Weekly Assignments

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Climate change

Week 7

It is surprising to know that the buildings consume 41% of the fossil fuel energy and that efficient construction of buildings is an important solution for mitigating the challenges of climate change. Michael Murphy has highlighted ways in his TED talk that can be adopted by cities for attaining the national goal of climate sustainability. CITATION TED171 \l 1033 (TED, 2016). Architecture contributes to global warming because most of the procedures used rely on fossil fuels. The environmental footprint can be reduced by adopting efficient architecture building. Natural ventilation is one of the common principles that will allow the world to reduced fossil fuel consumption. I think there must be alternative ways of construction rather than relying on fossil fuels. There is need for paradigm shifts in the architectural designing based on environmental safe practices. I conducted research to find the reality of the architectural climate change and found the concept of ecological architecture.

https://www.ted.com/talks/michael_murphy_architecture_that_s_built_to_heal?language=en#t-271065

The debate on the need for changing architecture and contraction leads to some questions as; what could be more radical architectural response to climate emergency? How the builders, designers and the policy makers can promote the concept of architectural climate change? This would require upending the conventions of the contemporary construction industry and making right material choices which leads to the decline in environmental conservation. Tons of concrete can considered as sustainable if it does not use fossil fuels. However the practical implications of this new concept of environmental sustainable construction is difficult too understand. Most of the construction industries are still using the traditional methods for architectures and buildings. However it is possible to embrace other natural materials and convincing the architectures to replace them with fossil fuels. The state and the policymakers should take active role in promoting the use of sustainable and environmental friendly methods of architecture and construction. Seismic cultural change is required for this national level transformation in the building practices. According to this idea repairing architecture can repair biosphere. This indicates that the emphasis must be laid on adopting new and environmentally safe practices. Hi-tech architectures also can take initiative in reducing environmental footprint by suggesting new and sustainable procedures. The whole idea is to challenge the contemporary construction methods by stressing on the concept of ecological architectural designs and building. The adoption of this solution depends on how environmentally responsive the community is. It also require acceptance of this solution at a larger level by the people as well as the construction companies. Repair is more appropriate then rebuilding the infrastructure because it will require less concrete and other construction materials. Without an effective architecture policy based on climate change, it is not possible to control environmental degradation.

Week 8

It is important to determine the economic and solutions to climate change. Annie Leonard in the “Story of Cap and Trade” aims at uncovering some of the effective ways of addressing climate change by focusing on the economic aspects. I agree that our entire system is playing negative role which leads to the deterioration of the environment. Human activities have been the major cause of climate change resulting from greenhouse gas emissions and high carbon foot print. Some of the activities which leaves an enormous ecological footprint include burning of coal, fossil fuel consumption, increased consumption of fast food and meat, cutting of trees, deforestation, excessive use of water and natural resources. All these practices can be controlled only by convincing the people. The leading solution could be ‘Cap and Trade’. The environmentalists have stated that the only way of saving our planet is by reducing carbon emission. This reduction should be at least 80 percent by reaching 2050. My research reveals that most of the carbon footprint is generated by the economic activities across the world because they are linked to fossil fuels. Due to economic developments at large-scale levels, the use of fossil fuels has also increased which ultimately leads to climate change.

The most important step is to engage governments to agree on reducing yearly carbon emission. This according to Leonard is cap and will do a lot of help for eliminating carbon emission from this planet. The governments according to this idea should also restrict companies from excessive manufacturing or production which will impact the economy negatively. However when the cost-benefit analysis can be used for determining the implications of this situation. Due to climate change the states have to invest in reducing the global warming on projects. The cost that states will have to pay will increase more in the future. This reflects that reducing profits could be compensated because improved climate will not require mush investments for environment sustainability. Another economic aspect can be evaluated by understanding how reduced carbon emission might help states. researches have revealed that global warming has been the reason behind many diseases such as asthma, cardiac issues and respiratory diseases. By controlling carbon emission the states would manage to give pollution free environment which means fewer people will get sick CITATION KIM192 \l 1033 (AMADEO, 2019). This will allow saving billions of funds made every year by states on healthcare. The analysis of the factors associated with the environment sustainability depicts that the solutions will be economically effective. This also suggests that investing in alternative methods is economically beneficial for the countries. The world cannot neglect the perils of increased consumption of fossil fuels because the threats are increasing with every passing year.

References

BIBLIOGRAPHY AMADEO, K. (2019). Climate Change Facts and Effect on the Economy . Retrieved 10 12, 2019, from https://www.thebalance.com/economic-impact-of-climate-change-3305682

TED. (2016). Architecture that's buillt to heal. Retrieved 10 11, 2019, from https://www.ted.com/talks/michael_murphy_architecture_that_s_built_to_heal?language=en