A very good morning to one and all present here. Today, I will be giving a short speech on the topic of ‘climate change’.
United Nations defines the term as follows: “Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. These shifts may be natural, but since the 1800s, human activities have been the main driver of climate change, primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels (like coal, oil, and gas), which produce heat-trapping gases.”
In layman’s terms, climate change can be referred to as a significant change in the average climatic conditions over a long period of time. In a nutshell, climate change occurs because of the heat that is resultant of the Earth’s surface rapidly warming and the heat produced therein being trapped.
This process is referred to as the greenhouse effect, which results in the release of gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), all of which are harmful to the environment.
Climate change includes drastic changes such as global warming, drastic changes in precipitation levels, and the effects therein, such as Rising sea levels, Shrinking mountain glaciers, Ice melting at a faster rate than usual in Greenland, Antarctica and the Arctic, and Changes in flower and plant blooming times. All of this adversely affects the ecosystem of the planet.
Some major consequences of this include increased storms and hurricanes and intensified droughts and heat waves, all of which threaten not just human lives but all living beings at large.
But, what causes climate change? Not one but several factors contribute to this, those of which predominant are caused by human interferences in the past century or so as said earlier. These activities include burning fuel to power factories, cars and buses, and incessant usage of air conditioners. Let us vow to reduce these harmful activities and protect mother Earth.
Thank you.
