“Four sides to every story” the climate change debate by Stewart Brand.
This paper depicts a narration by Steward Brand, a hero who formulated four groups to argue and discuss about changes in climate and agriculture. The four perspectives incorporate views from skeptics, warners, denialists and calamatists. He further generates a discussion that revolves around the four groups and their arguments on effects of climatic changes in agriculture.
The issue that revolves around change in climate and its effects on agriculture has aroused various arguments that relate to this topic. The major aspects that contribute to change in climate are industrial activities. In this regard, the chemicals waste that is released to the surroundings creates negative effects. This further destroys the soil making it infertile and unsuitable for agricultural use. There have been claims that global warming is caused by manmade emission which turns out to be not completely true. For instance, emissions such as carbon dioxide do not contribute to disastrous calamity. However the poor climatic conditions affect agriculture contributing to a poor economy. (Brand 45).
Based on study, environmentalists argue that activities that relate to industrial civilization have enhanced crimes against nature. In this regard, the skeptics and warners are major scientists whose argument on this matter is attributed to changes in evidence. This implies that the difference between science and ideology does not focus on clarifying the strengths and weakness of the four viewpoints. The significance of science in this context is that it aids to predict and guide individuals on safe ways to handle future changes in climate.
In situations whereby changes in climate get worse, denialists should take chance and adopt strategies to enhance farming activities. Equally, it is the responsibility of warners to ensure that they push geoengineering systems such as sulfur dust that exist in the stratosphere. In addition, there has been an argument that a rift between nations that are still developing creates the burden to combat changes in climate. This change should further affect the rich countries because they are blamed for causing the issue. Conversely, a section of researchers argues that countries that are still developing tend to have poor economies. As a result, they cannot handle changes in climatic conditions that apply in their settings.
The issue of climate change and its implication on agriculture has raised various speculations that reveal that global warming is man-made in a scientific society (Kristin 72). The skeptics are represented by a small minority in this field category. Steward Brand asserts that the two perspectives of climate change in this discussion is not complicated.
Brand argues that there are actually four sides of this narration which discus more about changes in the climate and its effects on agricultural activities. They include;
Skeptics; this is a group that deals with the limitations of the climate as they apply in scientific field. According to skeptics, farmers have suffered a lot when they lose their productions to harsh weather conditions.
Warners: They refer to climatologist whose responsibility is to oversee changes that arise in climate. Furthermore, they claim that changes in climate have disrupted production of food. It is also a major factor that contributes to green houses. In this context, experts give warnings against actions that could destroy the environment (Brand 80).
Calamatists; these are the environmentalist who argued that industrial civilization contributed to destruction against nature. As a result, this destroyed crops and subjected farmers to incur losses. According to them, they claim that if changes in climate had to be reversed, this could have enhanced retribution. It is apparent that all the denialists would be successful in this argument over the view from their counterparts. This good news would make skeptics to be skeptical. In this regard, the warners would be relieved while the calamatists would choose to create a disaster to proclaim their perspective.
Denialists; this is a category that represent individuals who incorporate political views to argue about nature. Based on their climatologist perspective, they argue that changes in climate have contributed to a high economy in the society. They argue that this situation is generated by high prices of food because of the poor climatically conditions.
In essence, change in the climate has resulted to global warming hence affected hugely the agricultural sector. Denialists believe that global warming is not manmade: skeptics who are sometimes uncertain whether if the global warming is man-made. There were warners who believe that the practical measures to be taken to combat global warming. Lastly there were calamities who say that drastic measures must be implemented as soon as possible to avoid apocalyptic climate change.
Analyzing the validity of this topic, it is evident that this argument raised Stewart Brand’s view on rethinking about goals to enhance safety in our surroundings and promote agriculre. Brand claims that there are ways that involve two major changes that enables individuals to consider shift of authority in developing globe. Study indicates that majority of people across the world reason that this kind of change facilitates eradication of poverty. This is accomplished through migrating to the cities and creating new jobs that benefit the society via self employment.
The author also noted that history has always been driven by the world’s largest cities. The second dominant global fact is climate change (Stewart 106). He emphasized that climate is one of the severely system packed with tipping points and positive feedbacks. The response ranges from the unpredicted rapid melting of arctic ice. He argues that global warming is caused by droughts that further affect agriculture. The condition also diminishes resources in society when its effects contribute to greenhouse gases. It is generated from combustion hence it subjects cities to rely on loaded electricity. Brands claim that change in climate has lead to the nuclear power generation which is detrimental to the surroundings.
A large number of people in society tend to argue that urban regions contribute to global warming which affects the environment. The top environmentalist Stewart brand asserts that changes in the climate conditions are degrading the surrounding. According to Brand, agriculture is a major aspect that leads to global warming. He argues that this situation was attributed by ice dozens that existed in the past 2.75 million years. Their availability was in form of three astronomical cycles that intersected hence affected solar intensity.
Brand further argues that the environment was degraded due to irrigation measures that were adopted in South and China. Eight years ago, the effects of carbon dioxide became reversed in the atmosphere. This situation was linked to burning of forests to pave way for agricultural activities. As a result, the population rates increased and this destroyed new surroundings converting them to greenhouses.
In his perspective, Brand argues that cities are greener in contrast to the environment. He claims that it is high time people changed their perceptions that cities are only characterized by pollution, dirty environment that contributes to diseases. Clearly, when individuals in the four groups share their ideas, this will enable them to handle changes in climate and improve agriculture.
Works Cited
Brand, Stewart, Kevin Kelly, and Peter Schwartz. Stewart Brand: Rethinking Green. San Francisco, Calif.: Whole Earth Films, 2009.
Brand, Stewart. “Four sides to every story” the climate change debate. London: Sage Publication.
Kristin, Shrader-Frechette. “Why Climate-Change Skeptics Are Wrong.” (2011). Print.
STEWART, J R. “The Evolutionary Consequence of the Individualistic Response to Climate Change.” Journal of Evolutionary Biology. 22.12 (2009): 2363-2375. Print.