The Problem with A Human-Centered Approach to Climate Change
General, External sources ·Lecture given by Dr. Shahnawaz of Paris Lodron University Salzburg
Part 2: The Problem with A Human-Centered Approach to Climate Change
The second part of Dr. Shahnawaz’s lecture on satellite generated atmospheric and climactic observations focused on the application of this type of data. He focused on two case studies which were both situated in India due to its diverse climactic regions. The first case study focused on air quality concerns related to aerosols in the atmosphere. Dr. Shahnawaz showed that there was a high concentration of aerosols in northern India by the Himalayas which I was not expecting at all because the air surrounding mountains is traditionally fresh and clean. He explained that this phenomenon was cause by two factors: humans and Earth. Firstly, the region around the Himalayas is densely populated and characterized by extensive agricultural activity, widespread industrial areas, and lots of heavy vehicle traffics. Secondly, the Earth itself is a major factor in causing such a high concentration of aerosols in the region. The Himalayas themselves actually obstruct winds that carry aerosols from flowing further north so the aerosols are effectively trapped.
Up until now, my studies have focused mainly on the role that humans play in climate change. The natural environment was always just an object that was being acted upon and I never had the opportunity to investigate how Earth’s intricacies play a role climate change. Despite the fact that climate change revolves around the changes that are happening to our planet, the Earth was never the main focus in my climate change courses, it was all about humans. Dr. Shahnawaz lecture made me realize how limited and lacking my understanding of climate change truly is. I had been ignoring the other half of the equation: earth itself. While a bit shocking, this realization also opened a lot of doors in terms of my thinking on combatting climate change. Now that I was made to comprehend the massive impact that the physical nature of the planet can have on how climate change manifests, I began to see how it might be beneficial to think of ways to combat climate change on a more local level, in a way that is more sensitive to the different climactic/topographical nature of earth’s different regions. Human undoubtedly play a huge role in climate change, but the make up of the earth itself needs to be considered in order to truly understand and combat climate change.