Responsibility For Carbon Emission Reduction

Global warming and climate change exist and the two have called for a world attention to reduce their impacts. The Great 8 nations, including U.S., have convened various global summits where heads of states come to debate how to counter the increased climate change. Various recommendations have been proposed to counter the effects of climate change and device ways in which the change can be accommodated. This paper will discuss the rhetorical questions asked by the author in the journal article. In addition, the paper will attempt to answer some of the questions posed by Eric Klinenberg, the author of Adaption.

The UNFCCC is working with the various governments around the world to stabilize the amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere to keep the planet from warming more than 2ºC above pre-industrial temperatures (Watts, 2015). The most noted of the work is the annual Conference of the Parties (COP) meetings that began with COP1 in Berlin back in 1995. The COP3 adopted the Kyoto Protocol, even though it wasn’t fully accepted by all member nations. The COP21 was an effort to legally bind members to their submitted plans of Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), defining what level of greenhouse gas production each nation would commit to not exceeding from 2025-2030. Prior to the INDCs, a bleak outlook was forecast in 2009-2010 of global temperature rising between 4-5ºC. That figure was restated by the UNFCCC prior to the COP21 in Paris, to below 3ºC, due to the commitments of the INDCs (Watts, 2015).

Global warming and climate change attributed to increased emission of greenhouse gases have continued to be pressing issues in today’s society since they threaten the stability of the climate, population, and economy of the world (“Meeting the Energy Challenge”, 2007). The challenges associated with global warming and climate change is attributed to the fact that 75 percent of world’s carbon dioxide

“Scientists have been warning about global warming for decades. It's too late to stop it now, but we can lessen its severity and impacts” - David Suzuki. Global warming, a primary topic of debate in various conversations throughout all levels of government, has been an issue for countless years. In fact, of the 134 years recorded, the 10 warmest years have all occurred “since 2000, with the exception of 1998 “(NASA). Solving a global issue such as this is not as easy as it may seem; however ,The Paris Agreement vows to do just that by setting a plan to limit global warming to well below 2°C in “the first-ever universal, legally binding global climate deal” (Europa). Before signing off on such an agreement one must analyze the many negatives

As of recently, the Paris Climate Talks gathered several of world’s leading nations to discuss the effects and measures needed to be taken to combat the on going threat of

One of the most unique aspects of climate change is its ability to impact every person in every nation across the world. Its omnipotent presence calls for, what I predict will be, the largest global initiative and

Last month, the United States of America and fellow global powerhouse China reached a deal to incorporate more non-fossil fuel energy into their total energy consumption. Through this deal, greenhouse gas production will be cut by up to 26 percent in America, lowering our levels to somewhere around 28 percent of the levels experienced in 2005 (Samuelson). This plan has been hailed as a great first step, and it is likely that smaller countries will make similar emissions cuts. That being said, China and America currently combine for 42 percent of carbon dioxide emissions worldwide according to the International Energy Agency. The world still heavily relies on fossil fuels for about 80 percent of its energy. In order to solve this problem of moving to renewable resources without causing a global economic collapse, countries need to be prepared to make budget cuts in other areas. Weak agreements have been enacted with dates a few years down the road to change this degenerative process. However, with loose restrictions on the way each country will achieve this goal, the discussions feels, according to Climate Research Program Leader Myles R. Allen, like a lost cause. It simply is not enough. The United States of America should be taking stronger initiatives and setting the standards for the transition towards a greener tomorrow. These initiatives would benefit both the Earth and its inhabitants. To do this, the government should take this more active role, through

Socolow and Stephen W. Pacala in their article, “A Plan to Keep Carbon In Check (2006)" suggests that “today’s notoriously inefficient energy system can be replaced if the world gives unprecedented attention to energy efficiency.” Taking steps to institute policies and be cost-efficient will entail structural change, but in the end will be in the best interest for countries to aid in the adaptation of lower carbon products and economic competitiveness. They further state that governments need “to stimulate the commercialization of low-carbon technologies” so there is less demand for fossil fuels thereby increasing “competitive options” for the future. (Socolow & Pacala, 2006) Consequently, the emissions of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is causing the rise of global temperatures. Utilizing technology specifically for carbon capture and storage is crucial so we can slowly begin our process of adapting to other energy resources. It is also important that all countries participate in policies that will reduce emissions in a cost-effective

The grand challenge and global issue being addressed in this proposal is climate change. The impact climate change has created in the world is huge and the numbers recorded by various scientific organisations require the worlds immediate response. Average global temperature has increased by .85°C from 1880 to 2012 and that has resulted in the increase of global average sea level by 19 cm. About 50 percent increase has been recorded in the global carbon emissions only since 1990 and that has grown even more quickly between the years 2000 and 2010. Especially in Australia, the climate has warmed since 1950. The average surface temperature in the Australian continent has increased by 0.9°C since 1910. It is also important to notice the change

The climate change impacts of greenhouse gases threaten the economic development and environmental quality. These threats indicate that all nations regardless their economic growth should work collaboratively to reduce the emission to a certain level. Hare et al. (2011) argued that “climate change is a collective action problem” thus requires a global coordination from all countries. This indicates that actions from several countries would never be sufficient to address the climate change problem. If a global target to limit warming to 2°C or below is about to achieve (UNFCCC 2010, p.4) a broad range of participation is required (Hare et al., 2011). However, the increasing complexity of negotiation processes is inevitable. Each country will pursue its own interests during the

According to an article focused on environmental awareness, “the world’s average surface temperature rose by approximately 1 degree Fahrenheit, the fastest rate in any period over the last 1000 years” (Source A). Damage has already been done to the environment but it is not the time to throw our hands up, it is the time for leaders in all sectors to tackle this issue head on. We know that carbon dioxide is the culprit, so now it is imperative to implement the solution and take a hard look at who is producing the most greenhouse gases. Big changes need to take place but they can only be done in steps and not all at once to be effective. In an excerpt from a book about global warming, Mark Maslin brings up the point that many feel the Kyoto Protocol does not go far enough; scientists believe that a 60% cut of greenhouse gas emissions is necessary in order to “prevent major climate change” (Source E). A sixty percent cut of emissions should be what countries work up to achieving but first and foremost, every country needs to agree to the Kyoto Protocol guidelines. The Kyoto Protocol itself should not be viewed as the end in the discussion of greenhouse gas restrictions, but rather the first stepping stone to a much broader and effective

Many people, particularly of the United States, do not know about climate change (CC), nor do they know about how they are personally contributing to it. When discussed, most strategies created to combat climate change discount the power of education in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (a contributor to CC). In this paper, I argue that climate change causes immense damage by borrowing from John Nolt’s The Individual’s Obligation to Relinquish Unnecessary Greenhouse-Gas-Emitting Devices (2013). The potential is so high that we, as individuals and institutions, have a moral obligation to educate our populace in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As an aside, I shall also attempt to quantify how much education could reduce emissions.

Oscar Wilde once said, “We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell” (Wilde 2015). In other worlds, we bring upon ourselves our own demons, and it is usually not until after the damage is done that when even notice how much damage has been done. Climate change is one of these demons we face, created by our own ambition and our own societal progression. Spanning from the beginning of human civilization, but gaining a tremendous intensity from the occurrence of the industrialization, climate change is a threat to all of us. “Global atmospheric concentrations of GHGs have increased rapidly since the beginning of industrialization and now far exceed pre-industrial values as a result of human activities” (Zhang 2009). Every country, every nation, and every person, will, and is, effected by climate change. So what do we do? What we do is fight, with the development of more environment friendly technologies and ways of life. That being said, while every nation agrees that global climate change is a battle we must all face together, there is a great debate as to who should be responsible to lead the fight in the battle we have created. The debate going is between developed and undeveloped countries, in regard to whether developed countries should be responsible for funding climate sustaining development in undeveloped

Many conventions, especially involving the UN are being held in order to look for a lasting solution to this problem (Vermeulen et al. 177). President Obama is always being heard talking about the issue of climate change, and how it endangers the life of all living things currently residing on planet earth. UN secretary General Ban ki Moon is also often bringing nations together to ponder on the best solution towards reducing the world’s carbon footprint, and further, reduce the emission of other harmful gases. The best

On December 12 of 2015, 195 countries made history by committing to the first truly global international climate change agreement (Paris Agreement, 2015). This agreement took place in Paris and was adopted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The outcome of the Paris Conference on Climate Change was described as “revolutionary” (Venezuela) “marvelous act” (China) and as “a tremendous collective achievement” (European Union) that introduced a “new era of global climate governance” (Egypt) while “restoring the global community’s faith of accomplishing things multilaterally” (USA) (Paris Agreement, 2015).