Climate change

Climate change describes the long-term changes in average global temperatures and climate patterns.

Although this change occurs naturally, human activities since the Industrial Revolution such as the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, have significantly increased the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and has become the principal factor for the change.

The adverse effects of climate change are widely seen today in the rising sea levels which are due to melting glaciers and sea ice. Rapid ocean acidification threatens marine life and ecosystems. Extreme weather events such as droughts, heatwaves, forest fires, floods and catastrophic storms are becoming more frequent across the world. Such is the threat of climate change, Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, described it as an emergency that is:

 “The defining issue of our time.”

• Optimising processes and improving fertilisers to ensure a more sustainable food supply. 
• Advocating new technologies such as the treatment of salt water to help tackle drinking water demands in times of drought. 
• Promoting renewable energy sources such as solar, wind power and geothermal energy to secure a sustainable energy future across the world. 

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