GLOBAL WARMING!GLOBAL WARMING! Should you care?

Will Earth still be home for us in coming years?

Unless we take steps NOW

to curb global warming, our way of life, our future, andour family are all in GRAVE DANGER.

Our planet is heating up …

… and we are responsible

Global Warming is defined as the increase of the temperature on Earth. As the Earth is getting hotter, disasters like hurricanes, droughts and floods are getting more frequent.

What is Global Warming?

How it works?

When did the When did the problem begin?problem begin?

The problems began when human activities created & released more gases in the atmosphere than are necessary.

1: Burning natural gas, coal & oil raise the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere & accelerate the warming effect.

2: Many factories produce long-lasting gases that contribute to the global warming

3: Population growth accelerates global warming as more & more people use fuels for heat, transportation & manufacturing

4: Intensive farming leads to global warmingSome farming practices & use of fertilizers

produce gases that trap heat more than Carbon Dioxide.

For instance, Nitrous Oxide, found in pesticides can retain 300 times more heat than CO2.

To decrease your carbon footprint,

A U.N. report found that 18 % of global warming emissions come from raising

That's about 40 % more than all the trucks,

cars, planes & all the forms of transport

(13%) and all the homes & offices in the

world put together (8%).

you can start with your dinner plate.A carbon footprint is a measure of the amount of

greenhouse gases produced by human activities.

chickens, cattle, pigs, & other animals for food.

It contributes to land degradation, climate change& air pollution, water shortage and water pollution. Animals such as cows & sheep emit huge amount of methane due to flatulence and burping. "The released methane", the scientists say, "has 23 times the global warming potential of CO2."

Meat industry consumes more environmental resources

5:5: “Sawing off the branch we are “Sawing off the branch we are sitting on”sitting on”Deforestation is Choking the Earth. 34 million acres of trees, the size of Italy, are cut each year.

Forests are vital for absorbing & storing the world's carbon dioxide (CO2).

When trees are cut & burnt the damage is two-fold:

* The world's capacity to absorb CO2 is reduced. * Large amounts of stored carbon are released back into the atmosphere.

Global warming will kill BILLIONSBILLIONS this Century

Green house gases can stay in the atmosphere for hundreds and thousands of years. Here are few DEADLIEST

effects of global warming..

Global Warming leads to 150,000 deaths every year

These numbers could double by 2020

As the globe warms, disease-carrying mosquitoes & rodents spread, infecting people. Outbreaks of Dengue fever, Malaria, Chikingunia, Allergies & Asthma have already started affecting daily lives.

A: Spread of infectious disease

B: More Intense Hurricanes are on the Way

The oceans are getting warmer, stronger

hurricanes & calamities like tsunami are

getting more frequent.

C: Increased intensity of droughts & heat waves

D: Economic consequencesNatural calamities do billions of money in damage & disease outbreaks cost money to treat and control.

E: Polar ice caps are melting

Sea levels are rising

* There are 5,773,000 cubic miles of water in glaciers and if they melt today the seas would rise about 230 feet.

* The ice caps are fresh water & when they melt they will desalinate the ocean, i.e. make it less salty. This effect will alter ocean currents causing unnatural weather conditions

* Temperature rise will endanger several species of animals.

* Ice caps reflect excess sunlight back into space to maintain favorable weather conditions. With the ice caps gone less energy will be reflected causing further temperature increase.

Oceans trap heat and absorb Carbon dioxide. They are like time-bombs, masking the real effects of the Carbon dioxide we have been releasing into the atmosphere. Constant disturbance of the sea currents is a threat awaiting to unleash.

F: The oceans are like giant storage heaters

G: We will lose drinking water

As sea levels rise, sea water will

invade coastal

groundwater, making it salty hence undrinkable.

H: Food will cost as much as gold

The threat to future food supplies from climate change weighs heavily on an expected world population of 9 billion people by 2050.

India is highly sensitive to climate change. The country faces more erratic & heavier monsoon patterns, more floods and droughts, and steadily shrinking Himalayan glaciers.

India Climate Change ProfileImpact on Environment and Society

What surprise does the next monsoon hold for us?

BOMBAY, WEST BENGAL, GUJRAT, BIHAR went under water.

Is our blue planet turning DRY?

-Out of all the water on this planet, only 2.5% of it is freshwater. Most is derived from glaciers.

-Himalayan glaciers are receding by 10-15 meters per year.

-In India, the Gangotri glacier is receding at an average rate of 23 meters per year23 meters per year.

-This will first increase the volume of water in rivers causing, widespread flooding. Then in a few decades this situation will REVERSE and the water levels in rivers will decline affecting millions living around them.

Coastal Flooding A NASA high-tech aerial survey shows that Global warming is melting 50 billion tons of ice in a year from the Greenland ice sheet.

This is increasing the likelihood of coastal flooding

around the world. Cities like Mumbai, Goa, Kerela & others are in danger.

How does an Individual make

an IMPACT on the world’s biggest

environmental problem?Working at the individual level, stabilizing the climate is a challenge but not an impossible task.

Climate scientists say that planting more and more trees are quick, easy and cheap ways to prevent further GLOBAL WARMING.

Why plant Why plant trees?trees?

-Reduce Global WarmingReduce Global Warming

-Improve the ground water -Improve the ground water levellevel

-Prevent soil erosion-Prevent soil erosion

-Promote the ecosystem-Promote the ecosystem

-Reduce pollution-Reduce pollution

-Improve soil fertility-Improve soil fertility

The Art of Living is a multi-faceted non-profitorganization that offers life-transforming programs in over 144 countries. It has undertaken many

projects out of which one is Tree plantation to help reduce GLOBAL WARMING.

Earthquake in Chengdu, (China), Virginia Tech Campus Shootings (USA),

Vidharbha Farmer Suicides (India), Relief in times of War & 

Unrest (Kashmir, Lebanon, Iraq and Israel), Relief  Post  Floods

(Surat, Mumbai and Gujrat), Train  Blasts (London & Madrid),

Beslan School Hostage Crisis (Russia), Tsunami (India & Sri Lanka),

Hurricane Katarina & 9/11 Terror Attack USA  

Past and continuing relief efforts include:

www.standuptakeactionaolunmc.org

The Art of Living Foundation, The United Nations Environment

Program, World Alliance for Youth Empowerment and

Sri Sri Agricultural Institute for Science & Technology in support

of the UNITED NATIONS MILLENIUM CAMPAIGN

Invites you to participate in MISSION GREEN EARTH

STAND UP TAKE ACTION

www.artofliving.org

The Invitation

As a part of the Tree plantation drive 100 MILLION trees of different types will be

plantedall over the world.

A look at our journey so far

*Thermal Power plant in Haryana, India.

*DAV Group of Schools.

*Army Campus, Pune, India.

*Prison Inmates.

*Radio Station Jingles.

*Corporate bodies (Bosch Group, First Source, ONGC, Birla Sun Life, etc)

*Schools & Colleges across the country

*Police campus, Mumbai

Various groups joining hands

LETTER FROM

UNMC

LETTER FROM

UNEP

LETTER FROM

Govt. of INDIA

Houston City Controller’s

endorsement

How can you help?

Ensure Environmental Sustainability

Mission Green Earth Stand Up Take Action (MGESUTA08)

project targets to achieve:

TAKE ACTION- 15 JULY to 16 OCT 2008

Plant 100 million trees globally to support environmental

sustainability. Play an active part in saving the Earth.

STAND UP- 17 OCT to 19 OCT 2008

Stand up for 2 minutes while the UN’s pledge is read.

MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOAL No.7

Misson Green Earth Misson Green Earth Stand Up And Take Action Stand Up And Take Action

20082008

(MGESUTA)(MGESUTA)MGESUTA is an initiative taken by MGESUTA is an initiative taken by

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP),

United Nations Millennium Campaign (UNMC) United Nations Millennium Campaign (UNMC)

in association with Art Of Living Foundation (AOL) in association with Art Of Living Foundation (AOL)

to plant 100 million trees world wide between to plant 100 million trees world wide between

15th July’08 to 15th Oct’08. 15th July’08 to 15th Oct’08.

Take a pledge,

Plant more treesThank you