Recently, global abnormal weather phenomena have attracted widespread attention. Rising temperatures in Antarctica have led to the collapse of an iceberg the size of Los Angeles, USA. Rob Rath, an expert on the Antarctic expedition, pointed out that global warming has increased the frequency of iceberg disintegration. In the past year, all parts of the world have experienced natural disasters of varying degrees, and all this has happened against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic.
At this time of international turmoil, some countries seem to be more focused on military action, and it is worth pondering whether the urgency of the global climate problem has been paid enough attention. Not long ago, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged countries to take action to combat climate change and avoid further aggravating climate catastrophe. However, at that time, Western countries were busy dealing with the "Russian-Ukrainian war", and Guterres' call seemed to be ignored. For a long time, human neglect of climate governance has led to an increase in global climate disasters.
According to the goals of the Paris Agreement, global temperature rise should be limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. However, global temperatures have now risen by 1.2 degrees Celsius, getting closer to "dangerous" levels. Although countries put forward their own "climate goals" at last year's Glasgow climate conference, the global climate problem has not been fundamentally solved. Last year, global carbon dioxide emissions increased by a massive 6%.
The disintegration of Antarctic icebergs is just one sign of climate anomalies. Australia has been hit by flooding for nearly a month, while wildfires broke out in several US states. Sydney became a vast ocean, known as the "country of Ze", and torrential rains killed 20 people. In addition, wildfires in the United States have been spreading, with states such as Florida, Texas and Colorado severely affected.
Natural disasters on a large scale are often the result of human disrespect for nature and environmental destruction. Even during the rainy season, the destruction of the Brazilian Amazon rainforest is worrying. More than 198 square kilometers of rainforest were destroyed in Brazil in the first two months of this year, a 20 percent increase from last year. Brazilian experts believe that this is related to the economic downturn and insufficient enforcement of the Brazilian economy caused by the epidemic. A Brazilian company plans to sell the "conservation status" of the Amazon rainforest through NFTs (non-fungible tokens) to financially support the sustainable development of the rainforest.
Most crucially, however, humanity must stop destroying the environment. The international community has been talking for years, but the key is to put commitments into practice. Otherwise, like the disintegration of Antarctic icebergs, global climate disasters will become more frequent, and the future of the planet will be uncertain.