Awareness Campaign on the Matter of Global Warming

Abstract

In this proposal, out team/company offers an awareness campaign on the matter of Global warming, its effect on economies of Southeast Asian countries and global wildlife and aquatic life, as well as actions/solutions an individual could take to offset/delay the global warming. The topics to be addressed regarding Southeast Asian countries would include dent in exports, decrease in labor capacity, the strain on electricity infrastructure, and other threats imposed by global warming on the economies of SA countries. As for wildlife and aquatic life topics, they would comprise of the following: what is global warming; why oceans are turning more acidic; storms and heatwaves, draught and melting glaciers, as well as loss of species as consequences of global warming and human activities. Lastly, the topics regarding solutions/actions to take to delay global warming would include: using green energy, reducing meat consumption, saving water, weatherizing and etc. The aforementioned messages/topics would be delivered to the audience through flash banners, short videos and merchandise.

Problem statement

There are two main problems addressed on the matter of awareness about the Global warming problem. Firstly, some people being aware of such problems, yet not completely understand the seriousness of the problem. Secondly, some people know the full extent of the problem, yet not know how to contribute their efforts into delaying of climate change, or thinking that the efforts of one individual are not enough to deal with such a global problem.

Below are examples of the main topics regarding first problem:

Global warming:

Global warming – the gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth’s atmosphere due to the greenhouse effect caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide, CFCs, and other pollutants. (Oxford Reference)

Problems regarding wildlife and aquatic life:

1. As the concentration of carbon dioxide grows, some of its excessive amounts is absorbed by the Earth’s oceans turning them more acidic, consequently making them less hospitable for sea life.
2. Because of the climate change, both humans and wild animals face new struggles in order to survive as more frequent and intense droughts, heat waves and storms, rising sea levels and warming oceans, as well as melting glaciers bare threat, directly harming animals, destroying their habitats and bringing chaos to human live hoods and communities.
3. Warming of the past century already has resulted in marked ecological changes, including changes in growing seasons, species ranges, and patterns of seasonal breeding, which, if unchecked, can lead to the loss of the species. (WWF, 2019).

Problems regarding Southeast Asia:

1. If not restrained, by 2050 the climate change will cause global economy loss of billions, with estimated 3 per cent loss of regional GDP in Southeast Asia.
2. Global warming will most probably extremely dent exports in Southeast Asian region, as well as put unprecedented strain on already frail electricity supplies for cooling during rising heat.
3. By 2050, Southeast Asia would possibly experience drop in labour capacity up to 16 percent and cost SA’s export revenue up to US$78 billion per year. Such drop will occur due to the increasing degrees of heat stress that decreases productivity of workers through such symptoms as dehydration and fatigue. Moreover, Malaysia and Singapore will be a/effected the most by such matter, as based on intensity of the work, agricultural, manufacturing, and oil and gas sectors are most inclined to such condition.
4. Mitigating the threats posed by global warming, companies will need to pay extra production costs for cooling, consequently adding a load on local electricity infrastructure, which, in turn, will surge the risk of power outages. As SA’s electricity infrastructure is already one of the weakest worldwide, with no upgrades made to it, the added strain will result in more frequent power outages. Richard Hewston Principal environmental analyst, Verisk Maplecroft. (CNA, 2018).

Following are examples of the topics in relation to the second problem:

1. Saving water;
2. Reducing consumption of meat;
3. Weatherizing (weatherproofing) – the act of making a building weatherproof. (Collins Dictionary).
4. Using renewable (green) energy;
5. Pulling the plugs (removing fully charged devices from the plugs);
6. Using energy-saving light bulbs;
7. Recycling plastic and other materials. (NRDC, 2017).

Proposed solutions

As mentioned earlier, our awareness campaign focuses on tackling two problems: audience’s awareness in regards of Global warming problem and its threats; and audience’s awareness of the action an individual could take to stall the Global warming progression. We propose to deliver our message to the audience through informative flash banners, short video clips and merchandise.

For instance, to show the audience that and individual action can have an impact on global issue, a set of flash banners and video clips can be used, showing small everyday actions a person can do to contribute into delaying Global warming.

As for the merchandise, the items can display illustrations and info graphics about the threats imposed by Global warming on human and animal lives.

Through such media, we plan to spread awareness to the bigger audience and let them know that even small daily action that might seem insignificant, in reality can make a difference even in regards of global problem.

Reference List:

1. Asian Dialogue (2018, Dec 10). The Long Read: A Southeast Asia perspective on climate change and negative emission technologies. Retrieved from: https://theasiadialogue.com/2018/12/10/a-southeast-asia-perspective-on-climate-change-and-negative-emission-technologies/
2. CNA (2018, Oct 8). Commentary: Rising temperatures will make Southeast Asian economies sweat. Retrieved from: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/commentary/rising-temperatures-in-southeast-asia-impact-economy-10775624
3. Collins Dictionary (n/a). Definition of Weatherization. Retrieved on 20 Oct. 2019, from: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/weatherization
4. NRDC (2017, July 17). How You Can Stop Global Warming. Retrieved from: https://www.nrdc.org/stories/how-you-can-stop-global-warming
5. Oxford Reference (n/a). Overview: Global Warming. Retrieved on 20 Oct. 2019, from: https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803095855385
6. WWF (2019). Effects of Climate Change. Retrieved from: https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/effects-of-climate-change
7. WWF (n.a.). A growing need for species to adapt to a changing world. Retrieved from: https://wwf.panda.org/our_work/wildlife/problems/climate_change/