Serhat Gokcen, 2ac Argumentative Essay H.C Ørsted Gymnasium – Frb 19/09/2021 Ah. πͺπΆπ , temperature and sustainability... Sustainability, a word you’ve most likely come across in your life in modern times, it’s everywhere: in global news outlets, schools, social media, etc. Even things used daily such as toothbrushes and dinnerware are made “sustainable” somehow. Alongside climate change, sustainability is a word highly debated throughout the world. But what does it mean for something to be sustainable? Does the existence of society threaten the environment? And does sustainability have any relation to environmental complications such as climate change? The word sustainability can generally be defined as: the quality of being able to continue over a period of time1. This definition is however more of a generalized definition of sustainability, as the word can have several contextual definitions, such as environmental sustainability that focuses on the use and demand of natural resources. Environmental sustainability can therefore be defined as: the quality of causing little or no damage to the environment and therefore able to continue for a long time2. This definition tells us, that environmental sustainability is about ensuring that the limited resources on our planet doesn’t run out, to further ensure that future generations don’t have a problem due to a lack of resources, as much as possible. As the global population continues to increase, so does the demand for resources. As nations and cities become denser with more and more people, the demand for clean water, electricity, housing, and food increases exponentially, human society is forced to take more from mother nature, in turn causing a decrease to the overall availability of natural resources. There are several aspects as to how humanity’s growth has affected biosphere negatively, one example is the increase of carbon dioxide (πΆπ2) present in the atmosphere, which has increased tremendously since the Industrial Revolution. According to the American agencies, NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) the atmospheric πΆπ2 levels were approximately 380.61 ppm pr. The 17th of august 2005. today the levels have risen to 416.43 ppm pr. 17th of august 20213. By a difference of exactly 16 years, the levels of πΆπ2 in the atmosphere has risen by a difference of 35.82 ppm, or about a 9.4% increase. Which while isn’t a super big difference due to those numbers only being a time span of 16 years, still shows that the levels are 1 https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/sustainability, defined from the Cambridge Dictionary Definition is taken from the same site as the first footnote, meaning the link above this sentence. 3 https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/carbon-dioxide/, referenced part, the graph: Direct measurements, 2005-present. 2 1 Serhat Gokcen, 2ac Argumentative Essay H.C Ørsted Gymnasium – Frb 19/09/2021 indeed increasing. However, taking in account the fact that πΆπ2 levels have been rising since the beginning of the industrial revolution approximately 221 years ago. This means that data of the 16 16 years is only 221 of the total data, or rather 7,2% of the 221 years, this means that πΆπ2 has increased much more since the Industrial Revolution. But why is an increase of πΆπ2 such a problem? Physics tells us that light can be absorbed and reflected by atoms and molecules, which is the case with the greenhouse effect, which is part responsible for the ecological balance of temperature on the planet, and as it’s a balance, too little πΆπ2 freezes the planet, but too much πΆπ2 burns the planet and its inhabitants. This increase of πΆπ2 is due to industrialization, and the production of things and use of natural resources. Reforming or decreasing industrialization compromises human society, as societies would start having difficulties keeping up with demand, removing or decreasing industrialization is therefore a last resort move to do, when absolutely nothing else can be done. The global temperature has already increased by a factor of approximately ±1.02 β 4 since 1880, meaning that global temperatures have already increased approximately by a degree. Which while the number doesn’t sound like much, it has weather changing effects, as the number describes the whole planet itself, meaning regional temperatures are therefore much higher. I mean, can we see the effect of such a small number? We can, winters have becoming colder, and summers have even become warmer themselves. But surely there must be other ways of being more sustainable? A way to minimize the harm done to the environment without compromising certain aspects of society. Several technologies have already been developed and are still in development to counter this global problem, technologies such as renewable energy sources including Windmills, solar panels, hydropower, etc. And even political initiatives are being taken, such as increasing prices of plastic bags, making environmentally friendly clothing, and much more. Sustainability is therefore something that has become more prominent in recent decades, due to mans increased environmentally harmful activities, we are threatening our future, as a product of our increasing demand of resources, services, and products. Human society is either way doomed if 4https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/global-temperature/, Global Land-Ocean Temperature Index. 2 Serhat Gokcen, 2ac Argumentative Essay H.C Ørsted Gymnasium – Frb 19/09/2021 we allow the planet to burn even further, either we completely stop all industrialization or minimize certain sectors of society to be more sustainable. Due to the increase of πΆπ2 in the atmosphere since the Industrial Revolution, humanity has been forced to start rethinking the important societal infrastructure that indirectly harms the biosphere, causing all sorts of complications for the planet’s inhabitants. Society has therefore turned to environmentally friendly technologies that can replace the harmful old technology, political initiatives to create a sustainable future for the coming generations. Bibliography 1. Cambridge Dictionary. (n.d.). Sustainability. Retrieved from Cambridge Dictionary: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/sustainability 2. NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). (n.d.). Carbon Dioxide. Retrieved from GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE, Vital signs of the planet: https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/carbon-dioxide 3. NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies. (n.d.). NASA. Retrieved from Global Climate Change, Vital Signs of the planets: https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/global-temperature/ 3
