The undeniable footprint of climate change

Global Warming: It is the continuous rise in global average temperatures across the planet due to human activity especially the burning of fossil fuels. Since the Industrial Revolution in the 1800s, humanity has been releasing billions of tons of heat-trapping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere that has caused our planet to heat over 1°C from pre-industrial levels. This has caused frequent extreme weather events such as hurricanes, rising sea levels, the destruction of coral reefs through the acidification of the oceans, dirtier air, etc. Global warming is one of the main drivers of climate change. The Paris Climate Agreement strives to keep global warming well below 2°C, ideally at around 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

GHG Emissions: Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) are gases that trap heat in the atmosphere, an excess amount of which has contributed to global warming. The most prominent gases emitted into the atmosphere due to human activities such as industrialisation, transportation, power generation, intensive farming, etc. are Carbon Dioxide (CO2) and Methane (CH4). Both China and the US are the world's biggest GHG emitters. Bhutan, on the other hand, is the world's only carbon-negative country that absorbs more carbon than it produces annually due to the country being mostly covered by trees.

Ocean Acidification: According to the International Panel for Climate Change (IPCC), the ocean absorbs around 30% of the anthropogenic (man-made) CO2 from the atmosphere. However, due to unchecked consumption of fossil fuels and the ever-increasing level of CO2 emissions, the amount of CO2 absorbed by the world's oceans has increased. As a consequence, its pH levels have dropped, making the seawater warmer and more acidic. Acidification harms marine life, threatens to unravel marine complex ecosystems, and bleaches and erodes coral reefs that support fish and marine plants. 

Melting of Glaciers: According to the WWF, 10% of the land area on Earth is covered by glacial ice, 90% of which is in Antarctica. Glacial ice has a white surface that reflects the Sun's rays and keeps the planet's temperature cool and mild. However, global warming as a result of increasing anthropogenic GHG emissions have caused glaciers to melt and consequently raise global sea levels. If the rate at which glacial ice melts does not decelerate, many low-lying or coastal nations (including Bangladesh) are at risk of being submerged underwater by the coming century while simultaneously being at risk of facing more destructive storms, typhoons and hurricanes. 

Greenwashing: With climate change becoming a growing concern for humanity, the demand for environmentally friendly and sustainable products have become a lucrative and growing market. However, in an attempt to gain a foothold into this market and appear more eco-friendly, many brands have made spurious claims about how eco-friendly they are.