The Social Impact of Climate Change

The biggest social impact of climate change today is the underpinning of the existing gap between the rich and the poor.

The observation is indeed very ironical - Although the carbon footprint of the poorest billion people is the least of the world’s total footprint, they are the ones who would suffer the most.
Heat waves such as those which occurred in Europe in 2003, which caused up to 70,000 “excess” deaths, will unquestionably occur again. Under the consequent circumstances, while the rich will be cooling themselves in their air conditioned rooms, millions of poverty stricken bodies will be incinerating on the footpaths.

Try imagining a situation of acute water and food shortage (due to climate change I must mention) leading to war and mass migration. Who do you think would be the nomads !? You ? Me ? Any of us reading this article on our laptops or PC’s ?? I choose not to answer the question...

In the next Century, climate change would reduce the staple crop yields in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa and would have a crippling effect on the stability and quantity of food supply and purchasing power of the agricultural population (in other words, the “not-so-rich” population).

Poor people are the most vulnerable to natural disasters, the most reliant on harvests coming at the right time, and the least able to adapt or move away from dangerous places.

That’s why climate change hits poor people hardest.

Churu and Hanumangarh are two districts in the state of Rajasthan. The people living in these areas have to face 8 hours of power cut everyday. Blaming ourselves for their plight and distress, we, a few students of BITS Pilani decided to embark on a “mission” to “tackle” the problem of climate change.

From provision of fresh water and drought-resistant seeds to training workshops on the most effective ways to adapt to the impacts of climate change, we tried to bring a practical and spiritual transformation to the people who need it most.

And while we burn inequitable amounts of fossil fuels, many poor people have no access to sustainable fuels at all. Providing them with clean, renewable energy technology gave communities here new opportunities to develop without further contributing to climate change.

For instance, a solar-powered light enabled children and young people to study at home in the evenings. Using renewable fuels instead of firewood saved the time spent collecting wood every day which was used for paid work. This in turn meant more income for better food and for children’s school fees. Alternative fuels also helped reduce potentially life-threatening smoke pollution from home wood-burners.

All these efforts helped poor communities respond quickly and effectively to the challenges of climate change. With the right help, these communities can finally “ADAPT” to cope with the harsh effects of climate change (if we ASSUME that the problems associated with climate change cannot be mitigated, let alone eradication)...