Global dimension: Resource 1
KENYA
Temperatures have risen by 1.3°C and more unpredictable rain (upwards of 20 per cent more) is projected.
“I am 81 years old. I have witnessed remarkable changes in the climate in the last few decades. The rainfall pattern has become unpredictable and unreliable. It has become more challenging to plan any agricultural activities due to this. The type of cold has changed as well. I have noticed this change because of the increasing number of children suffering from pneumonia. I am concerned about these changes in the weather as they are greatly enhancing other challenges which my community is facing. I understand that these climatic changes are caused by emissions from burning of fossil fuels and clearing of forests.”
Juma Njunge Macharia
AUSTRALIA
There has been warming over the last 50 years and in particular in the last 20 years. There has been severe drought during the last few years.
“I am a 63-year-old fruit farmer. I have kept records of when apple trees blossom and these days they come into bloom one week earlier than they used to. In the 1970s and 1980s there used to be only an occasional occurrence of fruit flies in the orchard. This has changed dramatically with the numbers of flies increasing every year due to warmer weather.
The trees and fruit get sunburnt these days because of a combination of water stress and higher UV rays. My creek no longer runs with water when it used to run continuously through out the year.”
Jonathan Banks
FIJI
In 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted that sea levels were most likely to rise by 28-43cm and tropical storms will become more powerful.
“We have begun to notice that the fish and shellfish we used to be able to gather so easily are getting harder to find. There also used to be colourful, live coral from the edge of the beach out to the reef. But now everything has gone white. The sea is slowly eroding our coastline and spreading the sand over our fishing grounds.”
Penina Moce
Source: www.panda.org