Climate change refers to any significant change in the state of the climate that persists for an extended period, typically decades.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the leading scientific forum for climate analysis, tells us that planet earth is currently warming in a historically unprecedented manner. While there are multiple complex drivers, it is primarily human activities, particularly agriculture, the burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas), and the destruction of forests. These activities produce greenhouse gases, which collect in the atmosphere and, like a blanket, warm the surface of the earth. They are now at their highest levels in history.
Communities around the world are already feeling the impacts of climate change. Rising greenhouse gas levels are driving more frequent and intense storms, changes in rainfall patterns, increasing air and ocean temperatures, melting ice sheets and glaciers, and rising sea levels. These changes then go on to affect soil fertility, water availability, and ultimately the well-being of people and our environments.