SIDS Memo

The rise of sea levels are projected to increase warmer waters from one and a half to two degrees in Central North Pacific in 2050, 1.9 to 2.6 degrees in Northern Islands, and also two to five degrees in the Caribbean at the end of this century. This rise of temperature decreases the life of ecosystems in the ocean and resulting in less freshwater for

Global warming has some very potential impact on Hawaii’s environment, health, economy and natural resources. With the environment if the sea level raises our reefs are at risk. With out our reefs our beaches have no protection against the pounding waves. Also it hurts the reef cause if the water rises that means the sun needs to get through more water, which means the reef wont get as much sunlight

As a result of such changes many of these developing countries are exposed to extreme and unpredictable natural disasters such as drought, floods and cyclones. Many of these developing countries are the poorest in the world and have had minor contributions to climate change, however these people are the most vulnerable to these effects and are not capable in making the required adaptations to the changing conditions. At a recent Caritas meeting in Fiji, Father Michael McKenzie said form Kiribati that “For us climate change is a life issue ¬¬¬¬– people are trying to cope with it day by day. For the rest of the world it is an economic

Climate change creates significant impacts in the Australian context: in considering sea level rise is one of the most critical condition and as per the IPCC report, in 2100 it will increase by79 centimeters (Department of climate change, 2009). Further, it enhances natural hazards affect on the coastal region as flood, inundation, erosion, and storm surges, which will be a significant threat to the coastal community (Button et al.2013). In addition, sea level rise causes a significant change to beaches, coral reefs, estuaries, wetlands and low-lying islands.

According to a 2013 article in Pediatric Health Medicine, and Therapeutics, by Dr. Tara Ramirez and Dr. Micheal Malloy, when SIDS was first defined, it was used as a catch all for any unexplainable infant deaths. As the medical field advanced and more research was conducted lots of deaths where able to be diagnosed as infection, trauma, or connected to conditions related to the heart, lungs, or central nervous system. .As studies have been conducted to try and find the cause it has been determined that SIDS isn't any one illness or disease. Instead it's the diagnosis given when a child under a year old dies suddenly and an exact cause can't be found after an investigation of the death scene, autopsy, and a review of the child's medical history have been conducted. What makes so devastating for families is that it happens without warning, and really gives no closure or

Every day, thousands of children around the world wake up in the morning, grab their shoes and backpacks and head to school. Thousands of other children pick up their AK-47s and head to battle. The issue of child soldiers is as complex as it is atrocious, and its heinous nature has prompted the international community to pour vast amounts of time and resources into finding a solution. Despite humanitarian and government organizations’ best efforts, the numbers have remained relatively static over the decades, with over 300,000 underage combatants worldwide (Vautravers 96). Many scholars have declared the U.N.’s current policy as a failure and offered up proposals of their own, ranging from placement of sanctions to international

The journal “Wishful sinking: Disappearing islands, climate refugees and cosmopolitan experimentation” is written by Dr. Carol Farbotko, an Australian environmental scientist. The journal marks the disappearing islands and the climate refugees as an urgent impact of climate changes and discusses some consequences of raising sea level. Author opines that the global climate changes are in crisis through an experiment that imitates the disappearing of low-lying Oceania islands. And also, author points out that the emergence of Tuvalu makes the world start to consider climate changes, but unfortunately, it also creates the possibility of Tuvalu islands and Tuvaluan bodies being eco-colonized. The last, author expresses a moral thought that only if an island actually disappears, people will actually start to deal with climate issues.

The Spratly Islands provide a rich source of controversy, despite their small size, due to the aforementioned rich resources and disputed claims. Where the background information leaves off, at the year 1988, no less than four countries have claimed the Spratly Islands: Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and China. Two newcomers, Brunei and Malaysia, have claimed small parts, but as of 1988 no effort had been made to enforce these claims. These nations are all recently industrialized- and are all eager to stake their place in the world. All are desperate to prove themselves to the international community that they are forced to reckoned with- not playthings which can be exploited by western powers. Therefore, there is a great sense of national

Climate change is occurring and the impacts are already being felt in many regions. Studies conducted are typically done at the global, national or state level. The need to assess the threat associated with sea level rise at local level is important because local governments and private citizens are likely to be the first to deal with this potential problem.

Climate change is causing many problems for not only Honolulu but the entire state of Hawaii. First and for most, temperatures are increasing which is causing negative effects such as rising sea levels, tropical storm and coastal flooding. Moreover, it is limiting the quality and quantity of fresh water, reducing the growth of coral and stressing native pacific plants and animal, which may in fact result to migration and extinction. Due to the threats to the people of Hawaii's basic needs and public health and safety, some locals are deciding to immigrate to another state since Hawaii alone is exposed to heat related illnesses and is dependent mainly on imported goods. Climate change may drastically affect Hawaii and the many cities in it

emission rates, from countries such as China and the United States, there has also been an increase in ocean acidification3 and ocean water levels4. These consequences both have had an adverse effect on the island of Tuvalu. As the water levels rise the island, which at it’s highest point is roughly 15 feet above water, more and more of the island is flooded and deemed inhabitable. This negatively affects the inhabitant’s ability to grow crops and have property. The island’s main form of protection from storms were the coral atolls off the coast, but ocean acidification

The small island country of Maldives is being affected by sea level rises due to climate change. Being half a meter from sea level makes the Maldives a vulnerable country to climate change (Gwynne). They are low-lying countries who are slowly being affected by rising sea-levels. (Jaschik). Too much water coming into the shore at once is bringing the Maldives underwater. If the sea level rises to 1 m then there will be 79% less chance of getting groundwater (Iftikhar). Odd rainfall patterns are causing some dryness and shortage for the people. There has also been some recent contamination that makes the water more difficult to drink. In the article “Small States…” it claims “climate change is ultimately a matter of life and death” (Jaschik). When sea levels rises to the point of taking over,

Many of these people are in developing countries that are ill equipped to deal with the problem (monaghan). When the water levels rise, all of these people will be forced to relocate as their whole cities, towns, and homes go underwater due to climate change in Antarctica. In places like Florida, Bangladesh, and other low-lying areas, even modest increases in sea levels—the kind possible before the beginning of the next century—would have dire, civilization-changing consequences (monaghan). According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), sea levels have been rising about three millimeters per year since 1993 – totaling a 200 millimeter increase (7.87 inches) in global averaged sea level since 1870. This is a threat to many lives all over the world and is fast approaching us. Glaciers also contain billions of gallons of freshwater, meaning a rapid melt could mess with the salinity of the ocean. Since our salty ocean absorbs much of the carbon dioxide we pump into the air, that’s not the best scenario for global warming (Atkin). Global warming will continue to get worse if we do not change our ways now.

There is no sure definition for small states however, it was noted by Commonwealth Secretariat that it is “one with a population of 1.5 million or fewer.” Besides population, small states also face similar challenges that have led them to be defined as “small states” as stated in the Commonwealth, “decline in global trade, limited capacity to harness growth opportunities, dependent of outsourced imports, problematic governance capacities, vulnerability to external shocks and natural disasters, high transportation costs due to insularity and remoteness, small size, dependence on a narrow range of exports, lack of readily available information for investors and trading partners.” The small states are not able to prosper because they lack resources. According to Hillman and D’Agostino, “since the 1990s, various indices of economic vulnerability have been developed by the United Nations and the Commonwealth Secretariat. These small states share measures of openness to trade, export diversification, access to and reliance on external financial flows, export dependence, international transportation costs, and vulnerability to natural disasters.” (Hillman and D’Agostino, 2009).

Rising sea levels are caused by the melting of ice which is from the raising temperature in the atmosphere. When the ocean water rises land begins to disappear which puts not only the risk of land not being there, but the risk of the people living there. In the article “Global Warming Impacts” written by a group called, union of concerned scientist write “Global warming is now accelerating the rate of sea level rise, increasing flooding risks to low-lying communities…”. The people that this will be affected are low-lying communities and one of those communities is the Marshall Islands. The Marshall Islands are located near the equator in the pacific ocean and close to being sea level. Since the temperature has been warming up so much, some parts of this island are being flooded. People there are concerned. Many of the locals aren’t just concerned with their island vanishing, but with their island their culture. New York Times interviewed Linber Anej who has lived on Marshall Islands his whole life, went to a conference in Paris representing his island's concern of having to leave their homes saying “It does not make sense for us to go to Paris and come back with something that says, ‘In a few years’ time, your country is going to be underwater. We see the damage occurring now. We’re trying to beat back the sea.”. What basically is being told is that instead of trying to bring awareness to the Marshall Islands they are just giving them a solution of where they can go after they lose