Climate Change and Impoverishment

• Individuals experiencing impoverishment bear the brunt of climate change despite contributing the least to its causes.

Poverty/ Displacement

• Extreme weather events are increasing in frequency and intensity, impacting habitats, environments, and the ability to grow crops and access resources.
• Cyclone Ida in 2019 caused displacement of approximately 200,000 people in Malawi, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique, resulting in a severe humanitarian disaster.
• Hurricane Sandy led to hundreds of deaths and billions of dollars in damages along the east coast.

Decrease Food Production/ Agriculture

• Changing environments are making agriculture more difficult, leading to lower crop yields, higher prices, and less distribution.
• Droughts and floods are becoming more common, with flooding causing soil erosion and changes in composition, making crop cultivation harder.
• Food insecurity results from lack of access to food.
• Climate change is projected to decrease corn and soybean revenue in the US by up to 50% in the next 50 years.

The Spread of Disease

• Warmer temperatures in colder regions facilitate pathogen transmission among humans, animals, and plants.
• Shorter, milder winters contribute to increased insect populations, which can spread disease.
• Mosquito populations are increasing and spreading malaria throughout the year instead of only during specific seasons.
• Tick populations are rising due to shorter winters, leading to a decline in moose populations due to the spread of Lyme disease.

Rising Sea Levels

• Melting water from glaciers and ice sheets contributes to rising sea levels.
• Seawater expansion occurs as a result of warming temperatures.
• Increased sea levels and flooding endanger coastal communities.
• Saltwater intrusion contaminates coastal soil and mixes with groundwater in aquifers, rendering the water unusable for living organisms.
• Sea level rise in the western Gulf of Mexico is expected to be 16-18 inches higher than 2020 levels by 2050.

Change in Weather/Severe Storms

• Rising global temperatures increase evaporation, adding moisture to the atmosphere and fueling stronger, more destructive storms.
• Warmer oceans contribute to heavier rainfall, stronger winds, and slower-moving hurricanes.
• Storms are becoming more frequent and intense.
• Significant drought in some areas leads to unpredictable weather events.
• Warm air disrupts the polar vortex pattern, forcing polar winds south, posing a threat to animals and plants unable to survive the extreme cold.

Drought/Wildfires

• Climate change has increased evaporation of surface water, causing droughts and leading to wildfires.
• Precipitation rates have remained unchanged, disrupting the water cycle.
• Droughts and wildfires have increased since the Paris Agreement.
• Droughts and wildfires impact agriculture, threaten the economy, and hurt income.
• California is experiencing long periods of drought, referred to as a mega drought.

Animal Extinction/ Endangerment

• Animals adapting to specialized habitats are unable to adjust to new environments when those habitats change.
• Changing weather patterns impact breeding and food availability, stressing many species.
• Shifting/disappearing habitats cause a decline in biodiversity, threatening the balance of ecosystems.
• Changes in weather patterns disrupt migration patterns, causing species to migrate earlier or further due to temperature changes.
• Polar bears struggle to hunt as sea ice melts.
• Rising ocean temperatures lead to coral bleaching, destroying coral reefs and reducing marine biodiversity.

Paris Agreement

• It is difficult to enforce the goals of the Paris Agreement.
• Countries set individual goals for reducing carbon emissions, rather than adhering to an equal reduction target.
• Some countries would be economically impacted more severely by reducing CO2 emissions.
• The goal was to reduce the global temperature by 1.5-2.0℃ by 2030.
• Changing energy sources is very expensive.
• Wealthy individuals would lose money if the use of fossil fuels was reduced.

Greenhouse Effect and Climate

• The greenhouse effect is a natural occurrence that traps heat near the Earth's surface.
• excess greenhouse gases from human activities disrupts the natural carbon cycle
• The human enhanced greenhouse effect contributes to climate change.
• Climate is the long term weather conditions of a large area.
• Climate is impacted by latitude, elevation, wind, etc.

Seasons

• The Earth's tilt causes hemispheres to be pointed towards the sun during the summer, increasing sunlight.
• During winter, the Earth is pointed away from the sun, causing less sunlight.