Climate Change and Its Causes

Change in climate can be explained as the change in the statistical distribution of weather pattern when such change persists for a prolonged time period (i.e. decades to millions of years). It is often referred to as a change in the time difference of weather or in the average weather conditions within the context of long term average conditions. A variety of factors leads to climate change such as plate tectonics, biotic processes, volcanic eruptions and deviations in the solar radiation received by earth. The primary causes of climate change also include certain human activities which are often referred to as global warming (Crate & Nuttall, 2016).

The climate and the equilibrium temperature of the earth are determined by the degree at what energy is obtained from sun and the degree at which it is lost to space. The climates of various regions are affected by the energy distribution around the globe by ocean currents, winds and other mechanisms (Johnson & Jones, 2017). Climate forcing are the factors which are responsible for shaping climate. This includes various processes such as variations in the orbit of the earth, solar radiation, atmosphere, oceans, albedo variations or reflectivity of continents, changes in greenhouse gas effect and continental drift. Climate Forcing can be either external or internal. External climate forcing can be anthropogenic (for example, rise in greenhouse gas emissions and dust) or natural (for instance, variation in the orbit of the earth, solar outputs and volcano eruptions). Whereas the natural processes that exist within the climate system are known as internal forcing mechanisms (for example, thermohaline circulation). The short and long term deviations in the solar intensity also affect the global climate. One of the indicators of climate change includes glaciers which are retreated with the warming up of temperatures.

Nowadays, the concept of climate change is considered to be one of biggest challenges which add substantial stress to the environment and the societies. Climate changes impacts the entire globe from shifting patterns of weather due to which food production is threatened to the increased sea levels that subsequently result in the increased risk of catastrophic flooding. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) provided scientific information regarding climate change by releasing its Fifth Assessment Report. The report held human activities as the main cause of climate change. The report provided the exhaustive assessment of the increased sea levels along with its causes over the past decade (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2015). The cumulative CO₂ emissions were also estimated by the report and provided a CO₂ budget for future emissions for the purpose of limiting the warming to less than 2 °C. According to the report, the increase in the average global temperature amounted to 0.85 °C from the year 1880 to 2012. Moreover, the amounts of ice and snow have started to diminish along with the warming of the oceans and rising of the sea levels (Gosling & Arnell, 2016). From the year 1901 to 2010, there is an estimated increase of 19 cm in global average sea level due to the expansion of oceans as a result of warming and ice melting. Furthermore, on the basis of existing concentrations and ongoing emissions of greenhouse gases it is predicted that there will be approximately 1–2° C increase in the temperature by the end of this century. Ice melting and warming of the oceans across the world will continue. It is also predicted that the average sea level will rise by 24- 30 cm by the year 2065 and 40- 63 cm by the year 2100 in relation to the time period of 1986- 2005. The factors of climate change are expected to persist for many centuries even when steps are taken for the purpose of controlling the emissions (United Nations, 2018).

Impact of Climate Change on the Environment

Sustainable development can be defined as the development that is sufficient enough to meet the requirements of present generation without negotiating with the capability of future generations to fulfil their own requirements (Sachs, 2015). There is a strong relationship between sustainable development and change in climate. Change in climate is considered as the restriction to development and sustainable development is considered as the key to adaptation and mitigation (Field & Barros, 2014). The strategies followed for the objective of dealing with the climate change and sustainable development has various elements in common which have the capability of creating synergies in case they are applied together. Dealing with the climate change has to be factored into the development agenda as it could be very expensive (Elasha, 2018). Developing countries are most adversely affected as a result of climate change due to inability to cope with the anticipated shocks to their natural, social and economic systems. In the year 1992, the Rio Earth Summit marked the beginning of international political response towards climate change with the adoption of UN Framework in Climate Change (UNFCCC). The framework for action was set in this convention which targeted on the stabilization of concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere. This is for the purpose of avoiding hazardous anthropogenic interference with climate system. The commitment for protecting the planet from degradation has been expressed by the member states in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by way of taking urgent action on change in climate. Change in climate has been identified by the Agenda as one of the major challenges and is considered to adversely impact the capability of the countries to attain sustainable development (Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform, 2018).

Adaptation to change in climate refers to taking respective actions that are aimed at the vulnerable system in reaction to expected or actual climate stimuli with the target of controlling damage from climate change or making the full benefit from the opportunities (Eriksen, Nightingale & Eakin, 2015). The impact of the climate change is assessed with the help of top- down and bottom- up approach. The top – down approach emphasizes on the on the understanding the possible impacts by way of symbolizing different sources of uncertainty as it proceeds towards the process chain. It represents different scenarios of emissions, possible downscaling step and assesses the scope of results from a specific pact model. Top –down approach is considered as the common approach for the purpose of investigating the impact of climate change and is often referred to as first generation type of adaptation and impact study. On the other hand, the bottom- up approach begins with the identification of nature of climate risks that are faced by the system under current climate (Tuladhar, Yuan, Bernstein, Montgomery & Smith, 2009). Other aspects are often taken into consideration due to which the performance of the system is influenced in order to make sure that the assessment of the climate risks is not made in isolation of other demands on the system. The second generation type of analysis is represented by the bottom- up approach that reflects the emergent requirements by the vulnerability and adaptation community to make a distance from ‘predict- then- act’ frameworks (Climate Change in Australia, 2016). The territorial approach to climate change (TACC) is adopted by local level governments in counties in transition and developing countries for the purpose of increasing the resilience to climate change impact and reducing their carbon footprint. After the Saint Malo Declaration, TACC came into existence as a global action.

The Concept of Sustainable Development

The prototypical approaches that are applied for the purpose of adaptation and impact assessment of climate are vulnerability based approach and hazards- based approach. The focus of the hazards- based approach is on the incremental impact of the climate change. The beginning of the assessment is marked from projections of model- based climate change with the limited consideration of factors that are non- climatic. The limitations of such assessments include their strong dependence on climate impact projections and model- based climate. Future climate change is assessed under vulnerability based approach in the context of existing climate risks. Social factors are the main focus of the approach due to the fact that it assists in determining the ability for coping with the climate hazards. The beginning of the vulnerability- based assessments is marked from the past experiences of managing climate risks and they include stakeholders from outset, associating adaptation to climate change. Useful results are produces by this approach even in the non-presence of dependable impact projection.

Some principles of sustainability have been formulated for the objective of addressing the global issue of change in climate. However, these principles are not directly addressing the issue but aim to resolve it by indirectly addressing it. The principle of sustainable management of resources provides that the carrying capacity of the environment is limited (Dresner, 2012). Moreover, the bad effects of change in climate leads to unavailability of the resources in certain regions. Therefore, this principle provides that the resources should be preserved and used in a prudent manner (Natural Resources Wales, 2018).  Another principle is the principle of social responsibility which aims to make optimum quality of life possible by way of changing the unsustainable patterns of consumption and production. The impact of the activities of businesses, public and private sector is minimized by way of strengthening social responsibility. This principle assists in minimizing the impact of business operations on the climate. The principle of intra- generational and inter- generational solidarity recognizes that resources are limited and they need to be preserved for the future generations as well (Rogers, Jalal & Boyd, 2012). The climate change can lead to unavailability of resources in the future. Therefore, this principle aims at addressing the environmental and development requirements of present generations without negotiating with the capability of future generations to fulfil their needs.

The debate on climate change was first originated around the time of Industrial Revolution (Dessler & Parson, 2009). Since then, there have been varied opinions on the reason of global warming and the relative change in climate. The debate is based on the facts that in 20^th century alone, there was an increase in the global temperature by 1.4F. The major topic of discussion include whether such climate change is a result of human behavior or natural process. A study provides that global warming is increasing at a faster rate in comparison with the rate of previous 11,300 years (Scott, 2014). The increased emissions of the greenhouse gases are a result of human activities which is subsequently resulting in global warming.  It is argued that the rising temperatures of the earth can never be the result of natural climate changes. It is the production of greenhouse gases by the humans which is resulting in melting ice caps, rising sea levels and warming of the oceans. The other side of the debate holds that the climate change and increased global warming is not caused by humans and is a result of natural solar forcing fluctuations. They state that the actual cause of climate change is found in the deep ocean currents. The ongoing debates on the topic of climate change include discussions regarding steps to be taken for responding to climate change.  Such discussion is complicated by two interrelated but distinct problems. First is the magnitude of changes necessary for the objective of mitigating of adapting successfully to the change in climate. Second is the problem related to global free riding that obstructs agreement on who should pay for those changes. In other words, the most debatable topics regarding climate change are the degree of warming, the impacts of warming and steps to be taken for overcoming the issue. Actions are required on three fronts for reducing the emissions, increasing the efficiency of energy usage, decarbonizing the energy system of the world with the help of carbon capture or renewable energy and making changes in management and land use. The debate further suggest that costs of reducing the impact of climate change are required to be much less than costs of leaving it unchecked. For example, the estimation of IPCC provided that cost will be equivalent to 3% to 11% of the GDP of the world in case if the greenhouse gas emissions are kept to a level that provides 66% chance of not surpassing 2 °C warming by the year 2100. (Henderson, Reinert, Dekhtyar & Migdal, 2016)

Approaches for Adaptation and Impact Assessment of Climate

The evaluation of the implications of climate change for businesses provides that a variety of challenges are faced by the businesses as a result of change in climate. A global solution is required by global problem named climate change. Climate change has social, environmental, political and economic repercussions. Business operations are adversely affected by the uncertain and extreme weather conditions, floods, rising sea levels, droughts, etc.  The production and agricultural operations are affected as a result of climate change (Davis, Legg & Blandford, 2015).  For example, scarcity of water and reduced supply of agricultural products  leads to a reduction in the food supply an threats to the security of food, speedy increase in the global commodity prices, inflation, political and social unrest and ultimately resulting in the economic slowdown. This scenario creates unusual circumstances for the businesses (ICIMOD, 2018). Moreover, businesses, buildings and workers are all affected by change in climate due to the impact of climate change on the supply chain and access to insurance and finance. The changing weather patterns as a result of change in climate leads to great losses for agriculture firms and infertility of the farming areas. Demand pattern for goods is significantly affected by the combination of changing weather patterns and changing prices. For example, with the rise in the global temperature, the demand for cold weather products is increased.  Almost all the sectors of the economy are affected by climate change. There are both risks and opportunities for businesses linked with the policy measures that are directed at the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Moreover, the assets and investments of the businesses are physically impacted by the climate change (European Climate Foundation, 2013).

Businesses are also affected by the climate change as they are increasingly required to fulfil social responsibility. Reputation is of prime importance to the businesses and for this purpose they need to control the pollution caused by their operations.  This acts as a measure by the businesses to control the harm caused to the environment in order to promote their green image. The promotion of green image is the positive consequence of climate change on the business. On the other hand, the upgradation of polluting facilities and installation of emission control systems requires the investment of considerable funds by the companies for the purpose of complying with the stringent regulations on the release of greenhouse gases into the environment. This in turn creates a burden for the businesses and act as a negative consequence.

Vulnerability Based Approach and Hazards Based Approach

Value systems of the people have a great impact on the level of climate changes. It is actually the value systems of the people that can assist in responding towards the social and environmental challenges. In other words, there are certain cultural values which motivate the individuals for expressing their concerns regarding environmental and social problems. Such values are linked with actions which can assist in tacking these problems. Government action can be initiated on the basis of public demand which is based on particular cultural values that puts adequate pressure on the businesses for reducing the greenhouse gas emissions. Strengthening of cultural values can also lead to encouraging greater commitment on people’s part for reducing the environmental impact caused by them. There is a link between climate change adaptation and values. The consideration of value systems are made for effectively responding towards the climate changes both in terms of adapting the changed climatic conditions and mitigating the emissions of greenhouse gases.  Dynamic values are important for adaptation to climate change. The values linked with modern, traditional, and postmodern worldviews are hypothesized for corresponding to dynamic preferences for climate change adaptations (O’brien, 2009).

A significant role is played by the concept of values in the debates related to climate changes. Value system can be defined as an systematized set of standards that are utilized for the purpose of making choices of actions and objects, solving conflicts and managing the claims or needs for psychological and social defenses of choices proposed or made. A value- based approach to climate change adaptation and vulnerability recognized that there are qualitative and subjective dimensions to climate change that are of significance to cultures and individuals. Value based approach to climate change is important because change in climate cannot be responded in a single way, there may be value conflicts between the responses of different actors, the judgement of future generations may depend on different value systems and values and world views are challenged by climate change (O’Brien & Wolf, 2010).

The climate change stakeholder groups include non- governmental organizations, state and federal agencies, government, private industry, academic community, companies and local land trusts. The stakeholder groups have succeeded in formulating working groups for the purpose of focusing on the key issues such as policy, outreach and research on climate change. Workshops are also supported by the working groups that were instrumental in circulating the information related to climate change and educating the stakeholders, public, etc. These working groups make efforts to collaborate and successfully implement the actions related to adaptation to climate change. NGOs now participate in a variety of international organizations and conferences that address the environment related issues (Tompkins, Few & Brown, 2008). With the increased requirement by the law for meeting corporate social responsibility, the companies are now effectively addressing the issue of climate change to a great extent. Institutions such as United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) assists in strengthening the capability of adapting to the climate change. The awareness regarding climate change is significantly increased due to the alongside working of non- governmental organizations (NGOs) and governments that has caused the strengthening of the advocacy against climate change by way of conducting awareness- raising campaigns and programs, education and outreach to the various stakeholders of an organization. Informed decisions and actions are taken by the stakeholders with the help of these awareness campaigns related to climate change.

Principles of Sustainability

Change in climate is considered to be a major political issue. Till now, there is no functional framework that offers consistency and coherence regarding the manner in which national governments should manage the political challenges presented by climate change. The political challenges includes creating public and political consensus for action, the management of risk, return to planning and the implications for social justice (Giddens, 2009). The politics of climate change is often considered as the problem of equity and the requirement of states for pursuing their perceived interest. For the purpose of motivating the political leaders to take steps in relation to climate change is based on public support and decisions made at household and individual level. The political acceptance and feasibility of adaptation policies is of great importance for the implementation and development of adaptation measures in countries. Climate change presents various economic challenges such as loss of land area due to rise in sea levels, loss of forest area and species, increased costs of air conditioning, disrupted water supplies to agriculture and cities, loss of agricultural output as a result of drought. The economic production is severely impacted by climate change. Sectors of economy such as forestry, farming, fishing, transportation and coastal real estate are vulnerable to the impact of change in climate. The capping of greenhouse gas emissions will provide the economic benefit of mitigating the climate change impact which will significantly have positive implications for global economies. The economics of climate change suggest the implications of policy instruments, emission targets and global action. The main challenge is to arrange the economic tools because there is an urgent need for the policy decisions for bringing best judgements and economic analysis in real time (Stern, 2008).

Therefore, it can be concluded that change in climate is variation in the statistical distribution of weather pattern when such change persists for a prolonged time period. There is strong relationship between sustainable development and climate change. Sustainable development is restricted as a consequence of climate change. Moreover, the key approaches to impact assessment of climate change include top- down approach and bottom – up approach. Moreover, territorial approach to climate change is utilized by the government for the purpose of increasing the resilience to climate change impact and reducing their carbon footprint. Various principles of sustainability also address the issue such as principle of intra- generational and inter- generational solidarity, principle of sustainable management of resources and principle of social responsibility. Moreover, the topic of climate change has become a major source of debate by various people and institutions. A major role is played by the stakeholder groups for minimizing the effects of climate change. However, steps should be taken for overcoming the economic and political challenges for effectively assessing and minimizing the impact of climate change. 

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