scholarly journals Are we Already in a Climate Crisis?

2019 ◽  
pp. 25-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kuok Ho Daniel Tang
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Environmental Variability ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Tipping Points ◽  
Current State ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
The Media ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Climate Crisis

Global warming, melting of the permafrost, glaciers and sea ice, rising sea level as well as ocean warming and acidification have resulted in degradation of ecosystems and increased occurrences of extreme weather events which threaten the social and economic systems. The media and scholarly articles have interpreted these dire consequences of climate change as a climate crisis intimidating the survival of human and other inhabitants on Earth. This mini review aims to examine the concept of climate crisis and establish whether the current state of climate change fits the definition of climate crisis. There is generally a lack of consensus on what a climate crisis is and a plausible notion presents it as a state of climate change beyond the tipping points. This brings tipping points into determining whether we are in a climate crisis and this review finds that the only tipping point surpassed with high probability is that for melting permafrost, glaciers and sea ice. It is particularly challenging to locate the tipping points in a complex Earth system with high geographical, ecological and environmental variability. This review concludes that we are yet to be in a climate crisis but synergistic impacts of environmental degradation could usher in a climate crisis faster than we think. Keywords: Climate change; Crisis; Blobal warming; Melting; Ocean; Rainforest

scholarly journals Media Representation of Extreme Event Attribution: A Case Study of the 2011–17 California Drought

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 847-862 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon Osaka ◽  
James Painter ◽  
Peter Walton ◽  
Abby Halperin
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Extreme Event ◽  
Climate Impacts ◽  
Media Representation ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Event Attribution ◽  
The Media

AbstractExtreme event attribution (EEA) is a relatively new branch of climate science combining weather observations and modeling to assess and quantify whether and to what extent anthropogenic climate change altered extreme weather events (such as heat waves, droughts, and floods). Such weather events are frequently depicted in the media, which enhances the potential of EEA coverage to serve as a tool to communicate on-the-ground climate impacts to the general public. However, few academic papers have systematically analyzed EEA’s media representation. This paper helps to fill this literature gap through a comprehensive analysis of media coverage of the 2011–17 California drought, with specific attention to the types of attribution and uncertainty represented. Results from an analysis of five U.S. media outlets between 2014 and 2015 indicate that the connection between the drought and climate change was covered widely in both local and national news. However, legitimate differences in the methods underpinning the attribution studies performed by different researchers often resulted in a frame of scientific uncertainty or disagreement in the media coverage. While this case study shows substantial media interest in attribution science, it also raises important challenges for scientists and others communicating the results of multiple attribution studies via the media.

Fire and Climate: Connecting the Dots in British Columbia News Media

2021 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Heather Earle ◽  
Shane Gunster
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
British Columbia ◽  
News Media ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Changement Climatique ◽  
The Public ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Connecting The Dots ◽  
Climate Crisis

Background: Extreme weather events are intensifying with climate change, offering opportunities to raise the public urgency of this issue. The media’s role in communicating this connection is crucial.  Analysis: This article analyzes media coverage of wildfires over a nine-year period in British Columbia focusing on how they are linked to climate change, in particular, during the 2017 and 2018 record-breaking fire seasons.  Conclusion and implications: In media coverage in British Columbia, there is a marked absence of a link between climate change and wildfires and a tendency for connections to be tokenistic, decontextualized, and normalizing. More provocative narratives developed by various public figures that locate wildfires within broader narratives of climate crisis offer more compelling accounts. Contexte : À cause du changement climatique, les événements climatiques extrêmes sont en train de devenir plus intenses. Dans les circonstances, il devient pertinent de soulever l’urgence publique de cet enjeu, et les médias pourraient jouer un rôle crucial pour le communiquer. Analyse : Cet article analyse la couverture médiatique de feux de forêt sur une période de neuf ans en Colombie-Britannique, particulièrement durant les saisons des feux de 2017 et 2018 qui ont battu tous les records. L’article met l’accent sur comment ces incendies sont reliés au changement climatique. Conclusions et implications : Dans la couverture médiatique en Colombie-Britannique, on néglige de montrer les liens qui existent entre le changement climatique et les feux de forêt. Toute connexion établie tend à être superficielle, décontextualisée et normalisée. En revanche, diverses personnalités publiques ont incorporé les feux de forêt dans des narrations englobant l’idée de crise climatique, offrant ainsi une perspective plus intéressante, voire provocatrice.

scholarly journals Prevention and protection technologies – How do the growers get ready for climate change?

2011 ◽  
Vol 17 (4-5) ◽  
Author(s):  
D. D. Nagyné ◽  
Z. Szabó ◽  
J. Nyéki ◽  
M. Soltész
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Ongoing Research ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Realistic View ◽  
Fruit Growing ◽  
Unfavourable Weather ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Technical Solutions

Within the sector of fruit growing, climate change related tasks cover a rather wide range of activities. According to what is claimed by the literature, all decisions impacting the sector should be made conformably with climate change in order to advance an increase in yield security. This, regardless of the impacts of climate change, is also one of the key questions in fruit growing. Regarding protection against extreme weather events, in addition to technological and technical elements, the level of importance assumed by farmers for the abovementioned protection techniques as well as the type and extent they intend to use of this in practice are also worth of studying. This ongoing research beginning in 2009 mainly focuses on studying the opinions of fruit farmers making up the target group for this analysis. The questionnaire survey primarily intends to study their knowledge on the definition of climate change as reactivity to unfavourable weather events occurring in the growing. The study aims at providing a realistic view on the fruit-farmers’ knowledge on climate change and on how technological elements, new technical solutions applicable to mitigate damage are used during production.

scholarly journals Producers’ Reaction to Climate Change in the Fruit Production Sector from the Point of View of Growers

2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 73-76
Author(s):  
Dóra Demeter
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Fruit Production ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Ongoing Research ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Fruit Growing ◽  
Unfavourable Weather ◽  
Definition Of

AbstractWithin the sector of fruit growing, climate change related tasks cover a rather wide range of activities. According to what is claimed by the literature, all decisions impacting the sector should be made conformably with climate change in order to advance an increase in yield security. This, regardless of the impacts of climate change, is also one of the key questions in fruit growing. Regarding protection against extreme weather events, in addition to technological and technical elements, the level of importance assumed by farmers for the above-mentioned protection techniques as well as the type and extent they intend to use in practice are also worth of studying. This ongoing research began in 2009 and focuses mainly on studying the opinions of fruit farmers making up the target group for this analysis. The questionnaire survey primarily intends to study their knowledge on the definition of climate change as reactivity to unfavourable weather events occurring in the growing. Additionally, we tried to get answers to the following questions: Do the studied human factors (age, educational level, sex etc.) of growers determine the extension of innovation of fruit production?

Urban Population Knowledge of Climate Change in Costa Rica and Nicaragua

2013 ◽  
pp. 55-76
Author(s):  
Sergio A. Molina Murillo
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Costa Rica ◽  
Urban Population ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
International Policies ◽  
General Concern

Most scenarios indicate that people in developing countries are more vulnerable and less capable of adapting to climate change. Since our public understanding of risk toward climate change in developing countries is limited, this article presents results from Costa Rica and Nicaragua, two countries which are socio-economically distinct, but which are expected to suffer similar extreme weather events. From October of 2008 until May 2010, a total of 1,047 respondents were surveyed in cities of both countries. The main results indicate that climate change is a widely known concept but other notions such as “carbon footprint” are foreign to most respondents. Despite the general concern with its negative consequences, respondents’ foremost concern is linked to their socioeconomic situation, and how it will be impacted by climate change in such aspects as poverty and social security. The results presented here contribute to advance national and international policies aiming to support mitigation or adaptation strategies in developing countries.

Governing climate change for sustainable food production: A case study of emerging markets

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 64-75
Author(s):  
Robert Ddamulira
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Food Production ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Role Of The State ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Future Success ◽  
Governance Challenges ◽  
Change Impact ◽  
Document Review

This article addresses three research questions: How does climate change impact food production? What are the governance challenges associated with managing such impacts? What are the conditions for future success in managing the impacts of climate change on food production? To answer these questions, the researcher undertook a document review and analysis to address these various aspects with a major focus on East Africa. The study finds that climate change affects food production largely through its physical impacts on precipitation and increased the frequency of extreme weather events. Within a context of weak governance; climate change further challenges governance institutional structures and mechanisms. The study concludes that specific aspects of the prevailing climate change governance regime require major reforms (particularly the role of the state, corporations and civil society) while other climate governance mechanisms need to be completely overhauled (for example through establishment of a new World Environment Organization).

scholarly journals Affrontare il cambiamento climatico è una ‘missione possibile’

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 154-160
Author(s):  
Roberto Buizza
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Greenhouse Gases ◽  
Heat Waves ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Ice Melting ◽  
Greenhouse Gases Emissions ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Change Impact

Climate change is real, and we, humans, are responsible for it. Its impact is already evident, both on the Earth system (global warming, sea-level rise, sea-ice melting, more intense and frequent extreme weather events such as heat waves and fires) and on people (famines, health issues, migrations, political tensions and conflicts). We need immediate and concrete mitigation actions aiming to reduce greenhouse gases emissions, and adaptation actions to be able to cope with the increasing changing climate. We have to reach zero-net greenhouse gases emissions as soon as possible, by reducing emissions by at least 5% a year, starting from now. Otherwise the climate change impact will become more and more severe: it will induce more injustice, and it will have a major impact on people health. We have the resources and the technologies to deal with it: we must have the courage to change and transform and deal with it. Addressing climate change is not impossible: to the contrary, it is a ‘possible mission’.

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