Learning the Carbon Cycle and Anthropogenic Climate Change

The Economist’s short film explains the Carbon cycle and how human activities are among the causes of climate change. The video shows the vast amounts of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere, which began in the late 18^th century at the dawn of the industrial age.

Fast forward to the late 20th century, Oliver Morton, The Economist’s briefing editor, explains that the amounts of carbon dioxide from fossil fuel extraction and use “go through the roof, the increases in levels have never been seen for millions of years,” and this is the reason for climate change.

The video explains the carbon cycle and how it operates in dynamic equilibrium. Human activity has disrupted the cycle’s balance by releasing enormous amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere over only a few hundred years.

Is there a way to restore this balance, and what climate mitigation will humans take to end climate change?

If emissions continue, what climate adaptation is needed to protect humans and infrastructures against the consequences of climate change?

Watch the video below:

BACKGROUND IMAGE CREDIT: By Pierre Friedlingstein, Matthew W. Jones, Michael O’Sullivan et al. – https://essd.copernicus.org/articles/11/1783/2019/, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link