Imagining the future
As you think about changes in the climate and related issues, look to the futre. Imagine 20 years from now - 2044. You might be 39 or 40 - pursuing a career and perhaps raising a family. How do you think climate change will have affected people's lives in 2044? Hoe will affect society culturally?" Economically? Politically? Environmentally? Will people and communities need to adapt, and if so, adapt to what and in one ways? Share your predictions.
I have been a skier, both alpine and cross-country, since I was a teenager. Here is a link to an article about how skiing - and winter recreation - is affected by climate change.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/28/climate/italy-no-snow-skiing-climate-intl?cid=ios_app
A lot of what I enjoy about the weather as aspects that are currently diminishing due to the climate crisis, at least in the Oregon atmosphere, as I have also relished the cold weather and rain but recently the weather has become significantly warmer in the summers and icy in the winters, and I would expect this trend to continue. Assuming that action will be taken to reduce wasteful production of greenhouse gases, I would imagine that there would be a much more significant movement away from car-dependency as the predominant mode of urban development in the United States, which would greatly change the culture within Urban areas. Overall, I see society having to adapt and be wary of a much more extreme weather systems, requiring us to constantly be prepared for costly weather and storms and be prepared for the unexpected.
ReplyDeleteIt is a interesting time to be experiencing the effects of climate change. Some of the winter sports that I love seem to be changing dramatically. Even talking to older generations about the differences in winter they all seem to stay the same theme. The winter severity seems to be slowly diminishing. Being in agriculture it is concerning to think about the future if things continue to change. This can effects everyone's lives, those who live in urban areas as well as rural. More so speaking from my experience future farmers could be facing a major crisis. If climate change continues and longer droughts are experienced this may push many farmers to have to shutdown operations. This can effect things such as food supply, but also change the livelihood of what many people are built from. Economically this could greatly drive up prices and impact other actors such as job opportunities or scarcity of resources'. In 20-40 years from now I'm expecting to be many things to be much differently. I think that the role of technology i'll continue to rise and it will be in many more aspects of our lives than it already is.
ReplyDeleteI think climate change will begin playing a more drastic role in politics and society as the effects become more drastic. I come from Alaska and the effects are already noticeable there. Growing up, I would experience weeks at a time where temperatures would consistently hover around -40. So far this year there has yet to be a day that touched -40. I think once noticeable changes like this start affecting more moderate climates, people collectively be forced to take action. I personally hope people take action sooner so that when I return to Alaska it is still an arctic wonderland. I think as time goes on, communities will start adopting green energy initiatives. Many systems such as solar energy have already proven themselves to be cost saving in the long run. It is only a matter of time before thy become mainstream. I also think there will be a large pick up in the use of electric vehicles as daily commuters as they are efficient and can be charged using clean energy.
ReplyDeleteI think climate change will continue to further polarize people in politics as people who believe in climate change become increasingly more alarmed and climate deniers push back more, but I think most politicians will realize the impending disaster and hopefully pass the policies required to avoid the worst impacts. I think as far as skiing goes there will definitely be an increase in the use of artificial snow, which as a snowboarder I'm really sad about, but I'm optimistic that we'll be able to stop climate change soon enough to avoid super harmful impacts to winter sports. I think economically, a lot of industries will need to change their operations, like I think meat will probably become less widely available and used and then farmers that raise cattle may have to enter a different agriculture industry.
ReplyDeleteI think that climate change will cause a lack of resources. One big one that comes to mind is water. I found this 2016 fact sheet on the Colorado River, entitled Basin report: Colorado River, from the US Department of the Interior Bureau of Reclamation (https://www.usbr.gov/climate/secure/docs/2016secure/factsheet/ColoradoRiverBasinFactSheet.pdf). The report states that the Colorado River supplies water for Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. It also states that less runoff in spring and summer will result in less water supply, and warming climate will make more water evaporate from reservoirs. Eventually, there will have to be decisions made about who gets access to the water supply as it becomes more limited. I think that the Colorado River is one obvious example of what will be a more widespread problem. This will cause economic and political conflicts between people competing for water.
ReplyDeleteOne of the things that I am very curious to see about the future with climate change is the change in biological communities. I am curious to see how dynamics shift when plants and animals that people are not used to having in their backyards start showing up, and how that will affect things like demographics and land use. On a political level, I have a hope that as we reap the consequences of past generation's actions it will bring the world together behind an effort to invest in sustainable development in a way that has not happened before. I also fear that resources becoming scarce will drive global conflicts to apocalyptic levels. So there's that.
ReplyDeleteReading this prompt reminded me of a day when I was younger when I cried to my parents due to an article I had read in school discussing the climate crisis and how the world would look in a few years if immediate action were not taken to address the climate crisis. Since then, I have become increasingly more informed on climate change resources and activism opportunities to show my support. Through all that, I, like many others, worry and wonder what the climate crisis will look like in 20 years. Culturally, people will become much more incentivized to act and increasingly informed. Problems such as climate change, with its rapidly increasing effects on the world, become more burdensome to ignore or need to be made aware of. Economically, if the implementation or significant increase of renewable energy is done successfully, there will be an enormous economic boost. Politically, I hope that in twenty years, climate change will not be a topic of controversy but rather an agreed-upon crisis with at-length discussions of long-term solutions that could be implemented not just geographically but worldwide. In twenty years, if proper implementations of actions are taken to repair the environment, such as significantly reducing carbon emissions like fossil fuel, I believe it could be severely improved; otherwise, the environment will, unfortunately, have only grown significantly worse than state it is in now, with increased casualties due to increased number of extreme weather events, and the atmosphere growing much warmer. Unfortunately, the last part is almost unavoidable as we are already in the middle of increasing temperatures. People must adapt to various things, such as rising temperatures.
ReplyDeleteAs others have mentioned, there is the possibility of disruption of resources like food and water. As winters warm and there is less snowmelt, snow will contribute less to water supplies. This can affect people directly as well as affecting agriculture. There may also be more incidences of extreme weather events, challenging our infrastructure and social and economic support systems. As effects of climate change get more severe, people who are already concerned about these things will get more concerned. It's hard to predict how changes in attitude will affect behavior since there is a lot of variation in people, but this concern could lead to more actions aimed at mitigating climate change in the form of individual, group, or political actions. This may clash with people who deny climate change, which will likely push them to change their views or to strengthen their current beliefs. It will be interesting to see at what point large amounts of people do begin to change their minds. I wonder what events will be most persuasive.
ReplyDeleteI think the noticeable and drastic changes that start to happen with the climate, climate change will eventually be addressed. I think in the near future it will end up playing a big role in politics because it will be more noticeable. I live in Colorado, where the weather can be snowing, sunny, raining, cloudy all in the span of one day. I am unsure if this is because of climate change or if Colorado is just weird. However, I have noticed that in January and February that some days can get to 70 degrees which I am fully aware that isn't normal for those months. I hope the government and everyone can recognize that this is a real problem before it is too late and we can't solve it. This article talks about how important climate change is and how we need to address it. https://www.carbonprogress.org/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=wix-smart-campaign&utm_campaign=google-ads-campaign-1-2024-3-9-e79eaf89&gclid=CjwKCAjw17qvBhBrEiwA1rU9w22bGP6r8d5NPMcA7Z8i6JRaBVU2t8XU7r9MdsJHTSMKWxQeRk3iqRoCl_wQAvD_BwE
ReplyDeleteI believe one of the largest impacts in 2044 will be on transportation and power production. Hopefully, by then we as a country will have made beneficial steps to reduce global impact while improving these means and our way of life. Either through nuclear energy or other consumer and environmentally friendly means.
ReplyDeleteIf things continue the way they are, by 2044 there will be serious consequences. I hope that by then we will have moved toward modern, safe nuclear energy. While there have been serious issues with nuclear energy in the past due to various issues, the technology has come very far when it comes to safety and efficiency. I hope that other countries such as China will also choose to follow the rest of the world when it comes to modernizing energy production, as they are currently the highest emitting country by some margin. If things continue to get warmer, people will have to spend more on electricity to air condition their homes, further contributing to the high energy usage.
ReplyDeleteHow do you think climate change will have affected people's lives in 2044?
ReplyDelete- I think that climate change will have affected how people live in 2044 by bringing housing costs up due to the value of land and by leading into a food insecurity crisis. I feel that this is the case because we are already seeing a projected food insecurity crisis, and then with our environment actively being affected by climate change and agriculturalists being unable to produce adequate food, the issue is going to continue to spiral. As a result, land will be more difficult and expensive to purchase, and the price and scarcity of nutritious food will also rise.
How will affect society culturally?" Economically? Politically? Environmentally?
- This issue will influence all of the different systems within our world and nation, from cultural norms to political policy and everything in between. Climate is a huge influencer in many different industries, and as a result, it has a heavy impact on all the important components of our world.
Will people and communities need to adapt, and if so, adapt to what and in what ways?
- I believe that people and communities will definitely need to adapt due to climate change. We will have to start looking for more renewable suppliers and sustainability is going to be key. I am a huge advocate for sustainable agriculture, and I feel that it is a must in order for our world to be able to efficiently function to meet the rising demands of the population. In an Internation Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, it highlights whether or not the world is going to be able to keep up with the demand for food, and it highlights the importance of sustainability (Moustafa, 2018). (I will link the resource below- it is a great read!)
Check out this academic journal about current food insecurity concerns:
Khaled Moustafa, Joanna Cross & Seif Gasim (2018) Food and starvation: is Earth able to feed its
growing population?, International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, 69:4, 385-388, DOI:
10.1080/09637486.2017.1378625
Thinking about the state of our world in 20 years is quite a scary thought and I think it is difficult to predict what will happen because our world will undeniably look very different. I think one important aspect to consider regarding social and cultural changes is that we could be looking at complete wipeouts of certain cultures. Some communities are already in extreme danger of losing their homes and with it their entire culture, and that will only continue to happen as climate change worsens over the next 20 years. In addition, we could be looking at a complete losses of social outings. Will the air quality be so bad that we can no longer gather outside for any reason? Or will the climate be too extreme that any social gathering of any type is made extremely difficult? Regardless of how different our world is in twenty years, we will undoubtedly have to adjust to different social norms. Economically and politically, I think we can expect that the state of our world and international relations will be quite perilous. It has been proven in history that situations such as climate change can create increased tensions between nations as they discuss matters of who to blame and who should have to pay for reparations, and I think we can expect that this will undoubtedly happen in relation to climate change.
ReplyDeleteIn an article done by Mary Annaise Heglar for Medium in 2019 titled, Home is Always Worth It, she commented that "I've never seen a perfect world. I never will. But know that a world warmed by 2 degrees Celsius is far preferable to one warmed by 3 degrees, or 6. And that I'm willing to fight for it with everything I have, because it is everything I have. I don't need a guarantee of success, before I risk everything to save the things, the people, and the places that I love. Before I try to save myself. Even if I can save only a sliver of what is precious to me, that will be my sliver and I will cherish it. If I can salvage just one blade of grass, I will do it. I will make a world out of it. And I will live in it and for it." This quote has really stuck with me since I have found it, and I feel that it relates well to how we should view our future. It will be difficult and it is a scary topic to broach, but it is a necessary one that will also be incredibly rewarding in the end. https://medium.com/@maryheglar/home-is-always-worth-it-d2821634dcd9
DeleteOne of the biggest drastic effects of climate change I believe will be damage to coastal communities. There is a significant amount of people that live on the coast as well as commercial centers. One of the consequences of climate change is rising sea levels and there are a lot of people at risk from rising sea levels invading homes. In addition to rising sea levels, warming sea temperatures can increase the likelihood and damage capability of sea-related natural disasters like tsunamis and hurricanes. Here are some infographics about the possibilities of damage in Florida in the future: https://media.rff.org/documents/FCO_Infographics.pdf
ReplyDeleteI have seen less snow in recent years as well. While I don't go up to Mt Hood a lot, I have noticed that the last couple years, the snow cover and quality is less, and that it also starts snowing later in the year. Living in Portland, OR, I have seen change with regards to when it snows and it is so weird. It comes later than it used to, and because of that, it affects people when they aren't expecting it.
ReplyDeleteI think the main thing I consider about the future is the state of our environment. I love being in the outdoors. I grew up skiing and have recently really gotten into surfing. I have always loved hiking and just being outside. I think nature is very pure and it's already disheartening to see the way animals environments have been ruined due to climate change. My fear is if we don't make changes and adapt as a society, we will continue to kill of species of animals and nature. I worry about a worsening air quality in both cities and more rural areas due to an increase in carbon emmisions. I think the only way to change this is to commit to reducing emissions as a society. We need to insentivize public transportation and create viable options. I think especially American cities need to be more accessible to bikes or walking as well. I think the economic cost of this may be large, but it will be even more expensive for people if natural disasters or rising sea levels ruin their homes in 20 years.
ReplyDeleteIn 2044, there will be significant changes in the way we live our lives due to climate change. This article delves into one niche sector that will be affected by climate change ski resorts, but we will see many small and big changes like this throughout our daily lives and familiar industries. I’m sure the way we approach our climate will change with major attempts to lower emissions and political solutions through bills. Our economic landscape will have to change, particularly in the energy and transportation industries. I think we will have more efficient plans and many more EVs. I think nuclear energy will be widely accepted again. Overall, there will be lots of changes, many for the better, but we still live relatively normal lives.
ReplyDeleteAs years keep going, climate change is worsening. As of now, we can only see the effects it has on our world. But, if you see the effects it has now, you can see how it will affect us in 2044 or even years past. As the future goes, the atmosphere will eventually warm and create an acidic ocean. As of now, "We already see effects scientists predicted, such as the loss of sea ice, melting glaciers and ice sheets, sea level rise, and more intense heat waves." (NASA GOV). In this quote, it is saying how heat waves are currently affecting the world. In my Global South class, we touched into this more. My topic, was how Guatemala is being affected by heat waves due to climate change. As you can see, heat waves are affecting the world now. So, how is this going to affect the future? Habitats by 2044 may be gone and that leads to animal extinction. There are so many upsets due to further climate change. In 2044, the effects of climate change, "depends on what we do now to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The more we emit, the larger future changes will be.". (City of Chicago). Now, we can change our use of gas, green house gas emissions, and stop the negative affects we have on climate change now so it won't worsen in the future.
ReplyDeletehttps://climatechange.chicago.gov/climate-change-science/future-climate-change#:~:text=Future%20changes%20are%20expected%20to,larger%20future%20changes%20will%20be.