Climate Impacts, Energy Choices, and Sustainable Futures

Climate Change and Global Warming

13) Climate Change/Global Warming: Yes, it is the result of the increasing greenhouse effect, caused by rising emissions of greenhouse gases. These, in turn, result from the combustion of hydrocarbons. This leads to thawing that could raise sea levels, causing the disappearance of islands and coastal areas.

Energy Sources and Environmental Concerns

International Agreements

14) Kyoto Protocol: A commitment where signatory countries pledge to reduce or not increase their CO₂ emissions.

Energy Types

16) Traditional Sources: Wood, Coal, and later Oil and Natural Gas.

17) Nuclear Energy: Based on enriched uranium used as fuel. It generates hazardous radioactive waste that is difficult to treat. Radioactive waste can alter the DNA of living things.

20) Biofuels: Can substitute part of traditional fossil fuels. However, their use has led to deforestation for cultivation, and production competes with food resources.

Natural Risks and Human Factors

Examples and Prediction

21) Natural Risks: Examples include the Tsunami that devastated Indonesia in Dec 2004, Hurricane Mitch in 1998, Hurricane Katrina in Aug 2005, and the Galicia fire in Summer 2006. Yes, efforts are made to predict them and take preventative action.

Human Influence on Risks

22) Yes, risks can result from previous human actions: Deforestation and building on floodplains and river avenues increase risks. Poverty also increases vulnerability; for example, leading populations to crowd into poor-quality housing.

Sustainable Development Principles

Definition and Goals

24) Sustainable Development (1987): Development that meets the current needs of people without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

25) Core Goals:

• Meeting present needs: Encouraging economic activity that provides necessary goods for the entire global population.
• Satisfying future needs: Minimizing the negative effects of economic activities, making them sustainable for generations to come.

26) Sustainable Development Defined: A type of development that combines progress with minimal pollution levels, affecting the environment we live in as little as possible.

The Sustainability Balance

27) Equilibrium: Sustainable Development seeks a balance between economic, social, and environmental factors. Yes, achieving this can seem impossible because objectives often conflict, making it difficult to decide priorities: individual needs? The environment? Future generations?

Achieving Sustainability

Practices and Approaches

28) Practices for Sustainable Development:

• Economic activity should maintain or improve the environmental system and positively impact the quality of life for all people, not just a few.
• Do not use renewable resources faster than they regenerate.
• Do not produce pollutants at a rate higher than the environment can recycle, neutralized, or absorb.
• Promote maximum recycling and reuse.
• Develop and deploy clean technologies.
• Restore damaged ecosystems.
• Recognize the importance of nature for human welfare.

Global Initiatives and Individual Roles

29) Agenda 21: A United Nations program promoting sustainable development. It details actions to be carried out globally, nationally, and locally in areas where human activity causes environmental impacts. It emphasizes that sustainable development cannot be achieved without citizen collaboration.

30) Individual Responsibility: Think about what we do individually and consider the consequences for others. Think globally and act locally.