OneWorld.net (U.S.)

OneWorld.net note: The term "global warming" obscures the fact that rising temperatures will have a host of effects on the Earth, from desertification to the release of methane gas. Perhaps the moniker "global disruption" would be more apt, says Citizens for Global Solutions.

• Cover of Nicaragua's El Nuevo Diario for September 5, 2007, after Hurricane Felix ripped through the country. © svengaarn (flickr) Methane is described by some as "by far the most important non-CO2 greenhouse gas." The melting of the artic permafrost, an expected consequence of global warming, will release methane deposits from peat bogs previously frozen over.

• The United Nations has warned that global warming will result in more severe natural disasters such as hurricanes and droughts. There is currently intense debate over how much global warming has exacerbated the scope of recent natural disasters.

• UN climate official Yvo de Boer announced in 2007 that "Climate change has become the prime cause of an accelerating spread of deserts which threatens the world's drylands." He continued by remarking that "more than 250 million people are directly affected by desertification and approximately 1 billion in over 100 countries are at risk."

Global Warming, More like Global Disruption

From: Citizens for Global Solutions

John Holdren speaks to OneWorld.net during the UN climate conference in Bali, Indonesia; December 2007 Global warming seems to be a reality that can be more accurately described as "global disruption." John Holdren, professor at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and Director of the Science, Technology and Public Policy Program at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, claims that the effects of global warming are not merely a matter of temperature; although increased temperature is a the root of many of the problems. He recognizes that the climate on the whole is affected, as can be seen by changing winds, ocean currents, storm patterns, melting glaciers, flooding, and droughts. Clearly, the increase in global warming has led to global climate change entirely.

Increased global temperature exacerbates already existing and inevitable natural disasters. For example, hurricanes have been, and probably always will be, a fact of life; but the reality is that increased temperatures and higher levels of carbon dioxide produce more intense hurricanes. Overall, since the 1970s, hurricanes characterized by levels 4 and 5 have risen from 20% to 35% in the 1990s. Furthermore, total precipitation has increased 7% over the past hundred years.

Most of us have been plagued by the photos of polar bears that are dying as a result of melting ice caps. Melting glaciers not only lead to the death of polar bears, penguins, and other mammals, but add to a rise in sea level. There are two problems here: poor, innocent mammals are dying as a result of global warming that has been, in many regards, the fault of humanity; and a rise in sea level that will eventually displace and possibly take the lives of thousands, if not millions, of people.

Moreover, the melting of the arctic permafrost in Canada, Alaska and Russia has negatively affected many ecosystems. At first, the melting will create new lakes, but eventually those lakes will evaporate and release methane from peat bogs native in the permafrost.

Conversely, in many areas, the increase in temperature has led to an increase in evaporation. Because the earth is considered a "closed system," the evaporation will lead to more rain, and more rain can cause greater erosion. And, over time, a significant augmentation of erosion can lead to desertification in many areas.

What will it take for our government to make serious policy changes and actually attempt to fix the global climate change that we have exacerbated by carbon dioxide emissions from our cars, factories, homes, etc.; by deforestation; by the use of aerosols; and many, many others? Yes, global warming is a natural cycle that has occurred in the past, but there is no denying that human activity has severely affected this natural phenomenon's characteristics. There have been great efforts by companies to do their part to address these issues with the introduction of hybrid vehicles and fluorescent light bulbs, but more needs to be done at the root of government. We need to take responsibility for our more than 25% contribution to carbon dioxide emissions by signing Kyoto and making reductions. We need to allocate money to research and development of alternative fuel and energy - now, not tomorrow or the next day. This problem is not going to fix itself - serious change must happen today because if we don't take action we'll surely regret it in the near future.

If we don't act, how can we expect, or ask, anyone else to?

Click here for the Citizens for Global Solutions blog on the role of the United States in an interdependent world.

OneWorld.net note: John Holdren, featured in this article, is the Teresa and John Heinz Professor of Environmental Policy at Harvard University. OneWorld.net spoke with Holdren during its Virtual Bali Conference, where it gave people around the world the opportunity to interact with climate activists and policy makers gathered at the 2007 UN Climate Conference in Bali, Indonesia. The discussion, in three parts, is below. Click here for more about the Virtual Bali Conference.