Change in weather conditions affects human activities and health. Different factors are associated with the change in temperature, including human activities and natural factors. When conditions become warmer, drier, or wetter, people start changing their lifestyle over a significant duration to adapt to these changing conditions. Over the decades, climate change became a hot debate, with discussions on how individuals can contribute to climate change and strategies to reduce the effects of climate change. The increasing change in weather conditions influences individuals’ awareness of climate change and the effective methods they can adopt to reduce the negative effects.
Climate change is identified through changes in the earth’s atmosphere, land surface, cryosphere, and oceans. The earth releases energy absorbed by the atmosphere by radiating it to space (Edenhofer, 2015). The earth is only safe when the atmosphere can radiate the heat from the earth; however, different factors influence the planet warms. Natural factors such as the sun’s intensity, volcanic eruptions, and gas concentration variations. Natural factors because of slow climate changes, but human activities have significantly influenced change in recent years. Humans contribute to climate changes through the emission of greenhouse gases. Methane, carbon dioxide, and nitrous oxide levels have increased through industrial activities, transportation, and fuel burning (Change, 2014). Other factors include deforestation through logging, clear-cutting, and fires. Agricultural activities such as fertilizers, livestock production, and construction activities increase the levels of greenhouse gases.
Climate change has various effects on individuals, animals, and the environment. Climate change influences extreme weather characterized by floods, storms, droughts, and heat waves. These extreme weather conditions have devastating effects on humans, making it hard to access clean water, property damage, air pollution, and death (Urban, 2015). Dirty air also emerges from climate change, as the air gets dirtier, increasing the spread of allergenic air pollutants. These changes increase health risks, such as heat stress, heat stroke, cardiovascular, and kidney diseases. Air pollutants cause risks in respiratory health, including asthma. Weather situations such as storms and floods cause physical injuries and death. Communities experiencing such events are forced to displace to better areas where they can experience better. Displacement affects an individual’s lifestyle making them more dependent on donations. According to Melillo et al. (2014), climate change influences ocean rise as ice sheets melts, threatening coastal ecosystems. Temperature increase influences the acidity of the ocean affecting underwater life.
The increased impact of climate changes influences the need for actions to manage human activities. Edenhofer (2015) identifies energy conservation and recycling as the major solutions to curve the negative effects of climate change. Energy conservation includes the reduction of the amount of energy consumed in human activities. Energy conservation reduces the number amount of carbon dioxide released into the environment. Individuals should, therefore, useless mechanical devices and use energy conserving devices. Recycling involves the creation of new products using previously used materials. This action will reduce the exploitation of natural resources such as cutting of trees and mining. Other action plans include public participation and climate-conscious political decisions (Shi et al., 2016). The public should be aware of the challenges they face through climate change. These strategies influence people to be responsible.
In conclusion, climate change is a global challenge that needs the government, businesses, and individuals. Climate change influences changes in the weather conditions, which influence the increase in temperatures, rainfall, and an increase of pollutants. These conditions affect the health, social, and economic activities of individuals. Some of the strategies to reduce climate change include energy conservation and recycling. Knowledge of climate change is important in influencing human activities in different ways.
References
Shi, J., Visschers, V. H., Siegrist, M., & Arvai, J. (2016). Knowledge as a driver of public perceptions about climate change reassessed. Nature Climate Change, 6(8), 759-762. https://www.nature.com/articles/nclimate2997
Melillo, J. M., Richmond, T. T., & Yohe, G. (2014). Climate change impacts in the United States. Third national climate assessment, 52. https://www.globalchange.gov/sites/globalchange/files/Ch_0a_FrontMatter_ThirdNCA_GovtReviewDraft_Nov_22_2013_clean.pdf
Change I. C. (2014). Mitigation of climate change. Contribution of Working Group III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 1454. http://www.keneamazon.net/Documents/Publications/Virtual-Library/Impacto/157.pdf
Edenhofer, O. (Ed.). (2015). Climate change 2014: mitigation of climate change (Vol. 3). Cambridge University Press. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=JAFEBgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT19&dq=climate+change&ots=dAyJtBY4-1&sig=qN1pd1XZQJLR2rjezCBSKQa-TB0
Urban, M. C. (2015). Accelerating extinction risk from climate change. Science, 348(6234), 571-573. https://science.sciencemag.org/content/348/6234/571.abstract