Climate Change

Climate change denotes the significant and lasting changes in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It encompasses both natural variability and changes attributed directly or indirectly to human activities that alter the composition of the global atmosphere. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) defines climate change specifically as changes attributed to human activity, distinguishing it from natural climate variability.

Key aspects of climate change include:

• Global Warming: The ongoing rise in global average temperature near Earth's surface, largely due to increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases produced by human activities such as deforestation and burning of fossil fuels.
• Extreme Weather Events: Increased frequency and intensity of events such as hurricanes, droughts, heatwaves, and heavy rainfall.
• Sea-Level Rise: Accelerated melting of glaciers and polar ice caps contributing to rising sea levels, threatening coastal communities and ecosystems.
• Ecological Impacts: Alterations in ecosystems and biodiversity, including shifts in species distributions and disruptions to food chains.

Addressing climate change requires global cooperation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and implement adaptation strategies to mitigate its impacts.

Source(s):

• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). (1992). Definitions.
• Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). (2018). Glossary - Global Warming of 1.5 °C.
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (n.d.). Global Warming vs. Climate Change.

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