Tag Archives: climate change

Philippe Cousteau, Jr. Video: World Oceans Day Part 1

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Environmental activist Philippe Cousteau, Jr., President of EarthEcho International, has joined the Global Conversations: Our Planet team for a five-day World Oceans Day Campaign.  Check out his guest blog about  the importance of oceans and how we can help here. In the short video below, Philippe shows you his vegetable garden and discusses how growing and composting your own food reduces your carbon emissions.  Reducing your carbon footprint helps combat climate change, which has serious negative impacts on oceans.  Learn more and join the discussion on Facebook and Twitter.

Conservation Medicine in Bhutan

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As Smithsonian Month on the blog comes to a close, we are happy to have three guest blogs from the Smithsonian Institution’s National Zoo! 

Conservation Medicine Partnership:
Health Assessment of the Takin, Bhutan’s National Mammal

A takin calf successfully treated in the field for hypothermia after being separated from its dam.

A takin calf successfully treated in the field for hypothermia after being separated from its dam.

Bhutan is a predominantly Buddhist country in the Eastern Himalayas well known for its rich biological diversity. Its progress is guided by the principles of Gross National Happiness, whose four main

pillars are sustainable development, cultural integrity, good governance and environmental conservation. In support of Bhutan’s commitment to proactive conservation efforts and responsible environmental stewardship, Smithsonian’s National Zoo and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute conducted a training program for wildlife professionals in Bhutan in 2011. The following year, the Zoo was invited back to provide veterinary support to a project conducted by Bhutan’s Ugyen Wangchuck Institute for Conservation and the Environment (UWICE). The project aimed to place radiocollars on takins to help determine population dynamics and establish ecological baselines for this species.

A takin recovering from anesthesia for radiocollar placement and health assessment.

A takin recovering from anesthesia for radiocollar placement and health assessment.

The takin is a large, charismatic, somewhat unusual-looking ruminant and serves as an ambassador for conservation as the national mammal of Bhutan. Takins spend winters in lower elevation forests and congregate in summer in alpine meadows of the Himalayas, also home to blue sheep, marmots, and the endangered snow leopard, as well as to yak herders and their livestock. Takins are classified as vulnerable, but we know little about their population status. Fortunately, poaching and habitat loss are not currently major threats for this species in Bhutan, but researchers believe that infectious diseases and climate change could have significant impacts on this species’ survival. Assessing the health of the population will help researchers understand the extent of these threats and conservationists better manage the species and their lands.

This UWICE radiocollaring project was a great success with the collaborative efforts of staff from the Bhutanese Department of Forestry, The Bhutan Foundation, University of Montana and Smithsonian’s National Zoo. The National Zoo supplied anesthetic drugs and supplies for the project, assisted with anesthetizing the takin, and advised on diagnostic sampling and interpretation. The team was also able to successfully treat a hypothermic, abandoned takin calf separated from its mother, as well as to provide medical treatment to locally owned livestock, since veterinary care in this remote alpine area is almost non-existent.

Takins in their summer habitat in the Himalayas of Bhutan.

Takins in their summer habitat in the Himalayas of Bhutan.

After a four-day trek at elevations up to 5,000 meters during monsoon season and with mules carrying their equipment, the group arrived at the field site. The team successfully anesthetized four takins using dart guns and placed radiocollars on them, making them the first large mammals to be radiocollared in Bhutan. Researchers are now using the data from the collars to collect and map the animals’ movements. The team also collected blood, hair, skin scrapings, and ectoparasite (tick) samples from the takins while they were anesthetized to maximize the information obtained during the procedure. Samples were submitted to Bhutan’s National Animal Health Laboratory for medical and genetic testing. Preliminary results demonstrate the presence of vector-borne disease and highlight the necessity of further testing for infectious diseases, especially those transmissible between wildlife, livestock and humans.

UWICE plans to radiocollar more takins over several years to strengthen the data on migration routes and behavior. The National Zoo hopes to continue its collaboration on this project and improve methods of biomaterial collection, handling, and testing in this remote field situation and expand capacity building and veterinary training efforts. The collaring and medical data will provide the Bhutanese government valuable information for effective management of this species and will serve as a baseline for gauging potential impacts of climate change in this global biodiversity hotspot. Continued veterinary diagnostic sampling from takins, as well as from domestic yaks and other species sharing their habitat (and therefore sharing their pathogens), would greatly expand our knowledge of the health and conservation status of this species and of the potential risks of disease transmission between wildlife, domestic animals and humans inhabiting this ecosystem. This “one health” approach linking human, animal, and environmental health is critical to sound environmental management policy. Simple measures such as modifying livestock vaccination programs and minimizing contact between livestock and wildlife could have dramatic impacts on improving animal and human health and conserving the impressive biodiversity of this region.

This entry reflects the author’s personal judgments and does not represent the views of the United States Government or the Department of State.

Philippe Cousteau, Jr. Answers Your Questions About Oceans!

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Check out the videos below to see environmental advocate Philippe Cousteau, Jr. answering four questions about oceans asked by Global Conversations: Our Planet  fans from around the world.

Question #1, from Sri Lanka: How is climate change affecting oceans?

Question #2, from the Philippines: Please explain about desalination of salt water, and what this means for drinking water.

Question #3, from the United States: How important is it to empower youth to protect oceans?

Question #4: Does Earth have a finite amount of fresh water, and what does this mean with Earth’s growing population?

Why Rainforests Matter

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Today’s blog is part four in the guest blog series by Rainforest Partnership.  Check out the first, second and third blog posts for more information.  This entry was written by Andrea Ricaurte, Director of Development at Rainforest Partnership.

Why Rainforests Matter

Every person on the planet is intimately connected to the rainforest, through the air we breathe, the products we buy, and even the medicine we take. The band of tropical rainforest surrounding Earth’s equator covers just 7% of Earth’s land surface, yet contains half of all living organisms on our planet.

Rainforest Partnership photoWeather and Water: Rainforests play a tremendous role in regulating Earth’s weather systems and temperature. Plants and trees absorb carbon dioxide and sunlight, in turn producing oxygen through the process of photosynthesis. The wealth of plants and trees in

tropical rainforests produce 20% of the oxygen we breathe. An estimated one-fifth of all fresh water on Earth is stored in the Amazon River Basin, the area comprising the Earth’s largest remaining tropical rainforest. Rainforests absorb water from the soil and transmit it to the environment through the process of transpiration. Rainfall in the forests works its way down the canopy, the roots of plants and trees prevent it from eroding the soil as it falls. In forested areas, 75% of the water that rains down is cycled back into the atmosphere, with 25% becoming runoff water that flows across Earth’s surface, carrying soil with it. When forests are cut down, these percentages reverse- 75% of water ends up as runoff, and only 25% gets put back into the atmosphere. We need rainforests to maintain the limited amount of fresh water we have on Earth.

Rainforest Partnership photoMedicine and Biodiversity: Of all drugs on the market today, about 25% come directly from plants found only in the tropical rainforest. The US National Cancer Society has found more than 2,000 tropical plants useful in the treatment of cancer, and of the plants currently used for cancer treatment,

70% can only be found in the tropical rainforest. Although a quarter of the medicines we use are made from ingredients in tropical plants, we’ve only been able to analyze about 1% of tropical plants species for application in modern medicine. From this small sample, we’ve already found treatments for leukemia, malaria, high blood pressure and other ailments, imagine what other treatments we could find hiding in the most biologically diverse areas on Earth.

Rainforest Partnership photoHuman Ecology: The Amazon Rainforest alone is home to many indigenous people, who have lived in the forests for hundreds of years, living in harmony with the natural world, knowledgeable about the plants and animals that live there. Around 1500 A.D. between 5-6 million indigenous people lived in the Amazon Rainforest. Today, less than a million indigenous people remain, as they disappear, so does their knowledge and their way of life.

Deforestation and Climate Change: Because deforestation is so rampant, eliminating the equivalent of two US football fields per second, it is a major contributor of greenhouse gas emissions. Deforestation alone accounts for 17% of global carbon dioxide emissions, more than all cars, trucks, airplanes, ships and trains combined. Excess carbon not immediately needed for photosynthesis is stored in the trees, so when those trees are burned or die from being cut down, that carbon dioxide is released back into the atmosphere. The major factors contributing to deforestation in the Amazon are mining, logging, oil exploration, ranching and agriculture. Local people, tempted by short-term economic gain, often extract resources unsustainably from the forest, further exacerbating deforestation. An estimated 57% of existing tropical rainforests are found in developing nations. Preventing deforestation means working with people who live in and around rainforests, developing alternative income sources and sustainable livelihoods that allow these people to earn a living while leaving the forest standing.

This entry reflects the author’s personal judgments and does not represent the views of the United States Government or the Department of State.

Take a Breath, Thank a Rainforest

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Today’s blog is part two in the guest blog series by Rainforest Partnership.  Check out the first post here.  This entry was written by Niyanta Spelman, Executive Director of Rainforest Partnership.

Take a Breath, Thank a Rainforest

Every year on Earth Day, April 22nd, a seventh of us on this planet, a billion people, acknowledge the importance of the environment and celebrate our planet. Last year at Rainforest Partnership, we celebrated by taking a breath…and thanking a rainforest.

Rainforest Partnership photo But why thank a rainforest? Through photosynthesis, rainforests play a vital role in processing atmospheric carbon dioxide into breathable oxygen. Every acre of rainforest absorbs approximately two and a half tons of carbon dioxide per year. Tropical rainforests, the “lungs” of the planet that absord ever-increasing levels of carbon dioxide, covered over 12% of Earth’s land surface just a hundred years ago. Today, less than 5% remains. Some of us live and breathe to protect this 5% right alongside our partners who live in these forests. The rainforest may not be in our backyards, but we need to protect them as if they are. This is our pact at Rainforest Partnership.

Rainforest Partnership photoRainforest Partnership, a five year old international nonprofit organization, was formed with the idea that the way to protect the “lungs” of the planet is to help the people who live in those “lungs” make a living that allows them to protect their forests. People living in and around the forests need sustainable social and economic benefits from not overusing the forests. Therefore, using a bottom-up approach, we match economic development choices to the needs and desires, culture, knowledge, and skills of local communities, and the opportunities created by each individual rainforest. It all begins when a community turns to us asking us to help them identify an alternative to cutting down their trees, stemming from their desire to maintain their way of life and their forests.

For several decades, there had been a prevailing trend to create protected areas as a way of protecting tropical forests. Often, the people living in these forests were not included in this process, nor did anyone consult them. Sometimes they were removed from the very lands that had been their homes,

and their land was suddenly off limits to them as protected areas. Once the protected areas were created, often there were no future plans and funds to manage them, as if their designation alone was enough to ensure they would remain under protection forever. In reality, the protected areas were found to be in varying degrees of compromised condition.

Rainforest Partnership photoIf the people who lived in and around these forests had a stake in designating and protecting these forests, the “protected areas” might have a better chance of being so. That is what we learned from the experience of others, and what forms the core of our belief and working philosophy. That working with rainforest communities that want to protect their land and their way of life, and are looking for an alternative and sustainable means of livelihood, is the best way to protect the forest. If communities have a stake in protecting their forests, then they will do this for themselves and in doing so, do it for the rest of us.

Now take a breath, and thank a rainforest. And, thank the many

rainforest communities that protect their forests-with or without outside help- for all of us on this planet.

This entry reflects the author’s personal judgments and does not represent the views of the United States Government or the Department of State.

Deforestation

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Cleared trees in forestYou may have heard the term “deforestation” before in talks about the environment and issues such as about land use, natural resources, and conservation. So what is it, exactly? Deforestation is technically the removal of forests or trees, however the term is also commonly used to describe when trees or forests are cleared out and the land is viagra for sale then used for non-forest

purposes, such as growing crops. As the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) points out, “Deforestation comes in many forms, including fires, clear-cutting for agriculture, ranching and development, unsustainable logging for timber, and degradation due to climate change.”

Forests are incredibly important. They “cover 31% of the land area on our planet. They produce vital oxygen and provide homes for people and wildlife. Many of the world’s most threatened and endangered animals live in forests, and 1.6 billion people rely on benefits forests offer, including food, fresh water, clothing, traditional medicine and shelter.” Forests also combat climate change by acting as a carbon sink, which means they soak up the carbon dioxide that would otherwise go up into the atmosphere and contribute to climate change. According to WWF, about 15% of all greenhouse gas emissions are caused by deforestation! Check out their deforestation” webpage to learn more about the issue. 

The National Geographic webpage on deforestation describes what happens when massive amounts of trees are cleared. “Deforestation has many negative effects on the environment. The most dramatic impact is a loss of habitat for millions of species. Seventy percent of Earth’s land animals and plants live in forests, and many cannot survive the deforestation that destroys their homes.” To learn more about how forests can turn into deserts due to moisture loss and an increase in extreme temperatures, check out the site.

For top stories, articles and photos on deforestation, there is the Guardian UK’s deforestation webpage. Issues such as Brazil’s hydroelectric dam boom, the ongoing battle with paper companies, and serious deforestation in the Amazon are some of the topics discussed. If you’re interested in deforestation in the Amazon specifically, check out this January 2013 article that delves into the subject on multiple levels.

The U.S. Center Brings Climate Change Issues To A Global Audience

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Qatar National Convention Center
Qatar National Convention Center

Here is the first guest blog from the COP 18 U.S. Center in Doha, Qatar. View the second post here.

It is that time of the year again, when everyone is cooking their turkeys, finishing their gift lists, writing out their holiday cards…and policy makers from around the world are getting together to negotiate climate treaties at

the annual Conference of the Parties (COP), this year in faraway Doha, Qatar.

First started in Berlin in 1995, the COPs are the United Nations’ meetings on climate change convene annually to hammer out climate treaties under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The UNFCCC was originally established

in 1992 as a treaty to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and therefore slow climate change. The UNFCCC provides a framework for actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, ways for nations to adapt to climate change, and rules for measuring emissions. The most well-publicized COPs were the 1995 COP-3, from which the Kyoto Protocol emerged, and COP-15, which took place in Copenhagen in 2009, and was attended by many world leaders, including President Obama. In total there are 195 parties (nations) that take part in this yearly event.

This year’s COP, COP-18, is being held in Doha from November 26-December 7. On the docket for the negotiations are an agreement for a new commitment period for the Kyoto Protocol, work on the Durban Platform, which would establish by 2015 a new post-2020 climate treaty that will be applicable to all countries, and finalizing and closing down the working group on Long-term Cooperative Action, which would, among other things, launch a scientific review of the goal of limiting global temperature increase to less than two degrees Celsius, and progress toward that goal.

NASA astronaut Piers Sellers presenting at the U.S. Center in Durban last year.

NASA astronaut Piers Sellers presenting at the U.S. Center in Durban last year.

For an attendee to the COP the more exciting action is happening at all the side events held in parallel to the negotiations. This year the U.S. Center, which is coordinated by the State Department, is hosting 25 different side events, as well as featuring stunning movies and images on the huge NASA Hyperwall. The events are covering topics ranging from the historic 2012 U.S. drought, to issues on women and climate, to a history of NASA satellite observations. And fortunately, for those of us not lucky enough to get to travel to Doha, the State Department is making the U.S. Center available to everyone on the web. To find a schedule of live streamed events or to watch the program visit: http://www.ustream.tv/USCenter; you can get your questions to the presenters through the live stream chat box on the UStream page, or through Twitter @US_Center. So, if you’re in Doha–or at your desk–come take part in this year’s COP-18, see what the US is doing to understand and address climate change, and let your voice be heard.

If you could ask a climate change expert one question, what would it be?

This entry reflects the author’s personal judgments and does not represent the views of the United States Government or the Department of State.

The White Roof Project

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The White Roof Project is a New York City-based organization that paints rooftops white to reduce emissions and help families lower their energy costs. The project is “low cost, easy to implement, relieves stress on the power grid, cuts down on smog, and creates tangible change for individuals, our communities, and even globally.”

So how does it work? This infographic explains it all. Here are the basic facts:

• The world absorbs 71% of the sunlight
• Densely-populated cities contain 55% man-made materials;
• On a hot summer day cities are about 15 degrees F hotter than the suburbs, in large part because of all the dark surfaces that absorb the sunlight to create what is called the “urban heat island” effect;
• Painting your roof white provides a more reflective (instead

of absorptive) surface for the sunlight to bounce off of, reducing the amount of heat contributing to the urban heat island.

According to the White Roof Project, if the air is 90 degrees Fahrenheit, a traditional black roof’s temperature is 180 degrees F, while a white roof’s is only 100 degrees F. inside the building with the black roof it is about 115 degrees F, while inside the white-roofed building, it is about 80 degrees F. Not only does the white roof reflect 65% more sunlight than the black roof (85% versus

20%), the white roof cuts down on electricity by requiring fewer cooling devices such as fans and the electricity-guzzling air conditioning. Learn more about how white roofs curb climate change here.

What has the White Roof Project achieved so far? In the last year, they have painted over 30 buildings in New York, “helping hundreds of families lower their energy bills. [They] hope to start similar efforts in cities nationwide by 2013 with similar results and globally by 2014.”

To explain the effectiveness of painting roofs white on a global scale, they say: “If we were to coat 5 percent of rooftops per year worldwide, we would be finished by 2030. This would save us 24 billion metric tons in CO2. That happens to be exactly how much the world emitted in 2010. So, in essence, this solution would be like turning the world off for an entire year — while also saving some money on the energy bills.”

And perhaps the coolest part of the project? You can do it yourself! Download the DIY (Do It Yourself) Packet for all the information you need to paint your own roof white and start saving energy and combating climate change today!

What is Climate Change? Part 2

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On Wednesday we explored the definitions of climate change and global warming as well as some of the causes. For reference, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says that “[c]limate change refers to any significant change in the measures of climate lasting for an extended period of time. In other words, climate change includes major changes in temperature, precipitation, or wind patterns, among other effects, that occur over several decades or longer.” Learn more about climate change with the EPA’s “Climate Change Facts: Answers to Common Questions” page.

"The current and future consequences of global change"

"The current and future consequences of global change"

So what does this mean for our

day to day lives? According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), “[g]lobal climate change has already had observable effects on the environment. Glaciers have shrunk, ice on rivers and lakes is breaking up earlier each season, plant and animal ranges have shifted and trees are flowering sooner. The effects that scientists predicted would result from global climate change are now occurring: loss of sea ice, accelerated sea level rise and longer, more intense heat waves.” Learn more about the effects of climate change here.

If you would like more information about the science behind climate change, check out the EPA’s science site. For short informational films on various aspects and effects of climate change, check out NASA’s “Climate Reel”.

If you are interested in learning what “key indicators,” scientists use when monitoring climate change, such as global surface temperature, this NASA site should prove useful. For specific evidence of climate change, check out NASA’s “Evidence” site which seeks to answer the question, “Climate change: How do we know?”.

What is Climate Change? Part 1

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Today’s post covers the definitions and causes of climate change and global warming Friday’s post will explore the effects of climate change and provide helpful resources on the science behind it.

During environmental discussions, people often throw around the term “climate change.” But what does it mean exactly? According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), climate change “refers to any significant change in the measures of climate lasting for an extended period of time. In other words, climate change includes major changes in temperature, precipitation, or wind patterns, among other effects, that occur over several decades or longer.” You may also have heard the

term global warming, which the EPA says “refers to the recent and ongoing rise in global average temperature near Earth’s surface. It is caused mostly by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Global warming is causing climate patterns to change. However, global warming itself represents only one aspect of climate change.”

NASA graphic about the causes of climate change

NASA graphic about the causes of climate change

For a comprehensive website that explores what climate change is and what causes it, check out the

EPA’s Climate Change site. For a student-friendly website about climate change, check out the EPA’s “Student’s Guide to Climate Change.” For additional information, check out the EPA’s Climate Change Basics site.

So what is causing global warming? According to NASA, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, “[m]ost climate scientists agree the main cause of the current global warming trend is human expansion of the “greenhouse effect” — warming that results when the atmosphere traps heat radiating from Earth toward space.”  Some of the gases that contribute to this greenhouse effect are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and chlorofluorocarbons.” Learn more about the causes here.