Posted by Blogger Name. Category:
Professor Jeff Sachs
Thank you for the article.
Sometime back I created a forest department at the School for Integrated Urban Planning to offer an opportunity for the Scientists fraternity around the world to come and study climate change in Uganda.
It has remained dormant since very few people weren't interested! See this website http://www.siup.ac.ug/?p=151
I hope it was strange to many, how is Forestry and then Urban Planning?!
Yet, there is no where on earth one can understand the adverse effects of climate change as it is in the Tropical regions of this world. Here, there is a combination of an array of fragile variables; low levels of
technology, total dependence on nature (agriculture/rainfall) for
survival, high population growth, high influx of rural to urban population, inept politicians, low levels of scientific innovations, rapid economic and social transformation with careless implementation policies,
total lack or scientific research etc,.
There is need to study these and many more issues – in this natural
laboratory of natural events.
Visibly, for an educated and observant eye, the temperatures in the past 20 years in Urban Tropical Africa were Uganda lies, had risen by more than 2 degrees centigrade! When it is shining in this region you can really fill the heat! These days, maxim day temperature can go up to 32 - 35 degrees centigrade! These high temperatures have total negative impact on survival of the organism, ecological components and soil composition, a good recipe to hunger and social disintegration.
Some forty years ago in Uganda, temperatures ranged between 18 (min) and 25 (max) degree centigrade. At night it could become quite chilly with temperatures as low as 15 degrees centigrade in the central regions of Uganda. In the highlands of western Uganda (Switzerland of Africa) temperatures could be as low as 5 to 12 degrees centigrade.
Uganda which is a tropical country, in the heart of Africa and a country
which is supposed to have two hot and wet seasons, the situation is very alarming. Cattle farmers are counting heart raking looses as they look on helplessly, when their cattle die off. This is a double wedged sword and enormous tragedy. Droves of cattle keepers have left the sector completely. Milk and meat prices have skyrocketed and children are increasing becoming malnourished. Just a year and half ago, prices of meat jumped from 2500 UG Shs ( 1 $ US) to 9000 UG Shs(~4 $ US) in just a week. Prices have never gone back to 2500 UG shs. That is a loss of protein to many urban dwellers! I have talked to butcheries, their incomes have dwindled as the population go with either meat or milk for that matter. Now, if the population (majority) survives on one meal a day – that meal must be a heavy protein filled meal, which is no longer the case.
Hunger has visited some northern parts of the country. It is only a matter of time when food prices will be beyond a common mans reach. And this hits African governments had since they can't raise taxes from the sector.
Politicians are to blame.
In their unconcerned gesture, some 20 years ago: no wetland, no forest or bush was to remain standing. Everything had to be turned into industrial sites and food farms. Luckily enough the politicians themselves had invested huge sums of cash into farming, which was giving them good returns until recently, when the climate became totally unpredictable.
I wrote countless articles – and other concerned groups acted in the same spirit but to no avail. Today the situation is totally different.
Politicians are taking on draconian measures to chase people (let us put like this to chase themselves) away from encroached tropical forests, wetlands and reclaim industrial sites. Interestingly the politicians are calling on scientists to come up with solutions, the same scientist they never consulted or ignored when they were raping the environment.
I hope the world will not look on helplessly when hunger radicalises
society into a vehicle of extremism to pose danger to emerging
democracies.
Best Wishes
Daniel Bwanika
On Sat, July 5, 2014 1:44 am, Sonia Sachs wrote:
> Stand Up and Be Counted on Climate Change
>
>
> Stand Up and Be Counted on Climate Change
>
>
> Jeffrey Sachs
>
>
> Director, Earth Institute
>
>
>
>
>
> We've just about run out of time to keep the rise of global temperature
> below 2 degrees Centigrade (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). The world promised to
> do it back in 2010. But it hasn't acted. This is your moment, as a Global
> Citizen,
> to raise your voice to head off disastrous climate change.
>
> The 2-degree limit is the last guardrail for a safe global climate. If
> temperatures shoot beyond 2 degrees, it's quite possible that natural
> feedbacks - melting ice sheets, drying rainforests, release of greenhouse
> gases from the melting tundra - could carry the world to runaway climate
> change. Such major climate disruptions would put sustainable development
> and the end of poverty out of reach. Even 2 degrees C is enough to create
> chaos in many parts of the world: higher sea levels, more floods,
> droughts, ocean acidification, heat waves and extreme storms.
>
> The 2-degrees C limit was adopted by all governments in 2010. Since then
> emissions have kept on rising, and we are running out of time to stay
> within 2-degres. More precisely, we are running out of our planet's carbon
> budget, that is, the amount of carbon we can burn and still remain below
> 2-degrees C. In just
> a few years we'll lose the remaining chance to keep the Earth's
> temperature below the 2-degree C limit.
>
> Yet, we can still succeed -- if all major economies of the world begin to
> take strong and consistent actions to decarbonize their national energy
> systems in three main ways: shifting to low-carbon electricity; moving
> from fossil fuels to electricity in vehicles and buildings; and massive
> gains of energy efficiency. A fourth main global pillar is to shift from
> deforestation to reforestation and to reduce emissions from agriculture.
> These transformations are deep, but
> they are feasible and will not only protect the climate but also boost
> prosperity if we apply our efforts and ingenuity to the effort.
>
> Now you can stand up and make your voice heard. Many of the world's
> leading scientists and climate experts have put forward a statement to
> global leaders for delivery at the United Nations Climate Summit on
> September 23. Here is
> your chance to add your name with these illustrious signatories
> by clicking here and adding your own name to the statement.
>
-- Thank you for the article.
Sometime back I created a forest department at the School for Integrated Urban Planning to offer an opportunity for the Scientists fraternity around the world to come and study climate change in Uganda.
It has remained dormant since very few people weren't interested! See this website http://www.siup.ac.ug/?p=151
I hope it was strange to many, how is Forestry and then Urban Planning?!
Yet, there is no where on earth one can understand the adverse effects of climate change as it is in the Tropical regions of this world. Here, there is a combination of an array of fragile variables; low levels of
technology, total dependence on nature (agriculture/rainfall) for
survival, high population growth, high influx of rural to urban population, inept politicians, low levels of scientific innovations, rapid economic and social transformation with careless implementation policies,
total lack or scientific research etc,.
There is need to study these and many more issues – in this natural
laboratory of natural events.
Visibly, for an educated and observant eye, the temperatures in the past 20 years in Urban Tropical Africa were Uganda lies, had risen by more than 2 degrees centigrade! When it is shining in this region you can really fill the heat! These days, maxim day temperature can go up to 32 - 35 degrees centigrade! These high temperatures have total negative impact on survival of the organism, ecological components and soil composition, a good recipe to hunger and social disintegration.
Some forty years ago in Uganda, temperatures ranged between 18 (min) and 25 (max) degree centigrade. At night it could become quite chilly with temperatures as low as 15 degrees centigrade in the central regions of Uganda. In the highlands of western Uganda (Switzerland of Africa) temperatures could be as low as 5 to 12 degrees centigrade.
Uganda which is a tropical country, in the heart of Africa and a country
which is supposed to have two hot and wet seasons, the situation is very alarming. Cattle farmers are counting heart raking looses as they look on helplessly, when their cattle die off. This is a double wedged sword and enormous tragedy. Droves of cattle keepers have left the sector completely. Milk and meat prices have skyrocketed and children are increasing becoming malnourished. Just a year and half ago, prices of meat jumped from 2500 UG Shs ( 1 $ US) to 9000 UG Shs(~4 $ US) in just a week. Prices have never gone back to 2500 UG shs. That is a loss of protein to many urban dwellers! I have talked to butcheries, their incomes have dwindled as the population go with either meat or milk for that matter. Now, if the population (majority) survives on one meal a day – that meal must be a heavy protein filled meal, which is no longer the case.
Hunger has visited some northern parts of the country. It is only a matter of time when food prices will be beyond a common mans reach. And this hits African governments had since they can't raise taxes from the sector.
Politicians are to blame.
In their unconcerned gesture, some 20 years ago: no wetland, no forest or bush was to remain standing. Everything had to be turned into industrial sites and food farms. Luckily enough the politicians themselves had invested huge sums of cash into farming, which was giving them good returns until recently, when the climate became totally unpredictable.
I wrote countless articles – and other concerned groups acted in the same spirit but to no avail. Today the situation is totally different.
Politicians are taking on draconian measures to chase people (let us put like this to chase themselves) away from encroached tropical forests, wetlands and reclaim industrial sites. Interestingly the politicians are calling on scientists to come up with solutions, the same scientist they never consulted or ignored when they were raping the environment.
I hope the world will not look on helplessly when hunger radicalises
society into a vehicle of extremism to pose danger to emerging
democracies.
Best Wishes
Daniel Bwanika
On Sat, July 5, 2014 1:44 am, Sonia Sachs wrote:
> Stand Up and Be Counted on Climate Change
>
>
> Stand Up and Be Counted on Climate Change
>
>
> Jeffrey Sachs
>
>
> Director, Earth Institute
>
>
>
>
>
> We've just about run out of time to keep the rise of global temperature
> below 2 degrees Centigrade (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). The world promised to
> do it back in 2010. But it hasn't acted. This is your moment, as a Global
> Citizen,
> to raise your voice to head off disastrous climate change.
>
> The 2-degree limit is the last guardrail for a safe global climate. If
> temperatures shoot beyond 2 degrees, it's quite possible that natural
> feedbacks - melting ice sheets, drying rainforests, release of greenhouse
> gases from the melting tundra - could carry the world to runaway climate
> change. Such major climate disruptions would put sustainable development
> and the end of poverty out of reach. Even 2 degrees C is enough to create
> chaos in many parts of the world: higher sea levels, more floods,
> droughts, ocean acidification, heat waves and extreme storms.
>
> The 2-degrees C limit was adopted by all governments in 2010. Since then
> emissions have kept on rising, and we are running out of time to stay
> within 2-degres. More precisely, we are running out of our planet's carbon
> budget, that is, the amount of carbon we can burn and still remain below
> 2-degrees C. In just
> a few years we'll lose the remaining chance to keep the Earth's
> temperature below the 2-degree C limit.
>
> Yet, we can still succeed -- if all major economies of the world begin to
> take strong and consistent actions to decarbonize their national energy
> systems in three main ways: shifting to low-carbon electricity; moving
> from fossil fuels to electricity in vehicles and buildings; and massive
> gains of energy efficiency. A fourth main global pillar is to shift from
> deforestation to reforestation and to reduce emissions from agriculture.
> These transformations are deep, but
> they are feasible and will not only protect the climate but also boost
> prosperity if we apply our efforts and ingenuity to the effort.
>
> Now you can stand up and make your voice heard. Many of the world's
> leading scientists and climate experts have put forward a statement to
> global leaders for delivery at the United Nations Climate Summit on
> September 23. Here is
> your chance to add your name with these illustrious signatories
> by clicking here and adding your own name to the statement.
>
_____________________________
Bwanika Nakyesawa Luwero
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