Humans Caused Climate Change. Humans Have to Fix It.
Written by: Da'Shaun Harrison
Since the mid-1800s, rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide has increased. This phenomenon, along with other drastic environmental shifts, is referred to as climate change. Climate change, as defined by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), is a change in Earth’s climate that is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity. An example of this is the incessant deforestation and burning of fossil fuels that humans have continued for decades. Trees absorb carbon dioxide, a gas that traps heat, and thus sends this gas into the atmosphere when they are destroyed. This is referred to as the greenhouse effect. Too much or too little of the greenhouse effect can make a planet uninhabitable. According to NASA, most scientists agree that it is the human expansion of the greenhouse effect that is causing climate change. For the past couple of centuries, climate scientists have researched and documented evidence proving that humans are the cause for this shift in climate that is threatening all forms of life. And while there are solutions, the inundating amount of damage done to the Earth that has led to this massive, catastrophic wave of climate change — damage fueled by imperialism and capitalism — must be explored first.
