scholarly journals Comment: Sharing Our World with Wild Animals

2021 ◽  
pp. 483-491
Author(s):  
J. A. A. Swart
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Contact Zone ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Heterogeneous Network ◽  
Wild Animals ◽  
Ethical Approach ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Species Adaptability ◽  
New Interactions ◽  
Human Landscape

AbstractWild animals are falling increasingly under threat as their habitats are being disrupted by human activities and global warming. At the same time, we see wild animals such as wolves actually settling in human landscapes. This forces us to rethink how we can live together with other living beings, with whom we share one earth. The contributions in this book section can be seen as attempts to do just that. However, these developments also challenge the traditional ethical approach towards wild animals, concisely worded as “Let them be”. That falls short in the current era, in which semi-wild, contact zone, and liminal animals are recognized. Animals, whether living in natural or human landscapes, all make opportunistic use of all sorts of resources – including human ones. If circumstances change, either due to natural or human-made causes, they will enter into new interactions with their environment to survive. They are nodes in a dynamic, heterogeneous network of dependency relationships that increasingly includes humans. In this chapter a framework is proposed to indicate the presence of wild animals in the human landscape based on the species’ adaptability and their degree of dependence on humans. The framework shows that species strongly differ in their vulnerability and that a diversity of measures is required in a world in which human and animal domains increasingly merge. Recognizing that we do not have exclusive rights to the earth implies an impersonal care perspective for wild animals as fellow-earthlings. It requires the reconsideration of our ethics, philosophies, culture and politics.

Climate Change, Global Warming, and Agricultural Droughts

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gennady V. Menzhulin ◽  
Sergey P. Savvateyev
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Spatial Variations ◽  
Geological Time ◽  
The Earth

The climate of a region is a representation of long-term weather conditions that prevail there. Over the millions of years of the existence of the atmosphere on the earth, the climate has changed all the time; ice ages have come and gone, and this has been the result of natural causes. Recently (on geological time scales) the human population has expanded—from half a billion in 1600, to 1 billion in 1800, to almost 3 billion in 1940, and it now stands at about 6 billion. The climate may well now be influenced not only as before by natural events but also by human activities. For example, we are producing vast amounts of carbon dioxide by burning fossil fuels, and this is causing the temperature of the earth to rise significantly. If we argue that we should control our activities to preserve this planet as a habitable environment for future generations, we need to have some scientific knowledge of the effects of our present activities on climate. In recent years the evidence has been accumulating that on the time scale of decades there is global warming (i.e., the global annual mean surface temperature is increasing). There is also evidence accumulating that part of this increase is a consequence of human activities. The evidence is largely statistical. Within this trend there are bound to be temporal fluctuations and spatial variations. Moreover, in addition to the increase in temperature, it is reasonable to assume that there is, overall, an increase in evaporation of water from the surface of the earth and that there will be a consequent increase in precipitation. But within this overall scenario there are bound to be local variations; some areas may experience more precipitation, but some areas may experience less precipitation. The effect of climate change on the proneness to drought is therefore not uniform but can be expected to vary from place to place. Therefore, whether one is concerned with considering the relation between climate and proneness to drought from the historical evidence or whether one is trying to use models to predict the effect of future climatic conditions, it is necessary to consider the local spatial variations.

Ozone Depletion and Global Environment

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Chemical Reactions ◽  
Ozone Depletion ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Photochemical Reaction ◽  
Global Environment ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Relationship

This paper is focused on the relationship between ozone depletion and environmental climate change. Ozone (O3) depletion and global warming are not directly related to each other but have a common reason as pollutants released into the atmosphere by human activities which alter both phenomenal change. Global warming is incident of accumulation of higher level of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when hydrocarbons are used to generate electricity to run vehicles. Carbon dioxide spreads around the earth like a cover which is mainly responsible for the absorption of infrared radiation as a heat. Ozone depletion occurs when chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and halon (halogen) gases are observed in aerosol. Practically, spray cans and refrigerants are the sources of CFCs. Ozone is available in the stratosphere and absorbs ultraviolet radiaton, which is very harmful to humans, animals and plants. By photochemical reaction ozone molecules are broken down by CFCs and halons, which are the primary substances in the chemical reactions, reducing ozone’s ultraviolet radiation-absorbing capacity.

Analysis of Sensitivity and Vulnerability of Endangered Wild Animals to Global Warming

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 235-243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin-Yong Kim ◽  
Seongbum Hong ◽  
Man-Seok Shin
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Wild Animals

Global Warming and Its Multiple Causes

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Romdhane Ben Slama
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Greenhouse Gases ◽  
Greenhouse Effect ◽  
Infrared Radiation ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The One ◽  
Heat Released ◽  
Emission Of Greenhouse Gases

The global warming which preoccupies humanity, is still considered to be linked to a single cause which is the emission of greenhouse gases, CO2 in particular. In this article, we try to show that, on the one hand, the greenhouse effect (the radiative imprisonment to use the scientific term) took place in conjunction with the infrared radiation emitted by the earth. The surplus of CO2 due to the combustion of fossil fuels, but also the surplus of infrared emissions from artificialized soils contribute together or each separately,  to the imbalance of the natural greenhouse effect and the trend of global warming. In addition, another actor acting directly and instantaneously on the warming of the ambient air is the heat released by fossil fuels estimated at 17415.1010 kWh / year inducing a rise in temperature of 0.122 ° C, or 12.2 ° C / century.

scholarly journals A Clear Past and a Murky Future: Life in the Anthropocene on the Pampana River, Sierra Leone

Land ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Marcantonio ◽  
Agustin Fuentes
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Change ◽  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Complex Adaptive Systems ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Adaptive Systems ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Earth System ◽  
Sierra Leonean ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Complex Adaptive

The impacts of human activities on ecosystems are significantly increasing the rate of environmental change in the earth system, reshaping the global landscape. The rapid rate of environmental change is disrupting the ability of millions of people around the globe to live their everyday lives and maintain their human niche. Evidence suggests that we have entered (or created) a new epoch, the Anthropocene, which is defined as the period in which humans and human activities are the primary drivers of planetary change. The Anthropocene denotes a global shift, but it is the collective of local processes. This is our frame for investigating local accounts of human-caused disruptive environmental change in the Pampana River in Tonkolili District, Northern Province, Sierra Leone. Since the end of the Sierra Leonean civil war in 2002, the country has experienced a rapid increase in extractive industries, namely mining. We explored the effects of this development by working with communities along the Pampana River in Tonkolili, with a specific focus given to engaging local fishermen through ethnographic interviews (N = 21 fishermen and 33 non-fishermen), focus group discussions (N = 21 fishermen), and participant observation. We deployed theoretical and methodological frameworks from human niche construction theory, complex adaptive systems, and ethnography to track disruptive environmental change in and on the Pampana from upstream activities and the concomitant shifts in the local human niche. We highlight the value of integrating ethnographic methods with human evolutionary theory, produce important insights about local human coping processes with disruptive environmental change, and help to further account for and understand the ongoing global process of human modification of the earth system in the Anthropocene.

scholarly journals Collateral transgression of planetary boundaries due to climate engineering by terrestrial carbon dioxide removal

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 783-796 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera Heck ◽  
Jonathan F. Donges ◽  
Wolfgang Lucht
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Removal ◽  
Small Range ◽  
Earth System ◽  
Planetary Boundaries ◽  
Climate Engineering ◽  
Terrestrial Carbon ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Atmospheric Carbon

Abstract. The planetary boundaries framework provides guidelines for defining thresholds in environmental variables. Their transgression is likely to result in a shift in Earth system functioning away from the relatively stable Holocene state. As the climate system is approaching critical thresholds of atmospheric carbon, several climate engineering methods are discussed, aiming at a reduction of atmospheric carbon concentrations to control the Earth's energy balance. Terrestrial carbon dioxide removal (tCDR) via afforestation or bioenergy production with carbon capture and storage are part of most climate change mitigation scenarios that limit global warming to less than 2 °C. We analyse the co-evolutionary interaction of societal interventions via tCDR and the natural dynamics of the Earth's carbon cycle. Applying a conceptual modelling framework, we analyse how the degree of anticipation of the climate problem and the intensity of tCDR efforts with the aim of staying within a "safe" level of global warming might influence the state of the Earth system with respect to other carbon-related planetary boundaries. Within the scope of our approach, we show that societal management of atmospheric carbon via tCDR can lead to a collateral transgression of the planetary boundary of land system change. Our analysis indicates that the opportunities to remain in a desirable region within carbon-related planetary boundaries only exist for a small range of anticipation levels and depend critically on the underlying emission pathway. While tCDR has the potential to ensure the Earth system's persistence within a carbon-safe operating space under low-emission pathways, it is unlikely to succeed in a business-as-usual scenario.

An Inverter can be Used in Hybrid Wind-Solar Grid-Connected Power System

2012 ◽  
Vol 512-515 ◽  
pp. 70-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yang Tian ◽  
Ru Cheng Han ◽  
Chen Li
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Power System ◽  
Sustainable Energy ◽  
Future Generations ◽  
Energy Sources ◽  
Grid Security ◽  
Operational Analysis ◽  
Harmonic Content ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Simulation Results

With increasing concern of global warming, many are looking at sustainable energy solutions to protect the earth for the future generations.. This paper presents a new inverter which can be used in hybrid wind/photovoltaic grid-connected power system. This inverter allows the two sources to work separately or simultaneously depending on the availability of the energy sources. Harmonic content is detrimental for the Grid security. The introduction of the inverter can effectively reduce the harmonics generated by the system. Operational analysis of the proposed system will be discussed in this paper. Simulation results are given to highlight the merits of the proposed inverter.

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Scientific “Consensus” on Global Warming

1996 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 333-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick J. Michaels ◽  
Paul C. Knappenberger
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Sulfate Aerosols ◽  
Climate Data ◽  
Consensus Process ◽  
Intergovernmental Panel ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Extreme Scenario

Climate data support the “moderate” prediction of climate change (l-1.5°C) rather than the more extreme scenario (4°C or more). The moderate point of view was originally marginalized in the IPCC “consensus” process in both the 1990 First Assessment on Climate Change and in the 1992 Update prepared specifically for the Earth Summit and to provide backing for the Rio Framework Convention on Climate Change. It is now accepted, based on ground-based data, that the errors in those models are currently between 160% and 360%. If one compares them to the satellite data combined with the land record, the error rises to a maximum of 720%. In some recognition of this massive error, the 1995 IPCC “consensus” is that warming has been mitigated by sulfate aerosols. However, when that hypothesis is specifically tested, it fails. Further, data required to test the validity of the sulfate enhanced greenhouse models was withheld by the IPCC. despite repeated requests.

scholarly journals Geoethics for Nudging Human Practices in Times of Pandemics

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduardo Marone ◽  
Martin Bohle
Keyword(s):  
Human Activities ◽  
Climate Changes ◽  
Earth System ◽  
Ethical Frameworks ◽  
Social Ecological ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Social ◽  
Governance Practices ◽  
Disciplinary Field ◽  
Human Practices

Geoscientists developed geoethics, an intra-disciplinary field of applied philosophical studies, during the last decade. Reaching beyond the sphere of professional geosciences, it led to professional, cultural, and philosophical approaches to handle the social-ecological structures of our planet ‘wherever human activities interact with the Earth system’. Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 and considering geoscientists’ experiences dealing with disasters (related to hazards like tsunamis, floods, climate changes.), this essay (1) explores the geoethical approach, (2) re-casts geoethics within western philosophical systems, such as the Kantian imperatives, Kohlberg scale of moral adequacy, Jonas’ imperative of responsibility, and (3) advances a ‘geoethical thesis’. The latter takes the form of a hypothesis of a much broader scope of geoethics than initially envisioned. That hypothesis appears by suspecting a relationship between the relative successes in the COVID-19 battle with the positioning of agents (individual, collective, institutional) into ethical frameworks. The turmoil caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, calls for the transfer of experiences between different disciplinary domains to further sustainable governance, hence generalising the geoethical approach. It is emphasized that only when behaving as responsible and knowledgeable citizens, then people of any trade (including [geo-]scientists) can transgress the boundaries of ordinary governance practices with legitimacy.

scholarly journals Estuaries, Human Beings, and the Future

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven D. Culberson
Keyword(s):  
Fresh Water ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Streams And Rivers ◽  
Salty Water ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Future

Estuaries are places on the earth where rivers meet oceans. When rain and snowmelt drain off the land, the fresh water collects in streams and rivers and eventually makes its way to the ocean. At the same time, the ocean has tides that push salty water upstream into the rivers. This place, where rivers and oceans mix, is called an estuary. Estuaries contain many kinds of habitats that are home to plants and animals. Many people work and live in estuaries. In this article, I describe what makes estuaries interesting and important to plants, animals, and people. I also explain how these important areas are under threat from certain human activities.

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