Notes on Climate Change Presentation

Overview

Discussion of extreme weather events in the U.S.: floods, fires, and tornadoes.
Critiques of global warming arguments by differing viewpoints.
Rising costs due to weather-related damages, exemplified by Hurricane Irene's impact.
Mention of global weather patterns and their increasing severity.

2011: Expected to be the most expensive year for weather-related damage.
Historic Droughts: Affecting regions like Nepal.
Global Temperature Records: 16 of the last 20 years are the hottest on record.
Ice Caps and Rising Sea Levels: Concerns over melting ice caps and implications for coastal flooding.

Encounter with Ice: Profound appreciation for the natural beauty and forms of ice.
Photography and Science: Transition from traditional science to engaging photography to capture climate change.
Project Origins: Idea to document and visualize the impacts of climate change, particularly focusing on glaciers.

Goals: Document glacier changes with a network of cameras to provide visual evidence of climate change.
Challenges: Technical difficulties in deploying cameras in harsh environments.
- Custom equipment was necessary due to harsh conditions (e.g., hurricane winds, -40°F temperatures).
Successes: Capturing significant calving events and changes in glaciers over time.

Scientists' consensus on climate change and the role of human activity.
Historical Context: Ice cores provide insights into historical climate patterns. Current CO2 levels are significantly higher than natural variations.
Extinction Rates: Current species extinction rates are 100 times faster than historical rates.
Future Implications: Predictions of mass extinction and significant impacts on human populations (potentially up to 150 million displaced).

Importance of visual evidence in raising awareness about climate change.
EIS provides tangible evidence of glacier retreat and climate change impacts through time-lapse photography.
Emotional Impact: Use of photography to convey the urgency and reality of climate change.

Challenges of public perception concerning climate science.
The necessity for collective action in addressing climate change.
Personal commitment to documenting and raising awareness about climate change for future generations.