Reflection

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/02/27/un.climate.plan.ap/index.html

From this article, it can be seen that the environmental issue of global warming is already too big to ignore, and measures has been taken to highlight this.

I think that more agreements like the Kyoto Protocol should be implemented. The Kyoto protocol limits the amount of greenhouse gases (mainly focusing on carbon dioxide) that can be released by each country per year. Such agreements would help to control the amount of greenhouse gases emitted, and it would aid in reducing the global warming effects. However, certain countries such as the United States of America refuse to be part of the Kyoto Protocol, as this would not benefit them. USA is responsible for the emission of approximately 25% of the world’s carbon dioxide, and if it signs the Kyoto Protocol, it would either have to pay a huge sum of money due to the large amount of carbon dioxide it emits or reduce the carbon dioxide emission rate, which would affect their economy greatly. If too many of such countries behave like USA, this would mean that global warming would be quite a big issue to worry about. If effects of global warming were to ruin the country, what economy is there to speak of in the first place?

The fact that a plan has been made to counter the global warming rate is a good sign, as it is now essential to take counter measures to prevent the effects of global warming from increasing too much in the near future.

Research has shown that there can be severe effects of global warming that will harm human well being, such as the increase of the sea level and extreme weather conditions. This will result in a great amount of environmental refugees as stated in the article. If the sea levels rise too much, some countries may even be completely submerged.

In the article, panel member John P. Holdren, director of Massachusetts' Woods Hole Research Center said that if the global temperature increased too much, "we would be in a regime where the danger of intolerable and unmanageable impacts on human well-being would rise very rapidly" In my opinion, many people are being very complacent about the issue of global warming, and in fact, they do not seem to notice that there is any change in the climate at all. Being unaware of this can result in dire consequences as the global warming effect is cumulative, and if we are going to wait until the effects are big enough for us to see and feel, it might be too late to try and implement any measures by then. Everyone should try to do his or her part to prevent any further damage done to the earth.

Global warming is an issue that is paid too little attention by people these days, and this has got to change in order for any significant difference to be made for the better of all mankind.