Environmental Issues

Title page

Climate change

Joelle’s Topic

Climate change resilience in Boston

Boston is among the American states that are facing severe threats due to climate change. People of Boston are affected by natural calamities including heavy rain, storms, snow and flooding. The state has thus launched “Climate Ready Boston” for planning to give awareness to the people about the climate threats that the citizens are facing. The purpose is also to plan management of climate and building a resilient future. The initiative is focused on advancing the vision for this initiative. Resilient harbor vision is also part of Boston’s strategy of protecting the people and the community from the rising sea level CITATION Mar194 \l 1033 (Walsh, 2019). I think the steps taken by the state are crucial for assuring the safety and protection of its people. Some of the important actions taken by the Mayor of the state include investments in infrastructures including 10 percent spending in prepping of parks and improving buildings. The emphasis of the state is to minimize the potential threats posed to the climate. The strategy of the state is also focusing on pushing climate adaptation such as through its mission of green gentrification. This is considered as a practical resilience strategy for controlling the deteriorating impacts on the toxic gas emission. There are 2000 units of public housing in Dorchester that also depicts the needs for enhancing green spaces.

I think one of the important initiatives taken by the mayor of the Boston city is reconsidering the expansion of parks across 60 acres of South Boston waterfront. The part is seen as a pathway to flood as there are low-lying areas nearby. The challenge is to assure adoption of the right strategy that will eliminate the potential threats to climate. Redesigning of the Moakley part is also due to the climate concerns. The state can thus focus on adopting strategies for providing protection to the communities in low-lying areas.

However, there is still need for adopting more programs that could inform the people how climate change is linked to human activities. This requires arranging different awareness campaigns that provides education and awareness to the community people about the implications of wasting natural resources like water. Similarly, the use of fossil fuels is also linked to climate change because it is the major contributor of greenhouse gases. I think even if the state provides first aid and support to the affected communities in Boston, the challenge of climate change remains unmet. There is a need for controlling activities that are directly harming the climate and contributing to the temperature rise. These could help devise a national policy plan that restrict companies for engaging in harmful practices such as release of toxic agents or gasses.

William’s Topic

Best approaches to solve climate change on the individual/ personal scale

It is crucial to find the best approaches to solve climate change. I think one of the effective ways of solving climate change at individual level is by reducing our ecological footprint. This can be attained by involving states and environmental protection agencies that give education to the people and community for managing their use of resources. There are several platforms where people can check their consumption of fossil fuels in the form of electricity or transportation that leads to climate change. The states need to take initiative for convincing people that they are responsible for the protection of the environment for themselves and for the future generations. This is only possible when they accept their responsibility and agree to become part of the climate protection campaigns. Each citizen can take initiative to cut their consumption of water, fossil fuels and refrain from unnecessary traveling. This will have positive impact on the environment. Similarly, the campaigns can be organized at schools and colleges that give awareness to the children about protection of climate. This will be important for building environmentally responsible citizens who will be ready to take initiative for the protection of climate.

Individuals should be banned from cutting of trees or overconsumption of water. Another step is use of energy wisely that means refraining for unnecessary travelling. Similarly, by installing energy efficient light bulbs every individual can contribute to save energy. Every citizen can take the role of a responsible citizen by plugging off the devices like computers, laptops and cell phones. Installation of renewable energy at homes and offices is also a practical solution for overcoming potential climate challenges.

I think there could be some strict actions taken by the state such as imposing penalties on the companies that are engaged in harmful practices. There are organizations that are engaged in over exploitation of resources such as water and deforestation. Taxes can be imposed on multinational companies for investing in climate protection programs. There should be a national policy for cutting the consumption of fossil fuels at individual and collective levels CITATION Gol16 \l 1033 (Gold, Ewing, Banks, Groom, & Hinckley, 2016).

Another important step that I believe could bring a solution to the society and world is changing our eating habits. Most of the fossil fuel is consumed by fast food companies. So, by cutting consumption of fast food and processed meat every individual can contribute to this climate protection mission. People can take initiative of eating more vegetables and organic food and replace them with meat. People can also save climate by refraining from wasting food. Recycling can be adopted at person level such as by reusing plastic and tins. These are solutions to climate change and leads to a stable environment.

References

BIBLIOGRAPHY Walsh, M. J. (2019). PREPARING FOR CLIMATE CHANGE . Retrieved 09 29, 2019, from https://www.boston.gov/departments/environment/climate-ready-boston

Gold, W., Ewing, K., Banks, J., Groom, M., & Hinckley, T. (2016). Collaborative Ecological Restoration. ResearchGate .