CITIES ARE THE THREAT TOO

Veronika Sudková

As we all are probably aware, cities have a huge impact on global warming and environment basically. First I would like to explain to you why global warming is alarming. Some of the highest temperatures were spotted in the last century, where global warming isn't that accurate as now. The highest temperature ever measured on Earth is 56.7 °C, which was measured in 1913 in Death Valley, USA. It is not about how high the temperature is, but how frequently it happens. Some of you may have noticed how warm these last summers were or that snow is not a normal thing in cities for a while. And that is a consequence of global warming,cities, industry and mainly of us, people.

The past decade has seen the highest decadal increase in greenhouse gas emissions of all time and, without considerably strengthening our existing policies, they are projected to continue to rise and this whole big problem is leading to an average global warming of 3.2 degrees 2100, which is so close and it is only getting worse. In fact, Cities are responsible for more than two-thirds of greenhouse gas emission, the highest cand be typically found in bigger cities. Australian cities have it all, boasting one of the highest emissions per capita in the world, while also rapidly expanding.

Australia is a state, where there is a lot to lose, they have beautiful coral reefs and also the biggest one. Many animals that are about to go extinct - in Australia there are a lot of animals that exist only there and that is the reason to get bothered. Forests are taking more than 410 000km², but deforestation is the reason why this number is getting lower. Cities need to seek to kill multiple birds with one stone. For example, building green infrastructure in cities such as leafy parks and green roofs is a great way to absorb carbon emissions, support biodiversity and other ecosystem functions, while helping to alleviate extreme heat waves caused by climate change. Australian cities - mainly Melbourne - are known to expand this idea and actually use it a lot.

To help, you do not need to change a lot, just start in your city and try to convince more people to really care about it, before it's too late.