AvantGarde

Climate Change: An ignored crisis ?

When we heal the earth, we heal ourselves – David Orr

For the past couple of years, we have witnessed many global financial economies in free fall. Living had become a fight for survival. Every possible resource was dedicated towards supporting and strengthening the economies. Now we hear that we are on the path of recovery and are assured of bright times ahead. Isn’t there anything else threatening us with a greater magnanimity? Can we really say that we are in the “safe zone”?

The buzzword is ‘climate change’. It refers to the change in weather patterns over a long span of time. It is a gradual process that happens due to variations in solar radiation, deviations in Earth’s orbital motions, movement of tectonic plates reconfiguring land and ocean areas, and changes in greenhouse gas emissions. But over the last several decades, this process has hastened considerably. Scientists tell us that the sun once emitted only 70% of power as much as it does today. Some of the key indicators of this phenomenon are listed below:

• Global average temperatures have increased rapidly over the past several decades.
• Greenhouse gas emissions increased by 70% world wide between 1970 and 2004. Rapid melting of glaciers and change in sea level stand as a physical evidence.
• Reliable recordings (that began from the 1850s) show that eleven of the twelve warmest years worldwide occurred between 1995 and 2006.

Such conspicuous shifts in weather patterns across the world have affected crops and farming patterns. The shifting monsoons which result in droughts have seriously impacted farmers in many countries. This in turn affects food prices, which have started spiraling upwards. We have also witnessed floods in India, West Africa, Great Britain and Ireland, Heat waves in southeastern Australia and temperatures variations like never before. – 40 degree Celsius temperatures killed nearly 20 lakh species in Mongolia. Every time the temperature has surged towards the extremes, human deaths have been reported. Evidence points at anthropogenic factors like increase in carbon dioxide levels due to burning of fossil fuels, deforestation and ozone depletion as the cause of this climate change. How well have we tackled this overwhelming threat?

Scientific bodies like Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) had been setup in 1998 for evaluating the risk of climate change caused by human activity. Global policy makers across the world are involved in constructive dialogues. Government representatives of major economies who are member of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), an international environment treaty, discusses annually the measures to be taken to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere. But the outcomes of these steps do not seem appeasing. Kyoto protocol was the only legally binding obligation for the developed nations to reduce their green house gas emissions. Even the recent Copenhagen summit saw the developed nations shielding themselves from the rest of the world in order to protect their own national growth. In spite of the criticism, developed countries are now looking at ‘Cap and Trade’ as a solution to control pollution by providing economic incentives to industries reducing emissions. Success, in terms of fulfilling the purpose of its implementation, should be regularly monitored for the long term sustainability of this policy.

Balance between economic development and environmental degradation should be struck to ensure that both needs are satisfied. Businesses, large and small, have joined the ranks of the environmentally concerned and are making an effort to protect the earth. Whether it is by implementing a company recycling program, or by eliminating toxic materials from their products, companies are adopting the ‘Go Green’ formula. Organizations sprung up exclusively for launching this campaign indicating the growing awareness.

Indian government announced the National Action Plan on Climate Change in June 2008 stating the initiatives to be undertaken to reduce emissions from various sources. The importance of local actions needs to be highlighted as the underlying key to its success. It is every individual’s responsibility to reduce his carbon footprint on this Earth. Cutting down the wastage of electricity and water, increasing the greenery in our surroundings by planting saplings, pollution check for our vehicles regularly, intelligent use of electronic appliances, refraining from the use of polythene bags and opting for recycle and reuse of products are a few simple things that everyone of us need to follow as part of our daily lives.

It is said that the global temperatures will rise further by 1.8-4 degree Celsius in this century and possibly by as much as 6.4 degree Celsius. It is also anticipated that small island states, including 15 nations found in the Pacific, face dire and immediate consequences like inundation of coastal areas which would ultimately render them inhabitable. Despite the fact that natural resources are not abundant and ever lasting we have been perpetually plundering them for ourselves in the name of advancement. Focused on improving our comforts and lifestyles, we never spared a thought about the detrimental effect of our actions. Our mother nature, known for its generosity, is finally tending to show signs of wear and tear. We need to direct our actions towards mitigating the dangers threatening our planet. We ourselves have to solve the problems that we have caused.

Nations across the world have responded actively to the financial crisis to recover their economies. But the same seriousness seems to be missing when dealing with climate change which can push the very existence of the entire human race on this planet to oblivion. The stimulus packages put forward by various governments have put their economies on the recovery path and over a period of time it may be possible to bring them back to a high-performing state. But even with the best possible measures, the same rate of environmental recovery may not be possible in the next few decades since the damage done is not completely reversible. Though, we cannot fully restore all that is lost, we can try and reduce the damage which is being done. At the current alarming trends of climate change, all nations need to take immediate responsibility of combating climate change to ensure a better life on the planet for the future generations to come.

Praneeth Rao V

MBA Batch of 2011