July 23, 2029

A Day When Climate Change will Change our World, Whether We Like It or Not

We are reaching a tipping point in our history, especially when it comes to our environment.

Decisions in our lives are no longer made simply based on which path is more efficient or effective for us.

Thinking about the environmental repercussions of a decision is something that businesses, governments, and people have all needed to consider.

But how did this come to be? And why is climate change now the greatest global problem of our time?

Background

The industrial revolution led to game-changing manufacturing processes that were expected to be the perfect solution for our rapidly growing population.

It was thought at the time to not have any major impact on the environment, until around the mid-1950s when CO2 concentration levels began being regularly measured.

In 1974, the first evidence of chlorine chemicals being involved in ozone depletion is published.

Later in 1990, international government reports indicate a pattern of past warming (from the time that emissions were expelled in large quantities) and signal that future warming is very likely.

At the turn of the Millenium, countries realized that something had to be done about it. That’s why in 2015 the Paris Agreement was signed and governments around the world have committed to drastically reducing their emissions.

It has even led to New York City having its own “climate clock” that counts down the days until climate change will be irreversible.

Based on my calculations from the live clock found here, our time will run out on July 23, 2029

Facts

To understand the true magnitude of this issue, consider these facts from the United Nations:

• CO2 emissions have increased by almost 50% since 1990
• Global temperatures from 2015–2019 were the 5 warmest years on record (with 2010–2019 being the warmest decade on record)
• Greenhouse gas concentrations are at their highest levels in 2 million years
• Environmental factors kill around 13 million people every single year

Barring any future effects (which at this point are almost inevitable), climate change already has massive impacts on the world today.

Causes

A problem as big as climate change doesn’t simply come out of the blue. It is the product of hundreds of years of human activity in large part where we have prioritized short-term gain over long-term sustainbility.

Here are the main reasons why climate change exists:

• Generating power ⚡ — 75% of our electricity is generated from non-renewable sources like coal, oil, and natural gas.
• Manufacturing goods 🧱— Items like cement, iron, steel, electronics, plastics, and clothes all produce emissions (mostly from burning fossil fuels to produce energy to make these things).
• Deforestation 🌳 — Trees are the perfect counterparts to human beings, because while humans inhale oxygen and emit CO2, trees do the opposite by taking in CO2 and giving back oxygen gas. But if we continue to grow our population and at the same time cut down more and more trees, nature’s ability to keep emissions out of the atmosphere is greatly reduced.
• Overconsumption 👚— Things like the clothes we buy as well as electronics and plastics can all have major impacts on climate change based on how they were produced. But especially since we in North America especially throw away so much, we are contributing much more to emitting greenhouse gases.
• Producing food 🍔— Current methods of using farm equipment or fishing boats require fossil fuels to operate. Even for animals like cows that produce methane (which is 25x more potent than CO2), as well as shipping their meat, can be very costly for the planet.

Projections

If strict action isn’t taken immediately, soon enough our world might look like something straight out of the movie San Andreas.

Here is what the true impact of climate change will be at current rates by the end of the century:

• Global temperatures will rise by 4.4°C (WAY more than the 1.5°C that is being targeted by countries to maintain a livable climate)
• Precipitation will increase by about 9% and sea levels will rise by 30–100 cm
• Heat waves that currently occur once in 20 years will occur every 2–3 years
• The Arctic Ocean will become ice-free
• Over 1/3 of animals will face extinction
• The surface water of oceans will be 150% more acidic, resulting in a pH that oceans haven’t experienced for more than 20 million years

Conclusion

Hopefully this article helped open your eyes a little bit to why climate change is one of the world’s biggest problems today.

It is no longer ok to simply accept the negative environmental consequences of our decisions, especially for big corporations and governments.

We live in a time where strict action must be taken by society as a whole to promote alternative sources of obtaining energy, creating more sustainable ways of living, and continuing innovating for radical solutions that can impact this field and our world.

However, it begins with us looking inwards and thinking about how we can make changes in OUR lives to be more effective in fighting our collective societal battle against climate change.

Life is a gift that all of us have. It is now up to us and in our control to pass along this gift to the generations to come at the quality that they deserve!

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