Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical
distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years.
Over time climate change has been attributed directly or indirectly to human
activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in
addition to natural climate variability. It is one of the most important global environmental issues of our
generation because its effect can be hazardous.
Climate
change is expected to hit developing countries the hardest. Its effects;
higher temperature, changes in
precipitation patterns, rising sea levels, and more frequent
weather-related disasters, pose
risks for agriculture, food, and water supplies. At stake are recent gains in
the fight against poverty, hunger and disease, and the lives and livelihoods of
billions of people in developing countries.
Findings such as the 2005 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment showed that over the
past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than
in any comparable period of time in human history’, and that this has resulted
in ‘a substantial and largely irreversible loss in the diversity of life on
Earth.
Addressing climate change requires unprecedented global cooperation
across borders. The
continued degradation of the global environment has not been caused solely by
governance weaknesses, but rather by a multitude of drivers, including
prevailing economic models and patterns of consumption and production.
Rio+20 a
conference organized by the United Nation on June 22nd 2012 to
discuss on climate change gave us a
solid platform to build on. The agreements, actions, commitments, challenges,
initiatives and announcements made at the conference should be put into
practice. It addressed global issues on sustainable development, access to
clean energy, food security, water and sustainable transportation.
Sustainable
development which is development that meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs is an
overarching paradigm comprised of three interconnected pillars; economic, social
and environmental. Ultimately it should be the primary objective of all global
institutions such as The UN General Assembly which is the key operational body
of the United Nations, the Economic and Financial Committee (ECOFIN) and the
Economic and Financial Committee (ECOFIN).
Governments
should enable young people’s participation in and influence on decision-making
processes at the local, national and international levels because climate they
will be the biggest victims of climate change in future. In addition,
consultation processes and dialogue should be encouraged to incorporate voices
from non-conventional networks and youth communities, such as Internet forums
and opinion-making blogs.
No comments:
Post a Comment