By Anser Daad

By definition, “Global warming” refers to the rise in global temperatures due mainly to the increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. “Climate change” refers to the increasing changes in the measures of climate over a long period of time – including precipitation, temperature, and wind patterns.

Global warming stresses ecosystems through temperature rises, water shortages, increased fire threats, drought, weed and pest invasions, intense storm damage and salt invasion, just to name a few. As the earth’s atmosphere heats up, it collects, retains, and drops more water, changing weather patterns and making wet areas wetter and dry areas drier. Higher temperatures worsen and increase the frequency of many types of disasters, including storms, floods, heatwaves, and droughts.

The impacts of global warming are being felt everywhere. Extreme heatwaves have caused tens of thousands of deaths around the world in recent years. And in an alarming sign of events to come, Antarctica has lost nearly four trillion metric tons of ice since the 1990s. The rate of loss could speed up if we keep burning fossil fuels at our current pace, some experts say, causing sea levels to rise several meters in the next 50 to 150 years and wreaking havoc on coastal communities worldwide.

Statistically, Since the Industrial Revolution, the global annual temperature has increased in total by a little more than 1 degree Celsius, or about 2 degrees Fahrenheit. Between 1880—the year that accurate record-keeping began—and 1980, it rose on average by 0.07 degrees Celsius (0.13 degrees Fahrenheit) every 10 years. Since 1981, however, the rate of increase has more than doubled: For the last 40 years, we’ve seen the global annual temperature rise by 0.18 degrees Celsius, or 0.32 degrees Fahrenheit, per decade.

The result? A planet that has never been hotter. Nine of the 10 warmest years since 1880 have occurred since 2005—and the 5 warmest years on record have all occurred since 2015. Climate change deniers have argued that there has been a “pause” or a “slowdown” in rising global temperatures, but numerous studies, including a 2018 paper published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, have disproved this claim. The impacts of global warming are already harming people around the world.

This is critical now to take actions against the issue and define the solutions as introducing climate-friendly and climate change preparedness policies, carbon economy, greenhouse gases and carbon emission reduction, renewable energy, electric automobiles, public transport, etc.

Now, it’s time by understanding our responsibility to save the planet, we should take actions towards equitably transitioning from dirty fossil fuels to clean power, which should be a top priority—because it’s vital to build healthy, more secure communities.

• March 2024
• August 2023
• January 2022
• November 2021
• October 2021

Why are scientists, activists and leaders across sectors still worried about the climate crisis? What are the scientific basis and research-based statistical data Sys? Why do we need a serious call to the climate crisis? Why Carbon emission is critical to control?

The good news is; Many innovators are addressing today’s challenges, while policymakers are looking at ways to help close the loop on our valuable materials through legislation and incentives. Leaders across the globe will gather next month to collectively accelerate action toward the Paris Agreement and UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Here are some facts where research shows that transition to renewable energy can only address 55% of emissions; the remaining about 45 % comes from producing cars, clothes, food and everyday products.

https://kenniskaarten.hetgroenebrein.nl/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/English-PBL-Elements-of-Circular-Economy-1024×607.jpg

And we know; the circular economy is an economic system of closed loops in which raw materials, components and products lose their value as little as possible and this model offers a clear pathway to achieving our collective climate goals, tackling emissions tied to extraction, processing, manufacturing and landfilling of goods.

In 2015,197 countries signed the Paris Agreement to limit temperature rise to 2 °C, with an agreement to aim for a 1.5 °C limit. In addition, nearly one-fifth of the world’s 2,000 largest public companies (representing $14 trillion in sales) have committed to net-zero emissions.

If we see our current policies push us close to a 3 °C rise in global temperature. Even our pledges only get us to 2.4 °C.

As we are dependent on “dirty” and non-renewable energy is a significant contributor to our climate crisis, and the swift and just conversion to renewable sources of energy is critical to reducing global emissions, but this is only about half of the answer. Ellen MacArthur Foundation finds that our transition to renewable energy “can only address 55% of emissions. The remaining 45% comes from producing the cars, clothes, food, and other products we use every day.”

We should consider a Circular economy instead of a Production and consumption comparison. Where the circular economy is an economic system of closed loops in which raw materials, components and products lose their value as little as possible, renewable energy sources are used and systems thinking is at the core. In other words, a circular economy eliminates the concept of waste altogether, moving us into a more closed-loop system where materials and products are kept in use as long as possible.

Circular economy definitions often focus on the use of raw materials or on system change. Definitions that focus on resource use often follow the 3-R approach: Reduce (minimum use of raw materials), Reuse (maximum reuse of products and components), Recycle (high-quality reuse of raw materials)

According to Korhonen, Nuur, Feldmann & Birkie (2018), definitions that focus on system change often emphasize three elements, closed cycles, Renewable energy and Systems thinking.

There are seven reasons; leaders and policymakers keep in mind while discussions that how to tackle our climate crisis;

Firstly, we depend on our planet’s natural resources for sustenance, protection and basically everything we need to survive, but we are taking too much and wasting too much as well.

Secondly, Statistics tell us, we are using about 60 % more of the earth’s resources than it can regenerate every year. And by 2050, will be an increment in consumption, that “Overshoot” could get to 3 to 4 piles of earth, and this is clearly articulating an unsustainable situation.

According to a study by the UN environment; our current linear system depends on extraction – including rare natural resources – and is responsible for 53% of the world’s carbon emissions and more than 80% of biodiversity loss.

Thirdly, As we are wasting too much and this waste control is out of control and this waste is two billion tones which are growing and by 2050 will reach 3.4 billion tones.

Fourthly, our landfills sound safe but in reality, not, these landfills release carbon dioxide and methane which will be more potent of a global warming agent than carbon dioxide in the first twenty years of its release.

Fifth, we waste food resources every day, even as millions go hungry and food is the second product found in landfills.

Sixth, textile, we throw a big portion of clothing each year, and as per studies, we will throw away 148 million tonnes of clothing each year by 2030.

Seventh, the gold, electronics and electric goods have gold and other rare earth minerals like copper and this all is going into trash bins and losing worth over $62 billion, every year.

The ultimate solution to these problems is the circular economy model to achieve our collective climate goals and tackle greenhouse gas emissions tied to the extraction, process, manufacturing, and landfilling of goods. And now this is the responsibility of leading governments and policymakers to look at ways to help close the loop on our valuable materials through both legislation and incentives. I hope, days will come where we will win together and will be able to save our planet.