Climate change is a global problem. The world’s climate systems are not limited by political boundaries; this means that even if one country managed to cut its greenhouse emissions, it would still be affected by the actions of other countries. For example, though greenhouse emissions in the United States have not increased considerably over the last three decades, global emissions have risen (Kamarck, 2019). The bulk of the increase is attributed to developing countries such as China and India. If the current rate of growth in greenhouse emissions is maintained, experts predict that the world will start experiencing severe consequences of global warming as early as 2040 (Kamarck, 2019). Averting the looming climate change disaster requires both individual and collective efforts by nations of the world.
Climate change is one of the most prominent features in international conferences, but an effective collective solution has not been reached. As early as in the 1990s, climate change had found its way into global politics. In 1997, the Kyoto Protocol was adopted to unite the world behind reducing greenhouse emissions. Kyoto protocol set carbons emission targets, and countries that ratified the protocol committed to working toward the target (Keohane, 2014) . However , the Kyoto protocol did not achieve the targets, with the main emitters of greenhouse gases either withdrawing or failing to meet the targets (Keohane, 2014) . In the 2015 Paris agreement, different countries agreed to fina ncially support greenhouse gas reduction effort, and regularly give reports on their emission reduction efforts. The Paris agreement has yet to bear fruits. The failure of international treaties as a means of combating climate change is mainly attributed to the withdraw of the main emitters and lack of enforcement of mechanisms (Keohane, 2014) . On the global platform, the European Union is the main pusher of the greenhouse emission reduction agenda. Several countries in Euro pe have ratified a legally binding agreement to reduce greenhouse emissions by 40 percent by 2030. Europe, Japan, China, and South Korea are implementing trading schemes to reduce carbon emissions.
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Historically, climate change divides political opinion in America, and research shows that climate change is increasingly influencing political choices. Most Democrats believe that climate change is a real issue while Republicans hold that climate change is exaggerated (Kamarck, 2019). Pew Research Center has been documenting the change in public opinion regarding political intervention for climate change. The number of American adults who believe that the president and Congress should prioritize climate change has steadily increased over the past decade, but the disparity between the Republicans and democrats is still significant. For example in 2018, 68 percent of the Democrat respondents indicated that the political class should prioritize climate change; only 18 percent of Republicans agreed (Funk & Kennedy, 2019) . Leiserowitz et al. (2018) conducted a similar study among registered; 63 percent of registered voters said they were worried by global warming, and 59 percent believe global warming is caused by human activity. The shift in public in public opinion is likely to elicit more action from the political class.
Climate change is driven by both natural and anthropogenic factors. Natural drivers include volcanic eruptions, solar irradiance, and El Niño–Southern Oscillation ( Fahey, Doherty, Hibbard, Romanou, & Taylor, 2017 ). Of these drivers, volcanic eruptions have had the most significant impact on climate (Fahey et al., 2017). Volcanic eruption release gases such as sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere. The gases heat the troposphere and alter heat circulations patterns in the atmosphere (Fahey et al., 2017). The main anthropogenic driver of climate change is the release of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide from industrial operations and the burning of fossil fuels.
Again, combating climate change requires both collective and individual initiatives by countries. For international carbon emissions treaties to be effective, they should be time bound and legally binding. Also, there needs to be political support for climate change policies in individual countries. Specific strategies that countries can use to combat climate change are placing carbon emission limits, increasing the use of renewable energy, reducing tropical deforestation, funding renewable energy research, increasing the energy efficiency of vehicles, tax rebates for green energy production, and carbon taxes.
References
Fahey, D., Doherty, S., Hibbard, K. A., Romanou, A., & Taylor, P. (2017). Physical drivers of climate change.
Funk, C., & Kennedy, B. (2019, April 19). How Americans see climate change in 5 charts. Retrieved October 9, 2019, from Pew Reseach Center: https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/04/19/how-americans-see-climate-change-in-5-charts/
Kamarck, E. (2019, September 22). The challenging politics of climate change. Retrieved October 9, 2019, from Brookings: https://www.brookings.edu/research/the-challenging-politics-of-climate-change/
Keohane, R. O. (2014). The Global Politics of Climate Change. Retrieved September 9, 2019, from Princeton University: http://depts.washington.edu/envirpol/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Keohane2015.pdf
Leiserowitz, A., Maibach, E., Roser-Renouf, C., Rosenthal, S., Cutler, M., & Kotcher, J. (2018, May 8). Politics & Global Warming, March 2018. Retrieved October 2019, 2019, from Yale Program on Climate Change Education: https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/politics-global-warming-march-2018/2/
