Social vulnerability measures the population's sensitivity to natural disasters. It helps identify areas that require special attention to ensure the long-term recovery and survival of a society following a disaster. Socially vulnerable counties have certain characteristics that make it less likely they will survive a natural catastrophe. The most vulnerable characteristics include gender, race/ethnicity as well as socioeconomic status and housing tenure.
The geography of social vulnerability has changed significantly over the past 50 years. Most of the counties with high social vulnerability remain in the U.S.-Mexico border area and along the lower Mississippi River. These areas are accompanied by an increase of social vulnerability in other areas of the United States. For instance, many counties in the Great Plains have seen an increase in social vulnerability. This trend is not always a sign that there is more population, but it can also be a result the depopulation of the area.
In the last few decades, the United States has experienced major changes in both its economy and built environment. This led both to more development and an increase in social vulnerability.
From the 1960s through 2000, the Southwest, Florida and the Deep South were home to the most vulnerable population. By the 1990s, the Great Plains had seen a large population decrease, resulting in a decrease in the number of clusters of high vulnerability. The average social vulnerability in Alaska, Hawaii, or other areas of the nation was now at an average level.
Over the past decade, the northern Great Plains have seen high levels of social vulnerability. Similar patterns can also be seen in the lower Rio Grande Valley, and the lower Mississippi Valley. In southern California, as well as in larger metropolitan areas in the U.S., there will be high levels of social vulnerability. Furthermore, the Southwest will likely continue to have high levels of social vulnerability.
Despite these changes, the overall geographic distribution of social vulnerability remains relatively consistent across the U.S. Approximately 73% to 78% of the variation in social vulnerability is explained by the SoVI. As a result, SoVI can be used to map the spatial distribution of social vulnerability.
It is not easy to assess social vulnerability. The complexity of measuring social vulnerability is due to the fact that different groups in a community have different capacities to deal with hazard effects. To assess their vulnerability, one must understand the factors that affect the diversity of the society. These factors can be attributed to the political, economic, and social factors that have an impact on the distributions of resources within the communities.
The 1990 US Census provided more than 250 variables to help determine social vulnerability. Each component was normalized, then a regression scoring method was used to calculate a score for the county. The weights were calculated by the percentage variance explained by each of these components. Results indicated that the greatest variation in the components was associated with socioeconomic status.
FAQ
What is the contribution of human activity to climate change?
Climate change is caused primarily by human activity. In fact, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), humans are responsible for more than 70% of all global warming since the mid-20th century.
Carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels like oil, coal, and gas. This adds to already existing levels of atmospheric CO2, which act as a "greenhouse gas" by trapping heat from the sun in Earth's atmosphere and increasing temperatures even further. As Arctic ice melts, this causes ocean levels to rise and can cause severe weather patterns all over the globe, including floods, droughts and storms that could lead to food shortages.
Deforestation. Trees that absorb atmospheric carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in photosynthesis will be effected by being cut down. Cutting down forests also increases albedo - the amount of reflected solar radiation coming back into space - reducing solar heat absorption by the earth's surface thus promoting excessive warming at the global level. The deforestation of forests can also affect the local air quality, which is directly linked to respiratory problems.
Farming: Between 14% and 18% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions are attributed to animal agriculture each year. Large amounts of methane gas are released by animal waste due to its richness in methane bacteria. Eating less or none of these products can reduce global warming.
In conclusion, although human activity has had a devastating impact on our environment for centuries, technological advancements have enabled us to focus our minds towards the future. Instead of relying on carbon-emitting heavy industry, we can use green innovation to create eco-friendly efforts that combat climate change effectively and ensure everyone's safety.
What are the consequences of climate change for society and the environment?
Climate Change has broad effects on both the environment and society. Climate change can have many effects on the environment. These changes could have serious consequences for humans, causing instability in communities, intensifying poverty, insect-borne illnesses, changing human migration patterns, and destroying essential habitats.
Already, climate disruption is already having profound impacts on the environment and society around the world. As global temperatures rise, this trend is likely to intensify in the near term.
One of the most widespread effects of climate change is the rising ocean levels due to melting of ice caps. This leads to shoreline erosion at many coasts as well as an increased risk for flooding for coastal communities. Saltwater intrusion also occurs, negatively affecting freshwater supplies in coastal regions in many countries around the world.
Due to climate change, extreme weather phenomena such as heatwaves/droughts frequently occur across many countries in the world. These extreme weather events can cause widespread destruction of homes and businesses. In some cases, they lead to the displacement or relocation or even complete destruction of entire towns. In addition, intense storms create further risks related to flooding or landslides that increase damages to infrastructure such as roads and railways.
Climate change is also causing wildfires to become more frequent than ever before. This can have devastating effects on habitats as well as people living near them.
Such drastic changes in living conditions often result in displacement or even refugee crises when people move away from their homes either voluntarily or involuntarily because their towns have become too dangerous or no longer habitable given their altered climate conditions against which they cannot cope adequately.
Increased aridity also increases dust storms worldwide with unhealthy air pollution caused by these making it difficult for people who suffer from respiratory illnesses such as asthma especially vulnerable. Furthermore, pest infestations are predicted to rise in tandem with warmer temperatures. This phenomenon is known as the 'greenhousebug'. Global food insecurity will continue to grow as fewer crops have lower nutritional qualities. This could potentially lead to more hardships for people already struggling to make ends work.
What does climate change politics have to do with global efforts to combat it?
Climate change is highly politicized and has caused division between governments, individuals, and nations. The political stances taken by different actors will impact the implementation measures to combat climate changes. It has become difficult to find consensus on global efforts to tackle this pressing environmental crisis.
Scientific consensus is unanimous that human-caused climate change is real and needs to be addressed. These politics often hamper global cooperation needed to achieve effective progress in implementing sustainable energy practices.
Many governments around the globe want to protect business interests and enforce policies that restrict business activities. This often clashes with regulations that experts recommend for effectively addressing climate change. Without strong commitments of all participating countries, and international action on a large scale, it becomes difficult for any state or group or states to effectively address climate-change legislation.
Further complicating the process of reaching full agreement on how to deal with climate change is the differences in power dynamics. Countries with greater economic power are more likely to elect their own representatives to the international bodies responsible for negotiations on the environment. This can cause lopsided discussions about the interests of each country versus the collective interest all parties. Additionally, the potential side effects of implementing radical changes like geoengineering are being heavily debated at both national as well international levels.
A grassroots movement has also struggled against powerful opposition, including corporate ownerships as well-funded lobbyists trying to keep their industries politically favorable. This is especially true when it comes funding research into alternative energy production and enforcing mandates for renewable energy technology. Individual governments need to be clear about the potential rewards and outcomes of making valid progress on the issue. They cannot seek short-term spectacles or gains to gain public support.
A coordinated effort to reduce our environmental crisis will only succeed if resources are distributed properly and there is no political divide between nations.
Statistics
- Fossil fuel production must decline by roughly 6 percent per year between 2020 and 2030. (un.org)
- This source accounts for about 10% of all the water that enters this highly productive farmland, including rivers and rain. (climate.nasa.gov)
- Indigenous peoples and local communities receive less than 1% of all climate funding despite scoring wins for people and nature Africa's broken food markets must be fixed to tackle hunger (climatechangenews.com)
- According to the 2014 report on Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability (page 8) from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, governments at various levels are also getting better at adaptation. (climate.nasa.gov)
- The 10 countries with the largest emissions contribute 68 percent. (un.org)
External Links
How To
How to Support Climate-Friendly Businesses and Policies
Individuals can take several steps to support climate-friendly policies and companies. This can include speaking out against non-climate-friendly businesses or politicians, voting for pro-environment candidates, writing letters or emails of encouragement to those who are already taking positive action towards the environment, and signing petitions in favor of policies that encourage and support climate-friendliness. Individuals can also choose to switch providers to companies with a better environmental record, or opt for sustainable products over ones with higher carbon emission.
A key step to supporting climate-friendly policies is reducing one's carbon footprint. It is possible to make simple changes such as turning off lights and unplugging devices, moving by public transport or carpooling, using eco-friendly household goods like biodegradable cleaning products and composting kitchen wastes instead of adding them to the landfills.
Investors who want to support climate friendly policies should search for companies with lower carbon emissions prior to investing. Additionally, they should look into their portfolios periodically to ensure they meet the sustainability standards they have set themselves ahead of time. Investors may want to ensure that their investments in Green bonds do not finance projects with any activity which contributes more greenhouse gases into the air than they take away. Investors should consider any opportunities that could allow funds to be used for green business activities. These include renewable energy alternatives as a way to promote sustainability and community-building projects using green technologies.