PLANT MORE TREES TO SAVE MOTHER EARTH

Wangari Maathai

[Kenyan Wangari Maathai, also known  as Mama Miti or  Mother of the Trees won the Nobel Peace prize in 2004. In 1977, Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement, a grassroots environmental non-governmental organization, which has now planted over 40 million trees across Kenya to prevent soil erosion.  Since then, she has been increasingly active on both environmental and women's issues.

In 2006, Maathai was one of the founders of The Nobel Women's Initiative along with sister Nobel Peace Laureates Jody Williams, Shirin Ebadi, Rigoberta Menchu Tum, Betty Williams and Mairead Corrigan Maguire. Six women representing North America and South America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa decided to bring together their experiences in a united effort for peace with justice and equality. It is the goal of the Nobel Women's Initiative to help strengthen work being done in support of women's rights around the world.]

5 DEADLY EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING

1Polar ice caps melting
The ice caps melting is a four-pronged danger. First, it will raise sea levels. There are 5,773,000 cubic miles of water in ice caps, glaciers, and permanent snow. According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center, if all glaciers melted today the seas would rise about 230 feet. Luckily, that’s not going to happen all in one go! But sea levels will rise.
Second, melting ice caps will throw the global ecosystem out of balance. The ice caps are fresh water, and when they melt they will desalinate the ocean, or in plain English – make it less salty. The desalinization of the gulf current will “screw up” ocean currents, which regulate temperatures. The stream shutdown or irregularity would cool the area around north-east America and Western Europe. Luckily, that will slow some of the other effects of global warming in that area!
Third, temperature rises and changing landscapes in the artic circle will endanger several species of animals. Only the most adaptable will survive.
Fourth, global warming could snowball with the ice caps gone. Ice caps are white, and reflect sunlight, much of which is relected back into space, further cooling Earth. If the ice caps melt, the only reflector is the ocean. Darker colors absorb sunlight, further warming the Earth.
Economic consequences
2 Most of the effects of anthropogenic global warming won’t be good. And these effects spell one thing for the countries of the world: economic consequences. Hurricanes cause do billions of dollars in damage, diseases cost money to treat and control and conflicts exacerbate all of these.
 Green houses gases stay can stay in the atmosphere for an amount of years ranging from decades to hundreds and thousands of years. No matter what we do, global warming is going to have some effect on Earth. Here are the 5 deadliest effects of global warming.
3 Spread of disease
As northern countries warm, disease carrying insects migrate north, bringing plague and disease with them. Indeed some scientists believe that in some countries thanks to global warming, malaria has not been fully eradicated.

4 Warmer waters and more hurricanes
As the temperature of oceans rises, so will the probability of more frequent and stronger hurricanes. We saw in this in 2004 and 2005.


5 Increased probability and intensity of droughts and heat waves
Although some areas of Earth will become wetter due to global warming, other areas will suffer serious droughts and heat waves. Africa will receive the worst of it, with more severe droughts also expected in Europe. Water is already a dangerously rare commodity in Africa, and according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, global warming will exacerbate the conditions and could lead to conflicts and war.

Globl warming is the cause of a number of damaging effects to the earth and its inhabitants,  and now we may have a new threat on the horizon... world war  The tensions of global warming continue to heat up, so may the possibilities of war... a Hot War!

There are two obvious factors which will be the cause of the increasing threat of a World War IV

1.Crowding and Territorial Tensions- The number one cause of such tensions will be the migration of different cultures to other territories in search of new resources to replace the increasingly depleting ones. Not only will many cultures find their resources disappearing, but the rising sea level will cover over parts of much of the land, minimizing usable farm area, fresh water, and cattle herds. In some cases, entire islands may become submerged.
Instead of allowing their sovereignty to disappear along with their dry ground, many of these endangered cultures will choose to battle with nearby countries in order to set-up their governments and house their citizens upon alternative soil. Inevitably larger powers will become a part of such squabbles and before you know it, we've got a world war on our hands.
2.Competition of Newly Habitable Lands- The opposite scenario of crowding may also occur as the open space around the Arctic regions becomes available due to the increased air temperatures. As these uninhabitable areas become habitable for the first time in history, competition from the various coastal countries and islands who have lost their native homeland will become fierce.
In addition to the smaller powers, larger world powers who previously ignored such land will eventually see the profit potential of such areas and involve themselves in the competition. The large nations will be less interested in the usable space and more keen on the possibility of exploiting the relatively untapped oil resources of these areas for strategic economic positioning.
While this may seem like a gloomy outlook, the truth is that it is still only an outlook. There are steps the various countries and governments can take in order to reduce the possibilities of such an outcome.

WE NEED TO WAKE UP AND DO SOMETHING FOR OUR BEAUTIFUL EARTH

Global warming: Yes, it is very real By Bob Doppelt

Global warming is the defining issue of our times. The Pacific Northwest is

already experiencing the effects of rising temperatures. Left unchecked, global warming will undermine economic, social and environmental prosperity and security here and abroad.

 Action to slow global climate change is urgent – and not just because of rapidly melting glaciers and threatened species around the world.  Climate change threatens our food supply.  Temperatures will reach such a high degree over the coming decades that we may not be able to sustain important crops, according to a study published Science on January 9.  Studying data from 23 climate models, scientists concluded that there is:“more than 90% chance that by the end of the century, average growing-season temperatures would be hotter than the most extreme levels recorded in the past.”

While some may argue that plants will do better in the heat, studies show the opposite is true over time.  Major heat waves in the past have resulted in decreased crop yields between 30-40%.  Of course, scarcity causes a spike in prices, and everyone suffers.

What’s more, but as the world-wide climates shift, some areas will become barren.  Too dry to produce anything.  Large areas of Africa are particularly at risk.

Can you imagine if the situation became permanent?  That is, if the “heat wave,” is not just a blip, but the norm with which we have to deal each and every year?  The most serious predictions are that half the world’s population could face a food crisis resulting from global warming by 2100.

It is an Inconvenient Truth that we’ve done little to nothing since Al Gore’s documentary was released three years ago:

As shown last week, countries wrangle with each other as to “who will do what, when,” rather than work together to address the crisis at hand.  Time Magazine reported last week:

    “Developing countries like China pushed wealthier nations to accept tough short-term carbon emission targets, demanding cuts of at least 40% below 1990 levels by 2020. But developed nations demurred, refusing to commit to new cuts now, even though their existing commitments would lead to a reduction of only 4% to 14% below 1990 levels by 2020.”

We don’t have the luxury of time to wait to see what other countries will do as part of the next UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. We do not have an endless ability to adapt to a warmer earth.   Its time to drastically reduce CO2 emissions, through every means possible.

    “If we fail, a warmer future won’t just be uncomfortable; it will be downright frightening. “We need to wake up and take care of this,” says [one researcher]. “We won’t have enough food to feed the world today, let alone tomorrow.”

What are you doing in your community to address global climate change?  Please share any inspiring stories.
NANETTE