1.WHAT IS CLIMATE CHANGE?

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns.

Such shifts can be natural, due to changes in the sun’s activity or large volcanic
eruptions. But since the 1800s, human activities have been the main driver of
climate change, primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and gases

Burning fossil fuels generates greenhouse gas emissions that act like a blanket
wrapped around the Earth, trapping the sun’s heat and raising temperatures.

The main greenhouse gases that are causing climate change include carbon dioxide
and methane. These come from using gasoline for driving a car or coal for heating
a building, for example. Clearing land and cutting down forests can also release
carbon dioxide. Agriculture, oil and gas operations are major sources of methane
emissions. Energy, industry, transport, buildings, agriculture and land use are
among the main sectors causing greenhouse gases.

2.FACTORS THAT AFFECT CLIMATE CHANGE

A. Hotter temperatures

As greenhouse gas concentrations rise, so does the global surface temperature. The
last decade, 2011-2020, is the warmest on record. Since the 1980s, each decade has
been warmer than the previous one. Nearly all land areas are seeing more hot days
and heat waves. Higher temperatures increase heat-related illnesses and make
working outdoors more difficult. Wildfires start more easily and spread more
rapidly when conditions are hotter. Temperatures in the Arctic have warmed at
least twice as fast as the global average.

B. More severe storms

Destructive storms have become more intense and more frequent in many regions.
As temperatures rise, more moisture evaporates, which exacerbates extreme
rainfall and flooding, causing more destructive storms. The frequency and extent of
tropical storms is also affected by the warming ocean. Cyclones, hurricanes, and
typhoons feed on warm waters at the ocean surface. Such storms often destroy
homes and communities, causing deaths and huge economic losses.

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C. Increased drought

Climate change is changing water availability, making it scarcer in more regions.

Global warming exacerbates water shortages in already water-stressed regions and
is leading to an increased risk of agricultural droughts affecting crops, and
ecological droughts increasing the vulnerability of ecosystems. Droughts can also
stir destructive sand and dust storms that can move billions of tons of sand across
continents. Deserts are expanding, reducing land for growing food. Many people
now face the threat of not having enough water on a regular basis.

D.A warming, rising ocean

The ocean soaks up most of the heat from global warming. The rate at which the
ocean is warming strongly increased over the past two decades, across all depths of
the ocean. As the ocean warms, its volume increases since water expands as it gets
warmer. Melting ice sheets also cause sea levels to rise, threatening coastal and
island communities. In addition, the ocean absorbs carbon dioxide, keeping it from
the atmosphere. But more carbon dioxide makes the ocean more acidic, which
endangers marine life and coral reefs.

E. Loss of species

Climate change poses risks to the survival of species on land and in the ocean.
These risks increase as temperatures climb. Exacerbated by climate change, the
world is losing species at a rate 1,000 times greater than at any other time in
recorded human history. One million species are at risk of becoming extinct within
the next few decades. Forest fires, extreme weather, and invasive pests and
diseases are among many threats related to climate change. Some species will be
able to relocate and survive, but others will not.

F.Not enough food

Changes in the climate and increases in extreme weather events are among the
reasons behind a global rise in hunger and poor nutrition. Fisheries, crops, and
livestock may be destroyed or become less productive. With the ocean becoming
more acidic, marine resources that feed billions of people are at risk. Changes in
snow and ice cover in many Arctic regions have disrupted food supplies from

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herding, hunting, and fishing. Heat stress can diminish water and grasslands for
grazing, causing declining crop yields and affecting livestock.

G. More health risks

Climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity. Climate
impacts are already harming health, through air pollution, disease, extreme weather
events, forced displacement, pressures on mental health, and increased hunger and
poor nutrition in places where people cannot grow or find sufficient food. Every
year, environmental factors take the lives of around 13 million people. Changing
weather patterns are expanding diseases, and extreme weather events increase
deaths and make it difficult for health care systems to keep up.

H. Poverty and displacement

Climate change increases the factors that put and keep people in poverty. Floods
may sweep away urban slums, destroying homes and livelihoods. Heat can make it
difficult to work in outdoor jobs. Water scarcity may affect crops. Over the past
decade (2010–2019), weather-related events displaced an estimated 23.1 million
people on average each year, leaving many more vulnerable to poverty. Most
refugees come from countries that are most vulnerable and least ready to adapt to
the impacts of climate change.

3. THE ROLE OF THE ARCHITECT IN CLIMATE CHANGE ( DISCUSS)

Architecture has always played a huge role in climate change. We know that
buildings contribute to nearly half of the nation’s CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions
– which is a huge part of the problem, but the good news is, it’s a huge part of the
solution. When we add the fact that transportation accounts for another third of
CO2 emissions, and, together, buildings and transportation account for over 75%
of the energy consumed in North America, we realize the impact a well designed,
dense, environmentally responsible city can have on our climate.

Architects can lead the climate change movement by designing the greenest,
healthiest buildings and environments. The very best in technical advancements
needed to produce climate-saving buildings have been put in place over the last
few decades – for example, the LEEDTM (Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design) rating system is marked for excellence in green building

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and used in over 150 countries. And LEEDTM is only one of many systems to
track and record sustainability. While new technologies and designs help lower
emissions and generate energy, today’s sustainability experts were not the first to
consider the importance of utilizing renewable resources. Architects have been
leaders in environment-friendly building for years – harnessing natural energy and
using local resources long before advancements in construction.

Thousands of years ago, ancient civilizations worked with earthly materials to

power their buildings and homes. The Persians knew how to make use of natural
elements; they were known to engineer windcatchers for natural ventilation. These
structures regulated temperatures indoors and allowed lower level rooms to stay
cool during hot days, also serving as early refrigerators, keeping food cool.
Aboriginal people in North America used their resources carefully; today we see a
resurgence of interest in low carbon footprint, sustainable food production and a
move away from the consumerism that dominated the 20th century.

While global warming is making more individuals conscious of how over-

consumption and inefficient construction practices are hurting our planet, there
have been other moments in history that caused people to be more considerate. The
pre-Baby Boomer generation might remember needing to stockpile certain
materials or avoid using some items altogether in order to save resources during
World War II. The economic boom in the 1950s lead to an increase in the amount
of garbage being produced due to the growing popularity of single use items. So
you can imagine it wasn’t long before people began to realize their environmental
impact and the role they play through their direct actions. No longer is planetary
health seen as someone else’s problem.

Today’s environmental challenges have brought sustainability to the forefront of

our design practices. Many architectural firms are now very concerned with
creating the eco-friendliest structures. Learning from our past and present trends
can help future architects and designers determine which methods work best for
creating sustainable buildings that can both survive and actually help lessen the
effects of climate change. Recognizing that the decisions weA make today to
create a high quality, dense urban environment, even at the scale of smaller towns
and villages, reduces transportation energy needs and CO2. And that investing in
architecture, to create those high quality spaces, results in lower energy use, and

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better investment over the lifecycle of the building, leaving a legacy for our
children.

4. BRIEFLY EXPLAIN CLIMATE CHANGE RITIGATION STRATEGIES

A. Rights-based climate litigation is helping to bridge the gap between

international pledges and governmental action at the national level, constituting an
important ‘bottom-up’ form of pressure on governments to do their ‘fair share’ in
tackling climate change.

B. Human rights-based cases against governments are taking a range of formats:

challenging not just inaction on climate change (as in the Urgenda case against the
Netherlands), but also governments’ failure to honour existing commitments (as in
the Leghari case against Pakistan) and climate change strategies that themselves
contribute to human rights violations.

C. Global South countries that have led the way in socio-economic rights
jurisprudence are likely to be particularly fertile jurisdictions for human rights-
based climate cases in future.

D. Cases against corporations are set to increase, aided by the trend for human
rights due diligence laws that concretize corporate responsibilities on human rights
into hard law.

E. An increasing proportion of rights-based cases are being brought by young

people on behalf of future generations, including high-profile cases before the
European Court of Human Rights (such as Duarte Agostinho and others vs
Portugal and 32 other states) and a petition by Greta Thunberg and 15 others
before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child that represents a major step
forward for child rights cases.

5. EXPLAIN THE IMPACT OF ARCHITECTURAL PRACTICE IN THE

ENVIRONMENT.

Design, architecture and engineering professions are directly responsible for the
development of our physical environment. Landscape architects make decisions
effecting the environment and public health and safety in many aspects of their
practices. While planning functional and aesthetically pleasing open spaces, it is

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important to take into consideration the protection of the environment and natural
resources. The aim of this study is to research the negative impacts of landscape
architectural practices on the environment and to identify opportunities for
conservation via itemising the basic points that should be considered in order to
make the impacts positive. Research has shown that landscape designs can have
either positive or negative impacts on the environment depending on the way they
are designed, implemented and maintained. Unsustainable land development and
management practices significantly disturb the elements of ecosystems damaging
the soil and vegetation and start a chain of negative effects resulting in reduced
infiltration, increase in runoff, excess sedimentation, water pollution, increase in
greenhouse gases and energy consumption. Sustainable landscape architectural
practices conserve soil and vegetation, materials and energy, promote the
sustainable use of water and land, support natural ecosystem functions, and
promote human health and well-being.