Social Issue: Climate Change

Maribel Aumoeualogo

Instructor Name

English

17 December 2019

Social Issue: Climate Change

In the mid-1990s, we can observe how social scientists are beginning to view this issue as a genuine social problem that has required collective action of both states and individuals CITATION Aar00 \l 1033 (Aaron M. McCright). As the proponents of this issue lose media presence, the question arises that are we taking this problem seriously? We may conclude that in negation as the problem of climate change is worsening by the minute. In this essay, we will be discussing the social side of this issue, as how it has begun to affect the individuals directly on a massive scale.

The first social insight that we see regarding this issue is its effects on the small farmers. The climate shift is making it difficult for them due to shifts in agricultural and climate zones as well as changes in patterns of production due to the rise in temperatures. But the main problem is the increase in high precipitation levels due to heavy or no rainfalls. Such events affect the livelihood of the farmers that eventually hurt the living standards of entire communities. Furthermore, the lack of production can cause a steep increase in prices that has long-lasting effects on entire communities.

Another social aspect of this issue is its effects on the vulnerable groups of society. In the rural areas of developing countries, the women and children of the community are the ones who collect firewood. The lack of trees in their neighborhood means less availability of firewood as well as lesser time for other tasks. Also, the increase in average temperatures has given rise to a new generation of diseases which are bound to affect children and elders more due to their vulnerabilities. Other than that, there are also countless effects that are bound to increase pressure on the provision of poor rural families.

There is also the question of the adaptability of developing states to the social effects of climate change. It is due to the rampant effects of poverty and income inequality in the region. The funds that are needed to overcome numerous social problems in these societies are instead focused solely on dealing with issues related to climate change. Also, even under the directives of UNFCCC, the aid even to developing states to deal with such issues is not enough to cater to these concerns.

The most apparent social effect that is putting its toll on various communities in the world is the steady rise of sea level CITATION Kel18 \l 1033 (Kelman). The most apparent effects of this problem can be observed in the case of small island developing states like Fiji and Maldives. At the start of 2014, the state authorities of Fiji had started to relocate its coastal village further inland due to increased incidents of flooding in the village of Vunidogoloa. After that, there have been 34 villages relocated in 2014 alone by the government of Fiji. These effects infect long-lasting social effects as many villages will have to shift from the place where they have lived for centuries.

So, we can easily conclude that the effects of climate change have started to inflect a series of negative effects on the social structures in numerous societies as well. This has made the issue of climate change the concern of every individual of all states, developed, developing or under-developed. This kind of issue requires a new unique approach if we are to get rid of these problems of the betterment of our generation and many other generations to come after. After all, we are all part of this environment, and that being clear, we cannot exist outside the confines of the environment. So, we must work together for the betterment of our society if these social issues are to be resolved.

Works Cited

BIBLIOGRAPHY Aaron M. McCright, Riley E. Dunlap. "Challenging Global Warming as a Social Problem: An Analysis of the Conservative Movement's." Social Problems 47.4 (2000): 499-522. Electronic. <https://www.jstor.org/stable/3097132>.

Kelman, I. "Islandness within climate change narratives of small island developing states (SIDS)." Island Studies Journal (2018): 149-166. Electronic. <https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1567002/>.