{"id":5196,"date":"2023-01-10T13:28:11","date_gmt":"2023-01-10T10:28:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/?page_id=5196"},"modified":"2023-01-10T13:28:12","modified_gmt":"2023-01-10T10:28:12","slug":"climate-change","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/climate-change","title":{"rendered":"Climate Change"},"content":{"rendered":"

What Is Climate Change?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. These shifts may be natural, such as through variations in the solar cycle. But since the 1800s,\u00a0human activities have been the main driver of climate change<\/a>, primarily due to burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas.<\/p>\n

Burning fossil fuels generates greenhouse gas emissions that act like a blanket wrapped around the Earth, trapping the sun\u2019s heat and raising temperatures.<\/p>\n

Examples of greenhouse gas emissions that are causing climate change include carbon dioxide and methane. These come from using gasoline for driving a car or coal for heating a building, for example. Clearing land and forests<\/a> can also release carbon dioxide. Landfills for garbage are a major source of methane emissions. Energy, industry, transport, buildings, agriculture and land use are among the\u00a0main emitters<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Greenhouse gas concentrations are at their highest levels in 2 million years<\/strong><\/p>\n

And\u00a0emissions continue to rise<\/a>. As a result,\u00a0the Earth is now about 1.1\u00b0C warmer<\/a>\u00a0than it was in the late 1800s. The\u00a0last decade (2011-2020) was the warmest on record<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Many people think climate change mainly means warmer temperatures. But temperature rise is only the beginning of the story. Because the Earth is a system, where everything is connected, changes in one area can influence changes in all others.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0consequences of climate change<\/a>\u00a0now include, among others, intense droughts, water scarcity, severe fires, rising sea levels, flooding, melting polar ice, catastrophic storms and declining biodiversity.<\/p>\n

People are experiencing climate change in diverse ways<\/strong><\/p>\n

Climate change can affect our health, ability to grow food, housing, safety and work. Some of us are already more vulnerable to climate impacts, such as people living in small island nations and other developing<\/a> countries. Conditions like sea-level rise and saltwater intrusion have advanced to the point where whole communities<\/a> have had to relocate, and protracted droughts are putting people at risk of famine. In the future, the number of \u201cclimate refugees\u201d is expected to rise.<\/p>\n

Every increase in global<\/a> warming matters<\/strong><\/p>\n

In a series of\u00a0UN reports<\/a>, thousands of scientists and government reviewers agreed that limiting global temperature rise to no more than 1.5\u00b0C would help us avoid the worst climate impacts and maintain a livable climate. Yet policies currently in place point to a\u00a02.8\u00b0C temperature rise<\/a>\u00a0by the end of the century.<\/p>\n

The emissions that cause climate change come from every part of the world and affect everyone, but\u00a0some countries produce much more than others<\/a>. The 100 least-emitting countries generate 3 per cent of total emissions. The 10 countries with the largest emissions contribute 68 per cent. Everyone must take climate action<\/a>, but people and countries creating more of the problem have a greater responsibility to act first.<\/p>\n

We face a huge challenge but already know many solutions<\/strong><\/p>\n

Many climate change solutions can deliver economic benefits while improving our lives and protecting the environment. We also have\u00a0global\u00a0frameworks and agreements to guide progress, such as\u00a0the\u00a0Sustainable Development Goals<\/a>, the\u00a0UN Framework Convention on Climate Change<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0Paris Agreement<\/a>. Three broad categories of action are: cutting emissions, adapting to climate<\/a> impacts and financing required adjustments.<\/p>\n

Switching energy systems from fossil fuels to\u00a0renewables like solar or wind<\/a>\u00a0will reduce the emissions driving climate change. But we have to start right now. While a growing coalition of countries is committing to\u00a0net zero emissions<\/a>\u00a0by 2050, about\u00a0half of emissions cuts must be in place by 2030<\/a>\u00a0to keep warming below 1.5\u00b0C.\u00a0Fossil fuel production must decline<\/a>\u00a0by roughly 6 per cent per year between 2020 and 2030.<\/p>\n

Adapting to climate consequences protects<\/a> people, homes, businesses, livelihoods, infrastructure and natural ecosystems. It covers current impacts and those likely in the future. Adaptation will be required everywhere, but must be prioritized now for the most vulnerable people with the fewest resources to cope with climate<\/a> hazards. The rate of return can be high. Early warning systems for disasters, for instance, save lives and property, and can deliver benefits up to 10 times the initial cost.<\/p>\n

We can pay the bill now, or pay dearly in the future<\/strong><\/p>\n

Climate action requires significant\u00a0financial investments<\/a>\u00a0by governments and businesses. But climate inaction is vastly more expensive. One critical step is for industrialized countries to fulfil their commitment to provide $100 billion a year to developing countries so they can adapt and move towards<\/a> greener economies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What Is Climate Change? Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. These shifts may be natural, such as through variations in the solar cycle. But since the 1800s,\u00a0human activities have been the main driver of climate change, primarily due to burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas. Burning fossil fuels […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5197,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-5196","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5196"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5196\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5202,"href":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5196\/revisions\/5202"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5197"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cfwt.sua.ac.tz\/ecosystems\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}