancement is the strongest in these areas.

This is a sign of globalization as the cause of this is due to the globalization of technological advancement in mankind, and the effects of global warming concerns the entire human population, even the ecosystems and biodiversity.

http://www.earthteam.net/youth_coalition/index.html

As we can see from the pictures above, human beings are so obsessed with the materialistic progression and commodity that they started to ignore and exploit Nature. (Although the comic above has political meaning within it, I feel that it applies to the every human.) Our concern for power and ambition for modernization has been causing enhanced greenhouse effect in the environment, which is the emission of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, methane and water vapors. This is thought to be the main cause of global warming as stated by the IPCC and many other environmental organizations and scientists.

As stated in http://epa.gov/climatechange/basicinfo.html,

For over the past 200 years, the burning of fossil fuels, such as coal and oil, and deforestation have caused the concentrations of heat-trapping "greenhouse gases" to increase significantly in our atmosphere. These gases prevent heat from escaping to space, somewhat like the glass panels of a greenhouse.

Greenhouse gases are necessary to life as we know it, because they keep the planet's surface warmer than it otherwise would be. But, as the concentrations of these gases continue to increase in the atmosphere, the Earth's temperature is climbing above past levels. According to NOAA and NASA data, the Earth's average surface temperature has increased by about 1.2 to 1.4ºF since 1900. The warmest global average temperatures on record have all occurred within the past 15 years, with the warmest two years being 1998 and 2005. Most of the warming in recent decades is likely the result of human activities. Other aspects of the climate are also changing such as rainfall patterns, snow and ice cover, and sea level.

This is supported by last week’s frequent newspaper articles and news reports on global warming that the annual temperature has been increasing and that with another temperature increase in 1.8 degree Celsius, it is stated by scientists that 20 to 30% of the global organisms might face extinction and an amount of millions and near billion of human being will suffer from death. This is due to the effects of global warming, such as rise in sea level, increase in temperature, glacier retreat, change in rainfall patterns, and increased intensity and frequency of extreme weather events internationally, as shown in the very first picture (map) of this post.

Unfortunately, it was until the occurrences of such effects that have finally raise the global awareness of how man has progressed at the expense of nature and abused as well as exploited nature for commercial profits due to materialism and industrialization. The efforts of several environmental organization and conferences of several countries to solve this huge catastrophe to mankind, does not seem to be of much used to salvage this situation. Still, we should still acknowledge the fact that man has been trying to come together as one to solve this problem.

Hence, in this post, we can see that there are certain advantages and disadvantages of globalization again, and this time, it is in the environmental aspect. In this issue, we are able to see all the different countries coming together, as if they belong to one body. We manage to advance and progress, yet we suffer together, but we still manage to come together and attempt to solve the environmental problem to mankind and biodiversity. This issue shows us the internationalization and standardization of everything related to different countries, which result in the world becoming more like a country as time changes, which is the definition of globalization.

In conclusion, the subject on global warming allows us to see the clear globalization issue in mankind, no matter if it is the cause of it, the effect of it, or the resolution part of global warming. Hence, globalization has once again showed us the different aspects of it in the issue on global warming.

* This comic is just for fun: On the effects of global warming




















http://www.slowpokecomics.com/strips/repubglobal.gif

RONG QI Signing off :)