Climate change has been one of the main subjects in the news, in tabloids, on social
media, and among TikTok celebrities. Everyone thinks they are experts on the subject and tries
to advocate according to their knowledge of what is happening on the planet. Although it seems
trendy, as some like to say, the subject is old and has been studied for at least 150 years.
American scientist and women’s rights Eunice Foote is now widely credited for being the first
person to make evident the greenhouse effect in 1856, several years before British researcher
John Tyndall published similar conclusions. Her elementary experiments showed that carbon
dioxide and water vapor can absorb heat, which, when climbed up, can affect the earth’s
temperature. Four decades later, Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius did some basic research and
estimated that Earth’s temperature would change if we doubled the amount of CO2 in the
atmosphere. At the time, Arrhenius was worried about moving into ice aging than global
warming, but by the 1900s, he was starting his classes with the news that the world was slowly
warming due to coal burning (Ashcroft, Aug. 15, 2022).
It wasn’t until the 1930s that people-induced climate change became a thing. British
scientist and meteorologist Guy Callendar was the first to connect human activities to global
warming. Scientists have known the effects of carbon dioxide trapping heat for decades and
warming the planet. Still, no one before Callendar proved that burning fossil fuels in furnaces,
factories, and cars unwittingly raised Earth’s temperature. When Callendar shared his findings,
he received much criticism, and scientists saw him as a scientist who was trying to create
unnecessary chaos. Today, his theory is known as global warming, and Callendar defended his
theory until the day of his death in 1964. Callendar was a reference because other scientists
spoke of future possibilities, but Callendar showed that global warming was already happening
(Dee, May 8, 2024).
No state can solve global climate change alone. Climate change affects rivers, territories,
the air, and our homes. The whole world is affected by it, and the international community
cannot run from it unless it addresses it as a community. Scientists have proven that most
greenhouse gas emissions come from burning fossil fuels in the industrialized countries of the
North, and increasingly from China and India. “In fact, in 2021, it was reported that China’s
2019 greenhouse emissions surpassed all those of the developed world combined, even including
the United States” (Mingst et al., pg. 401, 2022). While industrialized countries from the North
are burning fossil fuels, the South contributes by deforesting the tropics to replace agricultural
and industrialized wood. According to Mingst et al., it is projected that the earth will warm at an
increase of between 1.9 and 3 degrees Celsius by the end of the twenty-first century. Though
some considered the increase insignificant, the consequence of this acceleration has resulted in
many major natural disasters like floods, fires, hurricanes, and droughts in many parts of the
world (pg. 2022).
Climate change has a human cost; for instance, rising temperatures are associated with
tropical diseases and viruses like dengue fever, Zika, and West Nile virus, found in Nepal,
Brazil, Bangladesh, and Honduras. It affects not only people’s health but also the social
conditions, which can result in “climate migrants,” another type of refugee noted by the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. People must leave their homes for different reasons
connected to global warming, like unpredictable monsoon rainfall and droughts, which affect
people’s crops and force them to move to a different place in their country or another country.
For instance, Mexico is anticipated to have 1.5 million people a year leaving the country by 2050
because of drought and food insecurity, which is connected to climate change. Climate change
goes beyond their health and affects neighboring countries that are the recipients of millions of
migrants escaping natural and human-made disasters. Climate change migration is something
new that many countries from the North are having a hard time accepting. The reasons for
migration are always the same: “changes in temperature and precipitation, making some land
unable to support its population; natural or human-made disasters; unprecedented weather
events, and rising sea levels which provide an impetus for people to move” (Mingst et al., 2022).
Though the industrialized North and the developing South both know the long-term
effects of global warming, they disagree on how to solve the problem. They argue over whether a
voluntary restriction or market-based reactions will be enough for both sides to reach their
economic targets while achieving sustainable growth. For this reason, a global response has
occurred to regulate, monitor, and reinforce regulations to protect the environment. The
international community attempts to address climate change through mitigation policies that
reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance carbon sinks. One of those efforts was signed in
the Kyoto Protocol in 1997, in which the goal was provided for steadying the concentration of
greenhouse gases and defining international goals for decreasing emissions by 2010. Only
wealthy countries were required to abide by the protocol. In 2005, the protocol was fully
implemented, but without US support. At the time, under the administration of George W. Bush,
the US leaders argued that the economic costs of moving away from a fossil fuel-based economy
would be too high and millions of American jobs would be lost. At the same time, countries like
China and India were not forced to abide by the policy. Consequently, one of the biggest
mistakes of the Kyoto Protocol was not having the support of the United States and the two
powerful emitters of the South, China and India. In 2014, China finally agreed to stop its
emissions from growing and aims to be emission-free by 2030. At the same time, the United
States announced new goals for reducing carbon emissions. Those commitments also influence
other countries to commit to climate change goals. In December 2015, 195 participants of the
Paris climate change talks reached an accord to replace the Kyoto Protocol. States settled to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote carbon-absorbing sinks like forests. State leaders
agreed to publish climate plans every five years to ensure accountability and transparency.
In 2017, the Paris Agreement suffered a setback when President Trump decided to
remove the United States and its support from the agreement. The administration attributed its
decision to the negative impact on American jobs and undermining American energy
independence. The decision was highly controversial and raised tension in the country. However,
as policies change constantly, in 2021, the Biden administration agreed to rejoin the Paris
Agreement. Biden said the United States was fully committed to leading climate change in the
world and committed to the goal of net zero emissions by 2050. Biden also promises to continue
to pressure countries like China, India, and Brazil to do likewise.
Climate change is an issue that brings very real threats but also opportunities to the
twenty-first century. One cannot separate one from the other. Adaptation is an essential key to
the process. Everyone knows that climate change has influenced extreme weather, including
increased heatwaves, droughts, and floods. All those extreme weather events are happening
simultaneously, causing a tumbling impact on the planet. It has endangered millions in acute
food and water insecurity in Africa, Asia, Central and South America, Small Islands, and the
Arctic. However, research has shown that healthy ecosystems are more resilient to climate
change and can provide life-critical needs such as food and clean water. Protecting our forests,
rivers, and oceans is critical for people's well-being and the earth. Taking charge now can
preserve our future and avoid future crises like climate migration, massive migration, and
overpopulated cities. Climate and migration are inseparable from each other, and both need to be
treated as one and separate issues. As Yayboke stated, climate change is a threat multiplier,
exacerbating the underlying drivers of conflict, straining public budgets, offering new
opportunities for smugglers and other bad actors, widening resource inequities, and increasing
political and social tensions (November 5, 2021).
Source:
AshcroftH H Lecturer in climate science and science communication, L. (2023, October 25). For
110 years, climate change has been in the news. Are we finally ready to listen? The
Conversation. https://theconversation.com/for-110-years-climate-change-has-been-in-the-
news-are-we-finally-ready-to-listen-188646
Climate change threatens human well-being and the health of the planet. Taking action now can
secure our future. IPCC. (n.d.). https://www.ipcc.ch/2022/02/28/pr-wgii-ar6/
DeeH H H H Assistant Professor of Earth, S. G. (2024, May 8). A mild-mannered biker
triggered a huge debate over humans’ role in climate change – in the early 20th century.
The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/a-mild-mannered-biker-triggered-a-huge-
debate-over-humans-role-in-climate-change-in-the-early-20th-century-170954
Mingst, K. A., McKibben, H. E., & Snyder, J. L. (2022). Essential readings in world politics.
W.W. Norton & Company.
Yayboke, E., Nzuki, C., & Ballard, S. (n.d.). The White House Report on Climate Migration,
explained. CSIS. https://www.csis.org/analysis/white-house-report-climate-migration-
explained
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