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Danny Roth
Ms. Thompson
AP Lang Block 1 Skinny B
March 10, 2015
Publish Ready Research Paper
Climate Change: Human Causation
Climate change is real, and it is not just superficial. It is also not something that
we cansimply ignore and endure. There are some who try to deny that this is directly
caused by humans, or that in the grand scheme of things that it is trivial. This is simply
not true. Climate change is natural, but this amount of global warming is not. There is
compelling support to show that humans are the largest cause of global warming. If
global warming continues there will be horrible implications that would change the
world forever, and certainly not for the better. The human population has contributed to
climate change more than anything else on earth, and is currently on the path to using
up the earths natural resources.
Saying that, climate change is not solely caused by humans. It is not just a
spontaneous occurrence that began when humans began using fossil fuels as a fuel
source. As the UXL Encyclopedia of Weather and Natural Disasters says, Throughout
Earths 4.6 Billion year existence the global climate has undergone continuous change.
The earth has never had a period where the climate has stagnated, or stayed relatively
the same, it has always been in flux. However, there earth has never been has as rapid
or as severe climate change as is happening now. Similarly, Environmental Science: In
Context says In large part, the greenhouse effect is natural and necessary. Without it,
oceans would freeze over and most life would die. The greenhouse effect is actually
natural, caused by the carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere. This does not mean
that humans do not contribute. Humans add much more carbon dioxide to the
atmosphere, through the burning of fossil fuels. This, in turn, leads to global warming.

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Unfortunately, climate change is gradual, and much of the things we do to help
prevent the continued worsening of the climate will not show their effects until many
years later. This slow change makes it seem like our daily decisions are
inconsequential. The change is so incredibly gradual that Even if all (Greenhouse
Gas) emissions ceased immediately, there would be at least another 0.7 degree Celsius
of warming in addition to the 0.8 degree Celsius of warming that already has occurred.
(Callicott 459)This truly shows how our impact is long term and how we can almost
never see the full impact of our actions immediately. This is one reason legislature is
hard to pass, as people have to try to lobby without results happening yet. If we
continue on the path we are on, we will run out of natural resources (Harrington 16-17).
It seems so simple, but many people seem to think that the earth has an unlimited
supply of natural resources, which simply is not the case. The current path is completely
focused on non-renewable resources, such as oil and coal. Switching to renewable
resources, such as solar and wind, will lengthen the amount of time we sustain
ourselves on Earth.

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As such, it is the powerful countries who must change in order to hinder any
more damage from happening, and hopefully begin to heal the damage that has been
done. It is our moral responsibility to change as our actions hurt those in poorer
countries who have not added to global warming as much (Callicott 460). First world
developed countries add the most to global warming. Other countries are still affected
however, and as such it is the responsibility of those large countries to take action to
help not just themselves, but those that they have wronged in doing so. Wealthy
countries can adapt to climate change more easily than poor countries. Wealthy
countries will always have greater technology, which is part of the reason that they are
able to adapt to climate change so well. They do not have to worry about how hot it is,
or whether it will rain for their crops to grow. The people in these countries do not feel
directly affected by climate change, and therefore do not see a need to change their
habits and how they go about their daily life. The United States leads the world in
climate change research, funding more than half of all the work. (Mitcham 870)
There is research going on to study the long term effects of climate change, and the
wealthy countries are the ones leading the charge. However, it is simply not enough and
while there is money being spent on research it is a fraction of what is needed to help
make any long lasting changes.

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Humans are causing global warming. There is truly no way to embellish it. The
truth is hard to accept but it must be accepted. There is proof, as shown throughout,
that humans have an incredibly large impact on the ecosystem. It should not be ignored,
and those who do are either trying to obscure the facts so that they may benefit, or not
very smart. Arguments can be made that climate change is natural, which is true, but
this scale is unheard of. Humans are causing climate change, and they should begin to
try to change it for the better. If people truly worked together and tried to do something
about climate change, the problem would begin to be alleviated. If the world came
together and worked diligently and with tenacity the problem of global warming could
be changed.

Works Cited
Callicot, J Baird., and Robert Frodeman. Encyclopedia of Environmental Ethics
and Philosophy. Vol. 1. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA. 2009. 458-63. Gale.
Web. 02 Feb. 2015.

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Environmental Science: In Context. Ed. Brenda Wilmoth. Lerner and K. Lee.
Lerner. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, Cengage Learning, 2008. Gale. Web. 02 Feb 2015.
Evans, Kimberly Masters. Information Plus: The Environment, A Revolution in
Attitudes. Detroit: Gale. 2010. Gale. Web. 02 Feb. 2015.
Harrington, Jonathan Henry. The Climate Diet: How You Can Cut Carbon, Cut
Costs, and Save the Planet. London: Earthscan, 2008. Print.
Mitcham, Carl. Global Climate Change. Encyclopedia of Science, Technology,
and Ethics. Vol. 2. Detroit, MI: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. 80-73. Gale
Web. 02 Feb. 2015.
UXL Encyclopedia of Weather and Natural Disasters. Detroit: UXL, 2008. 57-106.
Gale. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.