How Climate Change is Affecting Our Worlds Water
since
as long as i can remember i’ve had a
deep connection with the ocean
i grew up in and out of the water seeing
the ocean as one of the most mysterious
captivating and powerful horses in the
world
i quickly got involved with ocean
advocacy at a young age
starting an ocean focused environmental
club at my school
and working with a flurry of ocean
related environmental groups
much of the time when we talk about
climate change we exclusively talk
about how it’s affecting the land from
deforestation
to desertification however the ocean
covers
71 percent of the earth’s surface we are
far more reliant on it and our water
than we like to think
the world’s water systems also connect
us
which brought me to work on ocean
conservation and water issues globally
specifically i’ve had the opportunity to
lead think ocean
a youth global network spanning 15
countries
that works on raising awareness of an
action on
the intersection of climate change in
our ocean
over the years my experiences have
taught me of the magnitude of our
environmental challenges
it’s shown me the issues of plastic
pollution in cameroon the recession of
the glaciers
in the alps in italy the rise of sea
levels in egypt
the cost of air and water pollution in
india and much more
however most of all i found that i had
to
unlearn many of the ways i used to think
about climate change
when first learning about
environmentalism many of us
are told that we have to make individual
choices to protect our planet
recycling taking shorter showers eating
sustainably
however i’ve come to learn that climate
change
and its many facets are not
individualistic
they are systematic therefore we must
critically review our system and social
tendencies that got us to where we are
today
for example when most people hear
climate change
they generally think of an increase in
temperatures and destruction of the
environment
however we need to reframe our
perceptions of this crisis
to instead focus on its human
implications
it could bring widespread economic
fallout
unprecedented mass relocations of people
and threaten global stability today
let’s discuss how our water will be
affected and delve into what makes this
issue
so hard to solve in my time as a youth
ocean advocate
i’ve had i’ve been able to work on water
related issues in egypt and south asia
and their local crises demonstrate the
urgency of today’s challenges
therefore let’s first turn to the rising
seas
in egypt specifically let’s zoom into
alexandria to examine how this issue
poses a threat
to local coastal communities pictured
here
in the above side we can see that much
of the nile river delta
where alexandria is located is at or
below sea level which corresponds to the
colors blue
and light green alexandria is the second
largest city in egypt with highly
populated areas surrounding it
it is both geographically and
socioeconomically vulnerable to the to
rising sea levels
a research paper published in 2015 found
that an increase in just a half meter
in sea levels could inundate most of its
beaches
and without effective adaptation could
displace
about two million people
another half meter could displace more
than six million people
well the sea is rising and it’s
projected that by 2050
there will be a rise in more than a half
meter of water on egyptian coasts
and it’s expected to eventually rise to
a full meter
it’s also projected that egypt’s
national agricultural sector
could be cut in half by 2060 due to
groundwater being contaminated with salt
resulting in a potential destabilization
in regional grain supply
and the economy these challenges
regardless of if we recycle eat
sustainably
turn off the lights when we live the
room are still happening
instead we need large scale structural
changes to prepare
communities for what’s to come and
mitigate future costs
however sea level is not exclusive to
alexandria
and it’s not exclusive to egypt it’s a
global threat
let’s zoom out to see the implications
of this issue across the globe
pictured here is a map showing the 2060
projected populations of people living
in areas
most at risk to sea level rise which are
called low
elevation coastal zones or lecz for
short
currently this is where 10 percent of
the global population lives
sea level rise and its corresponding
effects are highly complex
contingent on environmental political
and socioeconomic factors however
estimates range from anywhere from
88 million to 1.4
billion people who will eventually be
displaced due to sea level rise
therefore inundation could lead to
hundreds of millions of people
forced to move domestically or even seek
asylum internationally
besides the obvious threats that this
will have towards the communities
affected
it could also threaten our global system
however
there are many other ways that climate
change can affect our future
let’s now turn to the issue of water
scarcity which is a very real
and present issue that could be
exacerbated due to the effects of
climate change
let’s zoom in to south asia which is
home to one of the worst
water crises in the world pictured here
the deeper the shade of red the more
severe water stress is being experienced
in that part of the map currently
only 20 percent of pakistan’s population
have access to safe drinking water with
the remaining 80 percent
looted by sewage fertilizer pesticides
or industrial effluents and this
pollution is the culprit for
30 of deaths nationally across pakistan
likewise india is facing severe water
shortages
a 2019 report by researchers out of mit
found that 600 million people for
context
that is nearly twice the size of the
united states
face high to extreme water scarcity
another report by media young projects
that the crisis will only get worse
with national water demand expected to
be double that of available supply by
as the climate continues to change and
it continues to warm
it threatens to eliminate key sources of
water
the indus river basin a vital river
system that both
india and pakistan rely on also
relies on glaciers however these
glaciers are disappearing
causing salt water to creep its way into
the rivers
and the amount of water available to
decrease
further weather patterns have become far
less predictable
and droughts more prolonged threatening
to make their water crisis
only worse yet as with sea level rise
water scarcity is not exclusive to south
asia it’s a global threat
let’s now zoom out to see how this is
affecting the rest of the world
the above map shows the degree of water
stress
expected for each country by 2040 with a
darker shade of red corresponding with
more water stress
currently 2.4 billion people
are living within watersheds that are
experiencing water scarcity
and similar to pakistan and india the
effects of climate change
threaten to exacerbate this shortage
threatening both access to safe drinking
water
as well as the stability of various
industries reliant
on water supply unfortunately the
effects of water scarcity
sea level rise or other issues related
to climate change
will not be distributed equally poorer
communities
and people of color are poised to be the
most
affected climate gentrification is
happening
right now with folks being pushed into
less hospitable areas
and areas more likely to be hit the
hardest by the effects of climate change
let’s now turn to new orleans and see
how the damages from hurricane katrina
demonstrate the environmental racism
present around the world
here are two maps one showing the wealth
disparities
the percent of poverty in each area of
the city which is
signified by shades of blue and one
showing the percent of each part of the
city
that was predominantly black also
signified by the color blue
new orleans has a history of segregation
and this systematic oppression which
contributes
towards keeping communities of color in
poverty also put them at a higher risk
of the effects of climate change
here we see the deaths per ward of the
city
it is startlingly aligned with the
demographic makeup of the city
showing that poor communities and
communities of color
were the hardest hit by the disaster
unfortunately this is a trend that can
be seen elsewhere
from black and brown new yorkers being
hit hardest by hurricane sandy
to minority communities and poorer
communities being
again and again most harshly affected by
natural disasters
those same communities then take longer
to recover
due to higher costs and generally having
less savings
magnifying pre-existing wealth
disparities
now a major question presents itself
if these are the risks and we know the
risks
why aren’t we acting now why aren’t we
making the necessary changes
to prepare for our future well to
preface this
i just want to acknowledge that people
both young and old
are working day in and day out to build
a better future
the biggest obstacle to solving slow
moving crises like climate change
and others is the human tendency of
temporal discounting
we discount the future and prioritize
the present
similarly we discount costs seeing them
as less impactful
or pressing the further on the horizon
they sit
as a student i’m a lot less stressed
about a 30 page paper
assigned a month before it’s due than a
day before stay
this systematic procrastination can give
us a
dangerous sense of complacency however
without acting
right now further costs will accumulate
and could build to an insurmountable
amount
therefore we need to reframe the ways we
think about our decisions
and a great way to reframe our thinking
is through intergenerational action
and elevating the role of young people
in our decision making
young people gen z folks like myself
we will be forced to reckon with the
future being created today
whereas past environmentalists advocated
for future generations
those generations are here now
in the form of today’s youth this is why
the actions of youth organizations
like fridays for future zero hour the
think ocean society extinction rebellion
and many others
are so integral for acting on today’s
crises
youth climate coalitions have mobilized
millions
of people to organize in support of
climate action
protesting for change climate change
is an existential threat to our world
my generation and future generations and
these demonstrations
have helped to reframe the dialogue on
climate change
for example i was able to attend the
2019
u.n climate summit many of the world’s
leaders heads of states
and even leaders of municipalities were
present
their words were comforting but the
summit was only really notable due to
youth such as greta bloomberg
who reprimanded elected representatives
for inaction
this reprimanding which youth activists
by the way have been doing for
years at such events has put pressure on
our leaders
compelling them to take this crisis more
seriously
however every successful environmental
movement
has been intergenerational whether with
advisors
funders co-organizers or participators
even the most youth-led movements
benefit from
working with people of all ages
this focus isn’t just a matter of
narrative either
but it’s a matter of action of making
space
for future leaders it is vital that
members of generation z
are given seats at the decision-making
table and given more opportunities to
get involved
now this does not mean deferring all
responsibility
and decisions to youth this means
building intergenerational coalition
to address problems together
today we only brushed the surface of
climate change
examining only a few facets of this
far-reaching threat
we spoke about the upwards of a billion
people affected by sea level rise
the 2.4 billion people currently
affected by
water scarcity and how climate change
disproportionately affects communities
of color and poorer communities
however it’s important to remember that
much of what we’ve talked about
is not set in stone we do not know
the full extent of what climate change
will bring
however we do know that there will be
costs
and we know that the decisions we make
now
will define the magnitude of tomorrow’s
challenges
regardless of what we’ve discussed today
i consider myself an optimist
i see incredible hope in building a
better future a more just future
and truly tackling these issues together
however we can’t use the same archaic
methods that got us into this mess
moving forward we need to make space for
and empower young voices and the voices
of those that are most
adversely affected by this crisis we
need to face the great challenges ahead
of us
instead of shying away we are living
through the most formidable emergency
this world
has ever seen let’s start acting like it
thank you