Weather refers to elements such as rain downfall, wind, cloudiness, temperatures, and thus in general to atmospheric conditions measured and observed over a short period of time (days, weeks or months) while, on the other hand, climate is not only measured over a much longer period of time (years or even decades) but is also regarded as the average of conditions in a specific region; thus, climate change refers to long-period changes.

Greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere and they may be a result of natural occurrence or human activity. These gases include carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), water vapor, and ozone (O₃). Nitrous oxide (N₂O) and fluorinated gases are also considered to be greenhouse gases.

Climate change represents the single biggest threat to our entire civilization. According to the Paris Agreement the primary Goal for all the nations which are part of the Agreement is to keep the global temperature rise well below 2°C and thus to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

We are speaking about a natural process in raising of the Earth'surface temperature due to certain gases in the atmosphere trap energy. These gases, namely water vapor, carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄) are known as greenhouse gases because, like the glass in a greenhouse, they trap some of the outgoing energy from the Sun retaining this heat in the Earth’s atmosphere.

All of these consequences are associated with climate change. Indeed, are the human activities that mainly contribute to the greenhouse effect and this statement is supported by most authoritative scientists and climate scientists. Droughts, heat waves and rising sea levels are already devastating effects on the most vulnerable communities and countries and, unfortunately, also on their ecosystems that will continue to change. Moreover less freshwater will be available since glaciers alone store about three-quarters of the world’s freshwater (and freshwater on Earth is about 3%).

Studies show that 97 percent (the number is growing) of climate scientists who are actively publishing scientific papers, agree that climate change is mainly due to human activities (i.e. “anthropogenic activity”). Most of the prominent scientific organizations across the globe have issued statements that publicly endorse this view and launched the alarm which should be taken seriously by all the countries, and thus acting consequently to protect our environment.

The Paris Agreement is the most important legally binding international treaty on climate change which was adopted by 196 Parties at COP21 in Paris, on 12 December 2015 and entered into force on 4 November 2016. The main aim of this agreement is to keep the overall increase in global temperatures below 2 degrees Celsius, with the hope to limit the increase to only 1.5 degrees Celsius. This small increase in global temperature represents what scientists believe to be the largest increases in global temperature that we could experience without causing catastrophic change to the Earth’s climate. There is no time to waste and all countries must contribute if we do not want to put in danger our existence.

Global warming is an aspect of climate change and it is caused by increased concentration of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere. The combustion of fossil fuels derived from oil, together with gas and coal for energy are the major sources of CO₂ and thus the biggest cause of global warming.

The transportation sector is responsible for 14% of global greenhouse gas emissions which derive from fossil fuels burned for road, rail, air and marine transportation. Oil-based fuels (such as diesel and gasoline) represent almost all of the world’s transportation energy used.

CO₂ is the most significant greenhouse gas present in the atmosphere; knowing exactly how long CO₂ remains in the atmosphere is difficult because there are many processes that can remove it from the atmosphere itself. There are scientific Studies affirming that between 65% and 80% of CO₂ released into the air dissolves into the ocean over a period of 20–200 years. The remaining CO₂ is removed by slower processes that take up several hundreds (if not thousands) of years.

China derives more than half of its energy consumption from coal. In 2019 China was the biggest emitter of fossil fuel carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions.

Along with these important steps, you can follow the Planet Health Check’s Tips to reduce your impact on mother Nature, be more informed and also actively participate and join organizations aimed at protecting our environment.