In modern mass media, climate change has become a hot buzzword and a point of contention between Republicans and Democrats. We argue about whether it is a hoax and have grown increasingly desensitized to statistics about rising ocean levels or endangered species. We see the latest warnings from ecologists about how we have only 18 months to save the Earth, shrug, and keep binge-watching our favorite Netflix show. While everybody is vaguely aware that climate change is a major problem, few Americans have actually bothered to research this issue thoroughly themselves beyond reading a few headlines. This is why I believe it is necessary to conduct careful, thorough research on why climate change is a threat to our planet and how to stop it. Knowledge is the intermediary between awareness and action. If we know the specific process behind climate change and who exactly is responsible, we can protest, push for legislative reform, and demand responsibility from our government and corporations.
Audience
My target audience for this research paper is the youth because we are the ones who will feel the burden of climate change within our lifetimes. This is an issue that makes us feel anxious and frightened about our future because it concerns us so personally. However, I believe studying this issue in depth will make us feel outraged, which is a more effective emotion because it pushes us into action instead of passive acceptance. As we have witnessed from online political movements, this outrage can be a massive instigator for change if we organize effectively and demand it. Modern mass media has shifted the debate to whether climate change exists at all, which only distracts us from the central questions of why it is a threat to humans and how to stop it. What contributes to natural disasters? Why are rising temperature levels and melting glaciers a problem? It is necessary for the youth to know the answers to these questions so we can figure out ways to solve them.
Purpose
The aim of this research is to help both me and my readers understand the topic of climate change from an academic viewpoint, rather than getting a filtered version from mass media and politicians. Media conglomerates have their own political agenda and corporate interests in mind, while politicians are either aiming for reelection or appeasing corporate sponsors (Doyle). In other words, we are getting skewed information that is not necessarily presented in the best interest of the public (Petersen, Vincent and Westerling). While the Internet and social media were once considered to be the great equalizers, recent studies on the echo-chamber effect and rigged Google results have proven otherwise. This is why it is necessary to approach climate change through the prism of peer-reviewed, evidence-based scholarship that presents the issue in all its complexity and has no ulterior motive other than to expand our knowledge. Ultimately, I hope my research will serve as a call to action for the youth.
Schedule
My research will focus on how climate change threatens the planet and how to stop it. From November 22nd to November 24th, I will try to grasp the scope of academic research on this topic by perusing online scholarly sources such as Jstor and our university library. My aim is to understand what kind of research has been done before, current trends, and select sources that will serve as the backbone for my research (Serdeczny; Tol; Estrada, Botzen, and Tol; Pecl, Gretta et al.). From November 25th to November 27th, I will read my selected sources more closely and highlight exactly which information I would like to integrate into my paper. From November 28th to December 2nd, I will write my rough draft, aiming for approximately 300 words per day. The following days will be spent on revision, polishing, and putting the final touches. On December 7th, I will finally hand in my paper that effectively synthesizes current academic scholarship on climate change for the youth that will hopefully galvanize them into action.
Works Cited
Doyle, Julie. Mediating Climate Change. Routledge, 2016.
Estrada, Francisco, Botzen, Wouter J., and Tol, Richard S.J. “A Global Economic Assessment of City Policies to Reduce Climate Change Impacts.” Nature Climate Change, vol. 7, no. 6, 2017, pp. 403-406.
Pecl, Gretta T., et al. “Biodiversity Redistribution Under Climate Change: Impacts on Ecosystems and Human Well-being.” Science, vol. 355, no. 6332, 2017.
Petersen, Alexander, Vincent, Emmanuel M., and Westerling, Anthony L. “Discrepancy in Scientific Authority and Media Visibility of Climate Change Scientists and Contrarians.” Nature communications, vol. 10, no. 1, 2019, pp. 1-14.
Serdeczny, Olivia, et al. “Climate Change Impacts in Sub-Saharan Africa: From Physical Changes to Their Social Repercussions.” Regional Environmental Change, vol. 17, no. 6, 2017, pp. 1585-1600.
Tol, Richard S.J. “The Economic Impacts of Climate Change.” Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, 2020.