Assignment

4

TIGIST SHIFERAW

ENGLISH COMPOSITION II

01/09/2022

Research question: How climate changes influence the environmental and social determinants of health?

Thesis Statement : Extreme weather events such as floods, storms, and heat waves caused by climate change affects the environmental and social determinants of health leading to the water, food- and vector-borne illnesses, disrupted food systems and mental health issues. Therefore climate change is a significant health threat facing humanity today.

Detailed outline

I. Working thesis in the introduction: Extreme weather events such as storms, increased heat waves, and floods caused by climate change affects the social and environmental determinants of health leading to the water, food- and vector-borne illnesses, disrupted food systems and mental health problems. Therefore climate change is a significant health threat facing humanity today.

Hook with description on the extreme weather conditions.

Introduce two issues on the societal and ecological determinants of health

Source: World health Organization, 2021

II. Social determinant of health.

A. Climate change is undermines good health, such as livelihoods,

B. Widened health Inequality

C. Limited accessibility to health care’s other social support structures due to increased healthcare cost

Source 1: Hayes et al., (2018)

III. Environmental determinant of health

A. Unsafe drinking water

Insufficient food and secure shelter

C. Water and air pollution

IV. Measures to mitigate climate change

A. Reducing emission of greenhouse gases

Use of better transport, and renewable sources of energy

Reducing air pollution

B. Adapting to life in a changing climate – encompasses modifying to projected future climate.

C. Promoting technology and innovation transfer for sustainable energy developments

V. Introducing standards for consumer appliances and equipment.

A. Retrofitting buildings

B. Renewable energy.

C. Introducing feed-in tariffs, market-based appliances and fiscal instruments to speed up investments in clean energy

Source 1: Hayes et al., (2018).

V. Counter Argument

A. Carbon dioxide is worldwide pollutant due to increased human activities.

B. Developing countries contribute the great share of pollution.

Source 2: Jessel, et al., (2019)

Conclusion

A. Climate change has a direct damage cost to an individual health

B. Reducing release of greenhouse gases through better transport, food and renewable energy sources leads to improved health.

Reflection

1.

The most challenging part for me was selecting the research topic. Selecting a topic involves performing a preliminary search for sources to assess whether there will be enough information and if the existing sources meet the research requirements.

2.

The thesis statement provides an answer to the research question and forms the central purpose of the research. The topic is reasonable, with a clear argument on why climate change is a significant threat to humanity and a counterargument.

3.

The detailed outline helps organize and construct the ideas thoughtfully and sequentially. The outline explains both the social and environmental health determinants affected by climatic change. This is followed by measures that help mitigate climate change to answer the research question. Ultimately, there is a counterargument that opposes the argument on the causes of climate change and a conclusion to summarize the research.

4.

Though I am confident with the choice of the research topic, I would like to have more clarification on whether my the outline provides a logical flow of ideas.

References

Hayes, K., Blashki, G., Wiseman, J., Burke, S., & Reifels, L. (2018). Climate change and mental health: Risks, impacts and priority actions. International journal of mental health systems, 12(1), 1-12.

Jessel, S., Sawyer, S., & Hernández, D. (2019). Energy, poverty, and health in climate change: a comprehensive review of an emerging literature. Frontiers in public health, 7, 357.

World Health Organization. (2021). Health and climate change: country profile 2021: Dominican Republic (No. WHO/HEP/ECH/CCH/21.01. 02). World Health Organization.