Everyday engagement with climate change

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Phoenix ◽  
Uma Vennam ◽  
Catherine Walker ◽  
Janet Boddy
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Environmental Issues ◽  
Anthropogenic Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Concerns ◽  
Majority World ◽  
Local Environments ◽  
The Uk

This introductory chapter elaborates on the concept of climate change. It considers how families and the children within them think and feel about their local environments and how these ‘small’ environmental issues fit with ‘big’ environmental concerns about climate change in one country in the Majority world (India), and one in the Minority world (the UK). There is a great deal of evidence that, while most scientists agree that anthropogenic climate change is a pressing issue and most people believe that climate change needs to be addressed, relatively few in countries that produce the most carbon emissions are prepared to make sacrifices to deal with it.

Environmental affordances and the work of everyday family lives

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Phoenix ◽  
Uma Vennam ◽  
Catherine Walker ◽  
Janet Boddy
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Environmental Issues ◽  
Extreme Weather ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Environmental Concerns ◽  
Weather Events ◽  
Environmental Messages ◽  
The Uk

This chapter looks at the sort of environmental issues that families in India and the UK had to negotiate: sometimes routinely (for example, pollution and danger from road traffic) and sometimes unpredictably (for example, flooding and other extreme weather events). It addresses the complexity of the intermeshing of environmental concerns and practices by focusing on families who were so preoccupied with caring for their families and the daily grind of family maintenance that this superseded concern with climate change. Since families live in diverse material circumstances, environmental messages are likely to be received in different ways and to have varied impacts on different families and children.

A qualitative assessment of the impact of smart homes and environmentally beneficial technologies on the UK 2050 net-zero carbon emission target

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ghasson Shabha ◽  
Francesca Barber ◽  
Paul Laycock
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Smart Home ◽  
Smart Homes ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Net Zero ◽  
Zero Carbon ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Home Technology ◽  
Smart Home Technology

PurposeThere are 29 million homes in the UK, accounting for 14% of the UK's energy consumption. This is given that UK has one of the highest water and energy demands in Europe which needs to be addressed according to the Committee on Climate Change (CCC). Smart homes technology holds a current perception that it is principally used by “tech-savvy” users with larger budgets. However, smart home technology can be used to control water, heat and energy in the entire house. This paper investigates how smart home technology could be effectively utilised to aid the UK government in meeting climate change targets and to mitigate the environmental impact of a home in use towards reducing carbon emissions.Design/methodology/approachBoth primary and secondary data were sought to gain insight into the research problem. An epistemological approach to this research is to use interpretivism to analyse data gathered via a semi-structured survey. Two groups of participants were approached: (1) professionals who are deemed knowledgeable about smart home development and implementation and (2) users of smart home technology. A variety of open-ended questions were formulated, allowing participants to elaborate by exploring issues and providing detailed qualitative responses based on their experience in this area which were interpreted quantitatively for clearer analysis.FindingsWith fossil fuel reserves depleting, there is an urgency for renewable, low carbon energy sources to reduce the 5 tonnes annual carbon emissions from a UK household. This requires a multi-faceted and a multimethod approach, relying on the involvement of both the general public and the government in order to be effective. By advancing energy grids to make them more efficient and reliable, concomitant necessitates a drastic change in the way of life and philosophy of homeowners when contemplating a reduction of carbon emissions. If both parties are able to do so, the UK is more likely to reach its 2050 net-zero carbon goal. The presence of a smart meter within the household is equally pivotal. It has a positive effect of reducing the amount of carbon emissions and hence more need to be installed.Research limitations/implicationsFurther research is needed using a larger study sample to achieve more accurate and acceptable generalisations about any future course of action. Further investigation on the specifics of smart technology within the UK household is also needed to reduce the energy consumption in order to meet net-zero carbon 2050 targets due to failures of legislation.Practical implicationsFor smart homes manufacturers and suppliers, more emphasis should be placed to enhance compatibility and interoperability of appliances and devices using different platform and creating more user's friendly manuals supported by step-by-step visual to support homeowners in the light of the wealth of knowledge base generated over the past few years. For homeowners, more emphasis should be placed on creating online knowledge management platform easily accessible which provide virtual support and technical advice to home owners to deal with any operational and technical issues or IT glitches. Developing technical design online platform for built environment professionals on incorporating smart sensors and environmentally beneficial technology during early design and construction stages towards achieving low to zero carbon homes.Originality/valueThis paper bridges a significant gap in the body of knowledge in term of its scope, theoretical validity and practical applicability, highlighting the impact of using smart home technology on the environment. It provides an insight into how the UK government could utilise smart home technology in order to reduce its carbon emission by identifying the potential link between using smart home technology and environmental sustainability in tackling and mitigating climate change. The findings can be applied to other building types and has the potential to employ aspects of smart home technology in order to manage energy and water usage including but not limited to healthcare, commercial and industrial buildings.

International carbon transition debates to intensify

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Coal Production ◽  
International Labour Organisation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Carbon Neutrality ◽  
Developed Economies ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Eu

Subject Carbon transitions. Significance The EU in May failed to reach an agreement on how to achieve a long-term strategy on reducing carbon emissions. One of the issues underlying the persistent differences among member states was the question of how to achieve a ‘just transition’. This is becoming an increasingly significant element of national and international debates on tackling climate change. Impacts The International Labour Organisation believes a transition limiting heat rises to 2 degrees by 2030 would create 24 million jobs globally. Global coal production may stabilise as reductions in developed economies are offset by increases in Asia. The UK Treasury estimates that achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 will cost 1 trillion pounds (1.26 trillion dollars).

scholarly journals Environmental Concerns of Russian Businesses: Top Company Missions and Climate Change Agenda

Climate ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tatyana K. Molchanova ◽  
Natalia N. Yashalova ◽  
Dmitry A. Ruban
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Energy Production ◽  
Environmental Issues ◽  
Mission Statements ◽  
Environmental Concerns ◽  
Mining Companies ◽  
Precipitation Increase

Climate change is on the national agenda of Russia due to this country’s contribution to greenhouse gas emissions and the expected degree of warming and precipitation increase in its territory. A content analysis of the mission statements of the 100 biggest Russian companies shows that 18.5% of them deal with environmental issues. About half of the companies that declare pro-environmental behavior belong to the energy production and transmission industry. It also is found that more than 30% of all leading hydrocarbon, chemical, and mining companies express environmental concerns in their mission statements. The main environmental priorities declared by the top Russian companies include caring for nature, production ecologization, energy efficiency, and ecological standards. These priorities are related to climate-friendly behavior, but the latter is not stated directly. Direct consideration of climate change in the mission statements of Russian companies is recommended.

Ways of understanding family practices across contexts

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Phoenix ◽  
Uma Vennam ◽  
Catherine Walker ◽  
Janet Boddy
Keyword(s):  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Children And Families ◽  
Everyday Lives ◽  
Majority World ◽  
Local Environments ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Multi Method Approach ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Global And Local ◽  
Method Approach

This chapter explores the situated, dynamic, and relational complexities, and of the ways in which space, place, and time intersect with meanings of environment in the everyday lives of children and families. It sets out to disrupt assumptions of Minority to Majority world learning, and homogenising notions of cross-national in/comparability, through a methodological approach designed to create an analytic conversation across diverse contexts within and between India and the UK. The chapter focuses on the relationality and materiality of everyday lives, devising a multi-method approach in order to capture the interconnectedness of family lives and practices. It uses a common world approach that seeks to avoid the unhelpful binarisations of big and small or ‘global’ and ‘local’ environments, which act as a barrier to understanding.

Catholic clerical responses to climate change and Pope Francis’s Laudato Si’

2020 ◽  
pp. 251484862097402
Author(s):  
Dominic Wilkins
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Environmental Issues ◽  
Environmental Concerns ◽  
Environmental Action ◽  
Environmental Movements ◽  
Catholic Clergy ◽  
The World ◽  
Systemic Barriers ◽  
The Catholic Church

The 2015 release of Pope Francis’s encyclical on the environment—Laudato Si’—was met with widespread praise by many who hoped this document would spur Catholics around the world to join movements struggling against climate change. Frequently, these hopes were accompanied by expectations that leaders in the Catholic Church would begin greening their churches and help integrate their parishioners into broader environmental movements. However, while there are strong theoretical rationales supporting Catholic environmental action, few studies have examined what—if anything—is actually happening. This paper responds to this gap by assessing how Catholic clergy in one U.S. diocese are engaging environmental concerns. Drawing upon 31 interviews with priests and deacons across the Diocese of Syracuse, N.Y., this study finds that few clergy are substantively engaging environmental issues. In addition, this paper identifies and discusses several personal and systemic barriers hampering Catholic clerical efforts to further green their churches.

The Counterintuitive Relationship between Globalization and Climate Change

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 8-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Samuel Barkin
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Effects ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Economic Globalization ◽  
Anthropogenic Climate Change ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Sea Transport ◽  
Trade Routes ◽  
Anthropogenic Carbon ◽  
The Cost

Scholars and activists are concerned, sometimes simultaneously, with mitigation of anthropogenic climate change and the environmental effects of globalization. Many analysts argue that a solution to both problems is localization; increasing the costs of transportation should increase the cost of long-distance transportation, making local and regional exchange economically relatively more efficient. The argument here, however, is that dealing with climate change will have the effect of reinforcing patterns of economic globalization, at the expense of patterns of economic nationalization and continentalization. Transportation by sea has historically been, and continues to be, more fuel-efficient than transportation by land. Limiting anthropogenic carbon emissions in transportation therefore favors sea transport over land transport. Historically, patterns of trade favored global seaborne trade routes over trade within land-based regions. The model to look in understanding the effect of action on climate change on global trade pattens, therefore, is not the future proposed by the localists, it is at historical patterns.

scholarly journals The impact of COVID-19 related regulations and restrictions on mobility and potential for sustained climate mitigation across the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK: A data-based commentary.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Corker ◽  
Kaloyan Mitev ◽  
Astrid Nilsson ◽  
Milan Tamis ◽  
Thijs Bouman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Behaviour Change ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Observed Behaviour ◽  
Mitigate Climate Change ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Behaviour Changes ◽  
The Impact

Human behaviour change is necessary to meet targets set by the Paris Agreement to mitigate climate change. Restrictions and regulations put in place globally to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 during 2020 have had a substantial impact on everyday life, including many carbon-intensive behaviours such as transportation. Changes to transportation behaviour may reduce carbon emissions. Behaviour change theory can offer perspective on the drivers and influences of behaviour and shape recommendations for how policy-makers can capitalise on any observed behaviour changes that may mitigate climate change. For this commentary, we aimed to describe changes in data relating to transportation behavioursrelating to working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic across the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK. We display these identified changes in a concept map, suggesting links between the changes in behaviour and levels of carbon emissions. We consider these changes in relation to a comprehensive and easy to understand model of behaviour, the COM-B, to understand the capabilities, opportunities and behaviours related to the observed behaviour changes and potential policy to mitigate climate change. There is now an opportunity for policy-makers to increase the likelihood of maintaining pro-environmental behaviour changes by providing opportunities, improving capabilities and maintaining motivation for these behaviours.

A ticking time bomb? Liverpool declares a climate emergency: What next?

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 169-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jasbinder Ghag
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Local Level ◽  
City Council ◽  
Ice Caps ◽  
Net Zero ◽  
Key Stakeholders ◽  
Uk Government ◽  
The Uk

The UK government has set a new legally binding target under the Climate Change Act 2008. It now aims to cut carbon emissions to net zero by 2050. This opinion considers whether carbon emissions can really be reduced in practice at the local level in the UK, and uses Liverpool City Council as a case study example. It argues that without coordinated action by various people within the council, between its respective departments, other authorities, organisations, key stakeholders and residents the new target is very unlikely to be met. It also highlights the fact that notwithstanding this, the ice caps are actually melting even faster than even the scientists had predicted and that time is actually running out. It argues that radical action is what is needed and that it is needed now.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document