Adventure Magazine
Issue #236 Xmas 2022
Issue #236
Xmas 2022
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Degrees of change<br />
Are climate changes of a few degrees a cause for concern?<br />
It is so easy to do nothing. But what can you do about it?<br />
In New Zealand, we are isolated, but with that comes<br />
exposure; we are not entrenched in a large European city or<br />
in some small town in the centre of the Midwest of America,<br />
miles from the coast, we are exposed, and we joke that in New<br />
Zealand that we get ‘four seasons in one day’.<br />
That is exposure, and with that exposure should come<br />
awareness.<br />
Now we are not saying this year’s poor ski season in the North<br />
Island had anything to do with global warming, nor that our<br />
local sea levels are obviously warmer over summer for longer,<br />
and that there are now fish typically seen in the tropics now in<br />
our east coast waters, that the flooding in Australia, the forest<br />
fires in the US, the glacial melt in Antarctica might have nothing<br />
to do with global warming and climate change – but it might.<br />
As ex-president Obama said,<br />
"We are the first generation to feel the effect<br />
of climate change and the last generation<br />
who can do something about it."<br />
Surprisingly, the global temperature during the last ice age<br />
was only 7-9 degrees colder than now – now that does not<br />
seem like a lot, but even a change of 1 degree has widespread<br />
changes in regional and local temperature, creating rain which<br />
equals flood and is the cause of other extreme weather events.<br />
The government website www.genless.govt.nz has a range of<br />
important ideas, both personally and for business so that you<br />
can have an effect.<br />
This is from their everyday life list:<br />
• Eat low-carbon and minimise food waste<br />
• Choose slow fashion<br />
• Set good digital habits<br />
• Measure your impact<br />
• Shop sustainably<br />
• Invest ethically<br />
• Support business action<br />
They also have a list of practical ideas<br />
• Bike to work<br />
• Meat-free Fridays<br />
• Flight free holidays<br />
• Join conversations get a voice<br />
• Tell leaders what you want<br />
• Get Informed<br />
Check out how you can help www.genless.govt.nz/<br />
Genless website open with a simple and challenging<br />
statement...<br />
"History will only<br />
remember what we do."<br />
We are seeing even greater warming over land than oceans,<br />
moistening of the atmosphere, shifts in regional rain patterns,<br />
changes in regional temperatures, increases in extreme<br />
weather events, ocean acidification, melting glaciers, and rising<br />
sea levels the list just goes on and on.<br />
There are numerous examples of the worst climatic and<br />
catastrophic events on record in the last two years; heatwaves,<br />
tornados, cyclones, flooding, rising seas level, bushfires,<br />
and droughts. There is an equally extensive list of ‘potential’<br />
causes, now, there are always naysayers that will have us<br />
believe that it is simply nature at work, a process of natural<br />
change.<br />
But the simple observation is this. Man has had an enormous<br />
impact on the world, we have changed the natural structure,<br />
affected the chemical balance, polluted, poisoned, chopped<br />
down and consumed, and it would be incredibly naive to<br />
consider that this has no impact on the world environment.<br />
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