Observing our surroundings, making note of the change,... helps keep us with a connection to the planet. - Tim Martin.
The planet is changing. The weather, the seasons, everything. The concerning reason is climate change. Global temperature is soaring, sea levels are rising, and so on. A lot of environmentalists, naturalists, scientists, and researchers have warned about this.
In this podcast series, the host Zach, and the guest Tim Martin, an instructor of Geology and Astronomy at Elon University and a naturalist, talk about climate change and advanced climate solutions, the role of geology and connecting with climate, and many more.
Let’s get started together!
The Adverse Effect of Climate Change
The negative impact of climate change is dire in every aspect, and each of those aspects is interrelated. According to the United Nations, due to climate change, the world will face:
Hotter temperatures
Severe storms and drought
Sea levels are rising due to the melted ice in different parts of the globe.
Increase of endangered species
Rise of health risk
Food scarcity and poverty
Displacement and migration. Increase the number of climate change refugees, especially in low and middle-income countries.
It has been reported that climate change will cost about $38 trillion in damages by the year 2049. The solution may not be imminent but there are ways to work towards mitigating the impact of climate change and allowing nature to heal.
Paleoclimatology: Understanding Climate History
Paleoclimatology is the scientific process of determining climate’s nature in the past. By analyzing natural records like ice cores, tree rings, and ocean sediments, researchers can distinguish the climate variations of different times that were caused by humans and understand the patterns and influences.
The Role of Geology
This is where Geology can help. The challenge here is to learn how to read the landscape. Understanding geology helps find out the differences in climate and natural changes.
For example, a place that had ice retreats is now bare rock, after some time, their plants will start growing, and then trees.
Similarly, by calculating the succession of different plants in a certain area, Geologists can calculate backward when the presence of ice diminishes. Also, Geology underlies the glaciers, and glaciers change the landscape and hints about what type of wildlife will be there.
How Does Earth’s History Help Understand Changes?
Geologists and paleoclimatologists read the record to determine the present happenings. They do the work not for any single location but rather in many locations. They understand the differences in the transition of glaciers to landscape, cold to warm weather, or whether the changes are only in a certain location or globally.
For example, there are places in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, where there was evidence of glaciers, and now no more.
The Analysis of the Climatic History: Then Versus Now
The concerning difference that is happening due to the climatic change is the changes are being rapid. According to scientists, the ice cores (in Greenland, tropical mountain glaciers, and Antarctica) are 10 times faster than the average ice age warming rate.
Earlier times similar to this type of changes are happening now at a much faster rate. It means, that natural and climatic scenario based on climatic history analysis was supposed to go in one direction and is turning into another direction at a faster rate.
The Advanced Climate Solutions for the Impending Dangers
According to Tim Martin, what he advised can be done to create more participation and action among people of all sections.
1. Collaborative Expertise on Climate Change
When people with different expertise are put together, they share and merge their ideas, knowledge, and confidence to find better solutions for the climate change that is happening. For example, connecting geology with climate.
The Geological record of one place provides evidence of what the weather has been there for thousands or 10 thousand years ago. With that information, climatologists can do their part of the research on what the differences are now.
Here are the names of some organizations that understand this collaborative value:
Lindblad Expeditions
International climate and Geologic research
National Geographic Expeditions: Platform for expert naturalists in different areas.
Poler Trek Program: Paired a science teacher with a science researcher.
2. Encouraging Young Generation to Participate
It is important to educate, influence, and involve the young generation to contribute to this operation. As the impact of climate change is faced by all, so regardless of any age group, everyone should take part in it.
Here are some ways young children can participate:
Keep a schedule-based track of a specific place
You can find a spot in their backyard, a park, a field, or at school. Then they will take pictures of the same spot, let's say every once in a month, the same spot. After some time, the changes will become pretty obvious, and you can keep a record and notify the locality-based climate research team.
Observe the surroundings and keep records
You can keep documenting the information like when the first time it rained this year, the next year, when the winter came this year, how long it stayed when you first saw a bee pollinating flowers, etc., to compare it. This is the same as next year. With these types of records, you can help the research team that needs this type of documentation.
Participate in Citizen Science Projects
Citizen science projects are open to every age of knowledge-seeking people. There are different types of activities that you can help out with. For example, Tim Martin mentioned keeping track of rain precipitation, which is CoCoRaHS (Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network).
There are other activities, such as many scientists need to keep monitoring animal birth, counting eggs, and so on. You can find such projects online and take what’s easy for you to do, because, that would be a great help in real scientific data.
Get engaged in online, offline-local community-based programs
First and foremost, you can seek what your community is doing. Is there any group or activist team, or how they are working? Then you can get involved and take the first step. To learn more and in detail, you can take part online, check up on websites, take advantage of resources reach out to experts.
FAQs About Preferred Climate Solutions
What is a naturalist?
A student or an expert in natural history is called a naturalist.
What are the examples of natural records?
Ice cores, tree rings, and ocean sediments are examples of natural records.
What does a naturalist do?
Naturalists are often educators, and they work for all types of settings that have nature involved, such as national parks, nature reserves, etc. Their purpose is to observe and study nature, its changes, interaction between different organisms.
Why is it important for people with different expertise to work together on climate change?
When people of different expertise or fields work together to achieve one common goal, they bring forth every knowledge, and expertise and put them into action through sharing, spreading, and filling up the missing and coming up with a better solution to climate change. So, combining experts from different fields will help develop a sustainable solution for climate change.
Conclusion
The climate will change regardless, but we can lessen the impact as long as we are conscious of deciding and connected in working. However, the process requires interdisciplinary approaches, the contribution and collaboration of diverse professionals to the same goal, that is inclusive and innovative.
The changes in the past and present all are important to understand and acknowledge, which is why more people need to be made aware and act on this.
Stay tuned with We The Children on Spotify, and Apple Podcasts, or review your podcasts to learn more from experts and leaders on climate change.
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