Equity+&+Equality

Equity and Equality
Equity means justice, according to law or natural right. Because climate change doesn’t just affect one area, but the entire world to some extent, many different groups of people responsibility, but some have more power than others. Also, some groups are seeing the negative effects of climate change but can’t do much about it. Developed nations are the wealthiest and hold the most power, like the U.S., China, and India. Most agree that something must be done about climate change. There interests are mostly economic, since they run on fossil fuels. Current recessions mean less money is given to research and sustainability programs. Investing in them could bring independence and jobs in the future. Developing nations are the poorest and have less developed economies. They too want to minimize the effects of climate change. They just don’t have as many resourcesto meet their goals. The issues they worry about include drought and flooding, species extinction, and rising sea levels. Their interests are also economic, since a stable government and economy can bring about large-scale change. Developed nations have such large populations and use so many resources that they have been found most responsible for the amount of pollution and green house gases in the atmosphere. Fossil fuel overcomsumption affects vulnerable people of the world’s poorest countries. They don’t have the resources to adapt to climate change. Meanwhile, people living in wealthier nations may not see and real change in their environment. Some solutions include charity to developing nations, research for sustainability, and cooperative policy meetings like the COP 15 in Copenhagen.

Equality means treating people in the same way, despite any differences. Climate change affects men and women, young and old, and people of all different ethnicities. Again, climate change affects poorer people the most because they have less resources to adapt to it. The main stakeholders are the two groups most often underrepresented in society: women and children. Women and men are affected differently from climate change. While women produce most of the world's staple crops, they have unequal access. Equality to women means having the right to decent standards of living, housing, and communications. Children have the same rights. They live under the protection and influence of their parents, who can't always give them what they need. Clean water and good sanitation become less available, making them more susceptible to disease. When the economy weakens, families may take their children, especially girls, out of school to start working earlier. Droughts and severe storms can cause anxiety and affect their mental health. Children are being advocated for and brought to our awareness by UNICEF and other groups. The main motive for taking children out of school is the need to sustain the family. Micro-financing and loan programs have been effective in helping families and women start their own businesses and become self-reliant. Women are given a voice in groups such as the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which works to help give women more power in the UNFCCC and other global and national policies.

6. Issues: Land Use, Land Use Change, and Forestry (LULUCF)

Plants and soil act as carbon “sinks” because they store it. Less green house gases end up in the atmosphere when there are more plants to hole them in. The total amount of carbon in the forest ecosystems is more than all the carbon in the atmosphere. Human activities change how carbon cycles between the land and the atmosphere. LULUCF is part of the UNFCCC, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Its goal is to help mitigate, or reduce green house gas emissions, both by removing them from the atmosphere and reducing them by sources. LULUCF is a non-governmental organization. Its interests are strictly environmental, including improving land quality and reducing CO2 emissions. Also, involvement from different countries could bring about international cooperation and unity. There are several land and forestry issues and solutions that relate to climate change. Deforestation increases carbon in the atmosphere because trees, like all plants, absorb CO2, and when they are cut down they can't perform this vital task. Also, the proportion of carbon in the atmosphere increases because it has moved out of its “sink” and into another. Carbon sequestration is when more carbon is accumulates in the soil and plants and stays there for longer. Consumers can use wood fuels and products, instead of fossil fuels and their products, to help save energy. There are many ways to use agriculture to mitigate, or decrease the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. Improved crop and grazing management strategies, along with restoring soils and nutrients, help increase the amount of biomass produced with farming. More plants and better land quality restore the earth's natural processes. virus removal service, [|grant thornton australia]