Climate Change

Let us talk about climate change!

You read on the carbon cycle and the water cycle in school... and wonder what has it got to do with you...?

Let me tell you what has it got to do with you... It has everything to do with the environment and the earth that you live in.

Climate change is something real and not just theory in a textbook you read when you were in secondary school!

What's happening?

Sea level is increasing worldwide with an increase of 12-22cm in this century. If things continue without any effort from our part, sea levels are estimated to increase by 48-79 cm or 0.48-0.79 m.

What does that mean? (Speak English, Dev)

Well, for one, you won't be seeing this guy anymore...!

Yeah... you got it right! Polar bears are already endangered. If things don't change, you won't be seeing this chap anymore. That means, no more National Geographic shots of polar bears, no more soft toys and a lot of explaining to do to the next generation! Let's just save us the hassle ok!

Who cares about Polar bears?

Well, you have a point (not a very correct one though...) so let me bring it back home. According to a WWF (this has nothing to do with wrestling... go figure) report released on September 2007, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei will face consequences due to climate change. To list a few:

1. Extreme weather events associated with El- Niño to be more
   frequent and intense


2. Increase in hot days and warm nights and decrease in cold days and
   nights (True right? Don't need to be a rocket scientist to feel this)


3. Projected sea-level rise is very likely to result in significant losses of coastal ecosystems and a million or so people along the coasts will likely be at risk from flooding (high confidence)


4. Coral bleaching


5. Further declines in mangroves forests and their biodiversity (Please... I'd love to enjoy the mangroves in Malaysia for many more years to come!)


6. Heat wave (Imagine people fainting everywhere... not a very pretty sight)




7. Increasing intensity and spread of forest fires (I hate the masks we use when there's haze... Can we not go down this path?)
   


Singapore

KL

8. The annual cost of protecting Singapore’s coast is estimated to be between US$0.3 and $5.7 million by 2050 and between US$0.9 and $16.8 million by 2100. It is going to cost us more year after year to upkeep our coasts.

What can you do?

I admit that the task looks a little daunting but we can start somewhere. A journey always begin with a small step! You can do something by joining Earth Hour this Sat, 28 Mar, 8.30pm by turning off your lights for an hour. A small step? Yes, it is... but at least we're heading somewhere in the journey to save our planet!