Going Green and living more sustainably are becoming increasingly necessary as well as more attractive and satisfying. This “Green Page” will look at one sustainability topic each month, with ideas to consider and steps to use individually and as a congregation to care for and honor God’s amazing creation.
Ecosystem-Based Adaption
Even if people immediately stopped the emission of gases, including carbon dioxide, into the atmosphere, the impact of the greenhouse effect and climate change could continue for centuries. Humanity must find ways to adapt to the adverse effects of climate change. One promising approach is called Ecosystem-based Adaption) (EbA); the use of nature, conservation, restoration, sustainable management of ecosystems, and biodiversity to address the adverse effects of climate change on people and the environment. Examples of EbA include rangeland restoration to bolster water supply to local communities and livestock during droughts, agro-forestry to protect crops negatively affected by extreme temperatures, mangrove restoration to protect coastal communities from storm surge, the reforestation of hillsides to prevent landslides under extreme rainfall events, and the use of shade trees in coffee plantations to maintain production under rising temperatures. Adapting to climate change is among the biggest challenges humanity faces in the next century. The major focus of strategies to reduce the effects of climate change has been on hard-engineering structures such as sea walls and dams. However, EbA programs provide flexible, cost-effective, and broadly-applicable alternatives for reducing the effects of climate change, while overcoming many drawbacks of hard-engineering. In particular, EbA will be needed where many places have already experienced drastic impacts due to warmer temperatures, sea level rise, and stronger and more frequent extreme events.
EbA is now being used in hundreds of projects all over the world. However, for it to effectively contribute to global climate change adaptation efforts, more investment and the integration of EbA into climate policies are needed. EbA can only be effective if it is fully integrated into conservation policies and projects. Adapting to climate change is among the biggest challenges humanity faces in the next century.
Mark your calendars for the April Earth Forum:
Sunday, April 19, 2020 at 2:00 p.m.
50 Years of Earth Day!
Theme: Recycling, More Sustainable Practices
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