Climate Change

Climate Change

My diagram focuses on the specific influences of climate change and how the Copenhagen accord has shaped efforts to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases. Climate change is a very prominent issue in today’s society. It begins with the burning of fossil fuels, which leads to the emission of greenhouse gases. These fossil fuels are burned by vehicles and industries and are used to power our cars, heat our homes, and run appliances. These seemingly mundane activities are contributing to the constant climatic change we can observe. The introduction of the Copenhagen Accord, while its intentions were good, lead to a lot of actions from our country that were less than respectable. As shown in my chart, the US used tactics such as bribery, spying/hacking, and hostility in order to coax allied countries into signing the accord. Poor and/or underprivileged countries were promises money in return for their signature of support, others were spied on and hacked in order to gain crucial information the US could use as leverage for their signature. Most notably, and least respectably, the US used acts of hostility and violence threatening the lives of those who did not sign the accord. While the Copenhagen Accord’s intended purpose was to work together in an effort to reduce or prevent the emission of greenhouse gases, the US likely created many less than stable relationships with allied countries in an effort to achieve this goal. Ultimately 140 countries signed the accord, but at what cost? We must consider the long term effects these behaviors had on the stability of our alliances.

 

While I do not necessarily believe that the State Department cables SHOULD have been made public, I think that it was important for that information to surface. I do not agree with the tactics used by the US government to coax allied countries into backing the Copenhagen Accord, and I believe it is crucial to call attention to these corrupt actions. However, access to such information could lead to backlash and consequences our country may not have necessarily been prepared to face. This issue is both interesting and disheartening to me. I firmly believe in the importance and promise behind the efforts of the Copenhagen Accord, and think that working towards more environmentally conscious alternatives to the burning of fossil fuels is crucial to the sustainability of this planet. However, these efforts were, as stated previously, almost overshadowed by the negative action taken by the US to insure that countries would back them. The US preyed upon chaos and instability in other countries for their own personal gain through the use of bribes and scare tactics. This particular situation is sticky however as the end gain was extremely positive for our environment, and this effort was entirely necessary. I believe however, that future efforts to protect our environment should me made not through brute force and promise of compensation, but as a united front working towards a common goal.

4 thoughts on “Climate Change

  1. Hello! My name is Gilberto. Here is the link to my post: http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/04/08/module-9-climate-change-13/

    I really liked your diagram because it goes directly to the timeline of how all of this happened. Your supporting paragraph really helps explain it. I agree that countries should work together in these issues, though I can see how it can be tough dealing with countries which depends highly on fossil fuels. I feel that inaction should have a consequence, but the actions of the US should not be repeated.

  2. Hi my name is Joelle! Here is a link to my post! http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/04/08/climate-change-take-a-stand/

    I really enjoy the flow of your diagram. Even though it is vague, it has points in it where it gives information that aids in the understanding of the diagram. Your explanation is fantastic and gives a great reinforcement to the information on the diagram. While looking at your opinion on the release of the cables, we have the same view point. It is important that the world saw the information and the importance of it.

  3. I have to agree with you in that the information of the cables was important to surface, and I definitely agree that the U.S. was in the wrong and that this kind of overshadows the good reasoning behind the accord. I think that its in the hands of the U.S. to make a public statement or take action to strengthen the ties between the countries they manipulated. We need the support of all countries in order to make this a reality. Great job on your post and feel free to check out mine!http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/04/08/climate-change_module-9/

  4. I really agree with a lot of what you say in your posts. I used a similar style diagram to describe the WikiLeaks controversy. The whole series of events flowed in one direction which similar to how you represented it. I do also agree that this information should have been leaked. I think there is probably some information that the public should not see, but this is not one of those issues. Check out my post: http://sites.psu.edu/geog30/2016/04/08/54442/

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