Presentation on Threats to the Global Environment

Most critical threats to the Global Environment

Civil warPoor health of entire populationsClimate changeLack of educational opportunities

1. Civil Wars: History and Assessment

From time immemorial, civil wars have had a negative effect on the global environment(Scheffran, Brzoska, Gunter, Micheal , & Schilling, 2012). These have been known to arise due to disagreement among different communities that reside in one given country or neighboring countries. Wars have been associated with massive destruction of the environment including but not limited to: Deforestation, accidental and non accidental forest fires, destruction of property and burning of hazardous material.

Civil Wars: Countries Affected

The countries most affected by civil wars include Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Ukraine, Yemen, Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Nigeria and Sudan among several others.These countries have all been negatively affected by the wars in several ways(Scheffran, Brzoska, Gunter, Micheal , & Schilling, 2012).First, due to the constant fights there have been several deaths and subsequent mass burials. Next, there have been massive deforestation and fires that led to massive climate change and drought.

Civil Wars: Effects of this threat on the world

Ultimately, civil wars are a global issue. This is because they lead to increased emigration and refugee population in the nearby countries.Most of the times, these refugees cannot cater for their own needs and therefore have to be supported by Non Governmental Organizations such as the UN(Scheffran, Brzoska, Gunter, Micheal , & Schilling, 2012).Finally, with spread of diseases during these durations of war, there are increased death rates and transmission is worsened across the borders as was seen in the case of DRC

The Civil War in Yemen

2. Poor health of entire populations

Health is defined by the W.H.O as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. It is one of the most basic needs that every human being ought to be entitled to.However, in many areas of the world, this is never the case at any given case in time. Poor health is therefore a huge threat to the global environment mainly because lack of access to good healthcare leads to spread of diseases which could otherwise be contained(WHO, 2019)

Poor health: Countries affected

Poor health is mainly attributed to and propagated by poor water quality and availability, vector borne diseases, poor indoor air quality and toxic substances all which arise due to a vicious cycle attributed to environmental damage(WHO, 2019).The countries mainly affected are those in the south Saharan Africa including Zambia, Zimbabwe, Congo and Swaziland among several others.Some parts of Central, Southern and West Asia are also affected grossly by poor health(WHO, 2019).

Poor Health: Effects to the world

Poor health and inability to obtain good healthcare is a disastrous threat to the entire world. This is primarily because it gives a leeway to rapid transmission of diseases that are airborne or even water borne among several others(WHO, 2019).Also, it creates a huge burden on the non governmental organizations mainly concerned with offering affordable healthcare in those areas.Thirdly, it depletes a county’s economy and thereby worsening the already poor situation of the individuals who are involved.

Effects to the world

Finally, in matters concerning consumption of toxic material, these can gradually affect the entire world. An example to this had previously been alluded to using the example of Congo, Brazil and Peru.In Brazil, the ongoing illegal mining of gold with the help of mercury as a binder will ultimately be felt in the entire world.The miners use mercury to bind with the gold then later detach these two compounds (Darlington, 2018)

Effects to the world

However, to get to the precious minerals, the miners have to dig dep into the ground to the areas where the minerals are contained. This is done by high pressure water released as spurts to these areas in the ground. The mercury contained in the water that doesn’t bind with the gold, flows downstream and finds its way to water bodies through rivers.The animals that reside in these water bodies continue consuming the water with mercury increasing the levels to toxic limits in these fish (Darlington, 2018)

Effects to the world

Some of these fish are then exported worldwide. Others are consumed by the locals or the tourists to these countries.In the long run, the food chain continues and is sustained. This means that any end user that ultimately consumes such sea food will have high levels of mercury in their blood stream which has negative side effects to the nervous system and several other parts of the body both in humans and in animals(Darlington, 2018)This can be seen especially if the country is an exporter of fish and other water inhabitants

Illegal Mines within the Amazon

3. Climate Change: History and Assessment

There are several factors that make climate change a huge threat to the global environment(Seymour & Busch, 2016). This is mainly because, in the current state of affairs, there is no area in the world in which humans are not taking part in activities that in one way or another both legally and illegally leading environmental degradation.Another reason that makes it a current threat is also due to the fact that climate change can be affected in so many ways all currently being noted.

Climate Change: Countries Affected

Australia is one of the countries that has been affected by climate change. In the recent past, there has been a rise in ocean temperatures that has led to coral bleaching and death of these corals which has negatively impacted on their tourism activitiesIn Venice, Italy, levels of the Adriatic Sea have been increasing in the recent past. This has led to several flooding episodes noted in the city interfering with the previous beauty of the city.In Montana, a rise in the global temperatures has led to a sharp decline in Glaciers which is subsequently leading to a change in the ecosystem as well(Moss & Morton, 2018).

Climate Change: Impact to the world

To begin with, several tourism destinations are currently being affected by the negative effects of climate change. In the countries previously mentioned, tourism rates have been affected since the attractions that were previously enticing are no longer very reliable(Moss & Morton, 2018).Also, there has been a shift in the pattern of monsoon winds due to changes in the climate in certain parts of the world, this has subsequently led to flooding and hurricane in many oceanic beaches.In addition, there are several animals that have since become extinct due to climate change in different parts of the world

Rising Global Temperatures over the years

Lack of Educational Opportunity

Dalai Lama once said “Where ignorance is our master, there is no possibility of real peace.”Where there is lack of education, Ignorance prevails. In such areas, individuals are not aware of theories of succession and how a simple effect can have deleterious effect on the global environment as a whole.Most of the time, the fault is not on them. They simply cannot afford a decent education to enable then to know the effects of their actions (UNESCO, 2015).

Poor Education: Countries Affected

Some of the countries with low education exposure include Somalia, Eritrea, Haiti, Comoros, Malawi, Congo among several others. Most of these occur as a sequelae of persistent civil wars. In others, it’s the poverty rates that limit exposure to education. In countries like Guinea Bissau, most girls were withdrawn from school to get married off to the benefit of their families. In such areas, the education rates are very low since its mainly the males that are exposed to education.In as much as this is the case, along the way, they are often faced with financial challenges (Colclough, 2014).

Poor Education: Effects to the world

The adverse effects are seen in the environmental degradation cases noted worldwide. The widespread deforestation for instance has led to increase in global temperatures at largePoor education also leads to increasing rates of unemployment and increasing rates of emigration leading to overpopulation in certain areas of the world.Finally, it has led to increased rates of vulnerability especially among the female population(Colclough, 2014).

Analyzing child poverty and deprivation in Sub-Saharan Africa

Conclusion

In summary, it is evident that the global environment is constantly at high threats due to factors that can be influenced albeit in positive ways to lead to a regression of the same.However, this is a huge toll that will take several influencers from several parts of the world to change. Though this doesn’t stop us from trying.Humans can make small changes in their activities that can then have a huge impact in reversing the damages already being notedIt is a sad state of affairs but, in unison, a positive impact an be felt.

References

Colclough, C. (2014). Education Outcomes and Poverty in the South: A Reassessment. Routledge.Darlington, S. (2018, December 10). Illegal Mining, ‘Worse Than at Any Other Time,’ Threatens Amazon, Study Finds. The New York Times.De Milliano, M., & Plavgo, I. (2014). CC-MODA – Cross Country Multiple Overlapping Deprivation Analysis: Analysing Child Poverty and Deprivation in sub-Saharan Africa. Innocenti Working Papers no. 2014-19,.Moss, T., & Morton, C. (2018). 14 Places Most Affected by Climate Change. Conde Nest Traveller.NASA. (2016). Scientific Consensus: Global Temperatures are Rising. Global Climate Change.Paget, S., & Regan, H. (2019, July 30). Ethiopia plants more than 350 million trees in 12 hours. CNN.

References

7. Ross, A. (2019, July 17th). Send in the troops: Congo raises the stakes on illegal mining. Reuters.8. Scheffran, J., Brzoska, M., Gunter, H., Micheal , P., & Schilling, J. (2012). Climate Change, Human Security and Violent Conflict: Challenges for Societal Stability. Springer Science & Business Media.9. Seymour, F., & Busch, J. (2016). Why Forests? Why Now?: The Science, Economics, and Politics of Tropical Forests and Climate Change. Brookings Institution Press.10. UNESCO. (2015). Rethinking education: towards a global common good? UNESCO Publishing.11. WHO. (2019). The Health and Environment Linkages Initiative:Environment and Health in developing Countries. WHO.