Roger E.

Jones

English Teacher, Chengdu, Sichuan, China

B.A., Northwestern University

M.A., University of Missouri
TESOL, Univ. of California, Los Angeles

Fields of Study: Public Speaking, Writing,

International Relations, Art History

outline

definitions
issues
pro / con
an inconvenient truth
practice debate
conclusion

global warming
noun
an increase in the average
temperature of the earth's
atmosphere and oceans, especially
a sustained increase sufficient to
cause climatic change.

definitions

Global Warming
Greenhouse Gas
The Greenhouse Effect
Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change (IPCC)
Tradable Pollution Quotas
Kyoto Protocol

WHAT IS GLOBAL WARMING?

Temperatures are rising because
we have dramatically increased
the amount of carbon dioxide in
the Earths atmosphere, by
burning fossil fuels such as coal,
gas, and oil, and by clearing
forests.

 Greenhouse Gas: A gas which traps

the sun's heat:

 Greenhouse Gas: A gas which traps

the sun's heat:

Water vapor (H2O)

Carbon dioxide (CO2) - exhaust from
cars and power plants.
Methane (CH4) - from decomposing
organic matter.

Carbon dioxide and methane levels are at

their highest levels in the past 420,000
years.

The Greenhouse Effect

Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change (IPCC)
A scientific body formed in 1988 to
evaluate the risk of climate change
caused by human activity.

Tradable Pollution Quotas

A country that wants to exceed its quota of

greenhouse emissions can buy part of another
countrys quota of polluting gases.

Kyoto Protocol
A 1997 international treaty designed to
limit global greenhouse gas emissions
during the years 2008 - 2012.
Goal: to reduce greenhouse-gas
emissions 5% below 1990 levels.

Kyoto Protocol
The United States and Australia have not
ratified the Kyoto Protocol.
The U.S. is responsible for about a quarter
of the emissions that have been blamed
for global warming.

issues

Who is responsible?

Most scientists blame

industrialization:
Automotive Industry (low fuel
economy)
Oil companies (fossil fuels)

 Power plants (coal)

Agri-business (biofuels,
deforestation,
cattle
producing methane)
Logging Industry
(deforestation)

Consequences of
global warming

Catastrophic weather such as

hurricanes will increase.

Melting polar icecaps will raise ocean

levels; the Arctic Ocean could be
ice free in summer by 2050.

Heat waves, droughts, and

wildfires will be more frequent.

Up to 300,000 people a year

will die partly from the
spread of tropical diseases.

More than a million species

worldwide could be extinct
by 2050.

Endangered

Global sea levels could rise by

more than 20 feet, devastating
coastal areas worldwide.

The future of our coastal

cities?

Between 1970
and 2004
global
greenhouse
gas emissions
have
increased by
70 %

 From 1971 to 2005 CO2 vehicle emissions

rose from 1.8 billion tons per year to 4.6
billion tons per year.
The average global air temperature rose
between 0.5 and 0.74 degrees C during the
past century.
An average 2 degrees C warming is predicted
by 2100.
Sea level has risen between 10 to 25 cm in
the last 100 years.

The Earth is getting warmer.

What causes the warming is

hotly debated.

The Argument:
Human causes
(Anthropogenic):

Carbon dioxide (CO2)

exhaust from cars
and power plants.
Methane gas from
waste
Deforestation

The Argument:
Natural causes:

Some claim the sun

is getting hotter.
Also, the earth
goes through
natural cycles of
climate change.

Evidence that CO2 is Cause

carbon dioxide vs. global temperature graph

Is Global Warming for Real?

1973

CONFLICTING INFORMATION

2005

Is it already
too late?

an inconvenient truth

 Al Gore
2007 Nobel
Peace Prize
Former Vice
President of
the United
States

pro / con

The big debate is political:

Global warming's harmful potential has

been proved; now we must prevent it
from getting worse.

OR
The evidence is inconclusive; trying to
prevent global warming could destroy
the economy.

Who is responsible for

slowing global warming,
and at what cost?

Industrialization is the
primary cause of
global warming.

Are alternative sources

of energy the answer?

The Kyoto Protocol

effective or not?

Industries
should
cut greenhouse
gas emissions
now.

What are the costs of

slowing global
warming?

Can you have

economic
growth and
protect the
earth at the
same time?

Emissions
quota trading

Will it work?

Is unlimited
economic growth
really desirable?

practice debate

Topic 1:
Industrial growth
should be slowed or
limited in order to
curb global warming.

Topic 2:
Do newly-developed
economies, like India
and China, have a right
to increase their
industrial emissions?

Something to think about:

 Climate change may just be too big

and too vague a problem for
people to want to invest in trying to
solve. People like to fund things
they know will work.

 It will be the political process and

fear of the unknown that will
generate the needed response by
developed countries to mitigate
carbon emissions worldwide, if
this response is generated at all.

Thank you