Children

“There is no trust more sacred than the one the world holds with children. There is no duty more important than ensuring that their rights are respected, that their welfare is protected, that their lives are free from fear and want and that they can grow up in peace.”
– Kofi Annan

Mark Vallen from his series Art for Change

They are your children, though you cannot and do not see them. They are all of our children…the parentless, homeless, abused, innocent victims of war, and the unloved children of the world.

Why are they our children? Because they are the future, they are the future politicians, war lords, business leaders, suicide bombers, teachers, terrorists, writers, dictators and presidents.

If our actions, love and understanding lead a child on the right path today, taking them out of war and strife, then how do we sit idly by and do nothing?

A future teacher or terrorist…The choice is ours!

Don’t let this coffin be filled with the body of yet another innocent child!

In my last post I covered the effects of climate change and global warning on our world’s children. However I wanted to take this time to add to that posting, and give more focus on the subject. I wanted to especially give more attention to Save the Children’s Legacy of Disasters; Children Bear the Brunt of Climate Warming Report.

Global Warming and Climate Change will affect all of us, but it is the children of the developing world that will be hit the hardest. Global Warming will increasing the amount of natural disasters, as well as their severity. One only has to look at the past few years, and the number of disasters, to see the increasing effect that these disasters are having on the children. If this is only the beginning of a long cycle of large and small scale natural disasters, then millions of our children will only have more suffering ahead.

As the report’s illustrate the true nature and relentlessness that the effects of climate change are having, and how we are taking them too lightly. These effects and disasters, especially slow-moving disasters, are currently seriously underreported. In the developing world children are already suffering needlessly through poverty, unclean water, disease, lack of education, and this will only increase with global warming, and the increase of natural disasters. Issues like poverty and disease are not the only problems that will increase for children as the effects of climate change are felt. As natural disasters continue to occur millions of people will become displaced, grow more economically vulnerable, and often increase civil unrest. This in turn puts children even more at risk for becoming victims of child labor, sex trafficking and tourism, being recruited as child soldiers, and other such appalling abuses. According to both Save the Children and the UNHCR children make up at least half of all the victims of disasters.

If a child’s parents are killed by a tsunami or hurricane, schools are wiped out by floods, crops are left unmarketable by drought, then a child’s right to shelter, nutrition and education needs to be met. Disasters put children at even more risk than adults, as they are more susceptible to disease, malnourishment, exploitation, and many become orphans at a time when there is little structure to take care of them, let alone find suitable placements for them.

So what does all this mean? It means we must take action, as consumers, citizens and parents. Governments need to both individually and collectively work to reduce our carbon emissions to curb global warming, put into place better disaster emergency and preparedness programs. According to Save The Children’s Report; “Rich industrialized countries should reduce carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 and agree to limit global warming to no more than two degrees Celsius through a new treaty based on the Kyoto Protocol.” The report also recommends that donors begin putting their funds towards disaster prevention and that child-centered programs should be included in donor plans.

We can not put an end to natural disasters and many are unlinked to global warming. However we must reduce the risk of these disasters ,and have proper emergency and recovery systems in place to eliminate as much needless suffering for our children as possible. I think we all learned from the hard lessons of hurricane Katrina, that even the wealthiest nations are not adequately prepared. If our children in the United States unnecessarily suffered in the wake of disaster, imagine what the suffering of the children in Asia where global warming and natural disasters have hit the hardest.In the article, ‘Refugee Babies: The Lasting Effects of Tsunami Aid in Sri Lanka’, one sees clearly that it is the children who are continually being victimized by the tsunami and its continuing after effects. The article talks not about merely the environmental effects of the tsunami, and how it has shaped these children’s lives, but how the relief work, aid and lack of infrastructure are making this children even more vulnerable almost two and a half years after the tsunami hit.

Prolonged drought is increasing the world’s desertification in many developing areas, which is increasing urban migration, and thus leading to overpopulation and urban poverty. This will only increase, and also be compounded by those seeking refugee in urban centers from other natural disasters. There is expected to be 50 million refugees due to climate change in only five years (“Millions Will Flee Degradation”). The urban population is anticipated to increase from 2.5 billion to 5 billion globally in the next twenty years (Save the Children). This is not just a population shift from rural to urban life, but a food and housing crisis. For where there is desertification, there is poverty and it is estimated that only 25% of the Africa population will be able to be sustained by 2025 if desertification continues at this rate (Mongabay).

The total number of people killed by natural disasters between 1996 and 2005 was 84 per cent higher than the number of people killed in the decade before (Save the Children). However it is not just large scale disasters, but also ‘slow-moving’ disasters, such as desertification, the collapse our fisheries and forests, and the rising sea levels. Sea levels are estimated to increase over 40 centimeters by 2080 (Save the Children), which will jeopardize the survival of many smaller island nations. The rising sea levels and their distruction can already be seen and felt by many communities, especially on one small Alaskan island, in the village of Shishmaref. The village of Shishmaref is already feeling the extreme effects as they estimate the tide is moving ten feet closer each year. The entire village of Shishmaref will be forced to move to the mainland and thus refugees of global warming (‘Sea Engulfing Alaskan Village’).

Predictions for as early as 2080 are not looking good, and though you are thinking, “I won’t be around”, but your children and grandchildren will be. Can we actually go on living like its all out of our control? Well, I know I for one cannot! But the reality is the change is now happening and it’s effects are with us, the worlds citizens. What will really happen in the long run with global warming, no one really knows the answers, but we cannot take any more chances. We must act now and put sustainable programs into place. We must have appropriate infrastructures and disaster response programs, increase and improve early warning systems. As citizens of a shrinking global world we must lobby our governments to make feasible changes, and not close our eyes to millions of children around the world.

Articles, Blogs and Links of Interest:

Again, I suggest that you look at Bill Hewitt’s blog on Climate Change if you have not yet done so.

Save the Children’s Legacy of Disasters; Children Bear the Brunt of Climate Warming Report

The Environment Agency in Britain

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

IPCC Summary Report

International Action on Global Warming (IGLO)

Facts and Figures: Desertification and Drought

USA Today, “Millions At Risk From Rising Sea Levels’

Climate Change and Global Warming are hot topics these days. We all hear the buzz around the water cooler, have had arguments with our friends and family, and listened cynically to the extremist co-worker, but the reality is no matter what we hear there is something happening to our world. As I sit here typing this with the Colbert Report on TV in the background, Senator Kerry is on the show discussing his new book, ‘This Moment on Earth’, and I know you’ve all heard of Al Gore’s documentary, ‘An Inconvenient Truth.’ Global Warming and climate change are not a conspiracy theory and regardless of how serious or detrimental you believe the issue to be, it’s something we cannot avoid.

I’m not a scientifically minded person at all, so I will be honest and say I don’t understand a lot of the technical reports on the issues of climate change, but I do understand the detriment of it all. I’m not saying that I’m good at the whole ‘green’ thing and I know I could be better, but I do try. I recycle as much as I can and I try to take my own bags to the supermarket, but I know that’s not enough. I hear people say all the time “Who cares, I’ll be dead when it happens .” and so on, but the reality is it’s already happening. No, we are not all going to melt tomorrow, but the effects are here and they are causing unneeded suffering to the world’s children. It’s hard not to believe that the changes have already started when you see all the natural disasters that have been occurring all around the world: tsunamis, hurricanes, typhoons, landslides and so much more.

But I think where I have been the most surprised lately is by this sudden shock to the press and media over all the reports coming out on the effects climate change is having on our worlds children. I find it no surprise at all that the children are the ones who are being most effected by global warming. The children are the ones who are to inherit our faults and problems, if not today then tomorrow, but they will suffer more than I can imagine. It is always the children who suffer more out of any disaster, and that is what climate change is, a series of disasters that will only heighten the disease and poverty of so many children.

On April 5, 2007, Save the Children UK published a report Legacy of Disasters; Children Bear the Brunt of Climate Warming. The sixteen-page report states that approximately 175 million children will be affected by climate change induced natural disasters every year. The report also says that those exposed to malaria will increase 45% to 60% in the next 100 years because of climate change. Malaria is one of the largest fatal diseases of children under five. They estimate in the report that by 2010, there will be around 50 million people who have been displaced due to environmental disasters, most of whom will be woman and children.

The Environment Agency in Britain also issued a report in which it stated that because of the time delay in the warming effects of carbon gases in the atmosphere, temperatures would continue to rise for the next 40 years regardless of emissions curbs. And it should be no shock to anyone that it is our obsession with cars that is the main contributor, and hardest to curb, to climate control. I know how hard it is to avoid getting in your car and driving anywhere, but we must think harder about how we can be as efficient as possible. I believe our governments have a lot of work to do and more and more standards need to be set. For the consumer will buy it if it’s available, and that included the gas guzzling SUVs that Americans love so well, but I won’t get on my soapbox. The point is regardless of how we do it we must curb our intake of fossil fuels for they are increasing our world’s temperature and we must act now for the sake of our children and their future.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issued a summary report on April 6, 2007 for policy makers, on the effects of climate change for this century. Africa and Asia are expected to be the worst hit continents, and of course they are more underdeveloped and less prepared to deal with the effects. The report also states that between 200 and 600 million people will face hunger due to the effects of global warming by 2080.

Jasmine Whitbread, Save the Children UK’s Chief Executive, said:

“Our job is only going to get harder. Children are already bearing the brunt of climate change and there will be millions more children caught up in climate-related natural disasters every year that will urgently need our assistance. The warning bells have been sounding for long enough. Children can’t wait. The threat of climate change must be faced head on.”

Save the Children is tripling its capacity to respond to emergencies in response to global warming over the next three years.

The sad reality is we are talking about millions of children who will not only be displaced but also those who will be forced from their homes, killed, go hungry, suffer from disease, and become abused, physically and sexually, due to the consequential effects of climate change. Children make up about half of the victims of disasters and they are more susceptible to disease, malnutrition and other associated issues that will increase as the effects of global warming intensify.

It is the developing worlds children that are more at risk to the added effects of global warming due to the lack of adequate warning and emergency preparations systems. We saw this with the tsunami. However they will also be greatly affected by slower developing disasters like temperature extremes and a rise in the sea level. Many smaller disasters can tend to be ignored by the international community; however these will also increase and heavily affect those communities who are already at risk for poverty and it’s subsequent effects. The developing world is less capable to handle and adapt to these changes as are we, but it is they who are beginning to feel the effects the hardest.

The truth is no matter where we come from, we all share the same world and we will feel the effects of climate change. There is no First World and Third World when speaking of a child’s future, there is only one world and what we do today will effect them more than one can imagine

If you have not already, I suggest that you read my esteemed colleague Bill Hewitt’s blog on Climate Change.

Related Articles and Blogs:

The Boston Globe

Time Thief: ICCP Summary for Policy Makers

Reports From Four Fronts in the War on Warming

Special Report on Climate Change

Stolen Moments a Green Digest

“Children Already Bearing the Brunt of Global Warming”