Hello, my name's Ms. Ikomi.

I'm a teacher from London and I'm going to be taking you through today's lesson.

Let's get started.

Today's lesson is called "How is climate change a threat to nations?" It is part of the wider unit "How effective is the UN and Sustainable Development Goals on promoting sustainability?" By the end of today's lesson, you will be able to explain the human and environmental impact of climate change on nations.

As today's topics could be seen as sensitive, we're going to discuss some ground rules for taking part in this lesson.

First of all, it's important to listen to others.

It's okay to disagree with each other, but we should listen properly before making assumptions or deciding how to respond.

When disagreeing, it's important that we challenge the statement, not the person.

We must respect privacy.

We can discuss examples in a general sense, but please do not use names or descriptions that identify anyone, including yourself.

We listen without passing judgement.

We can explore beliefs and misunderstandings about a topic without fear of being judged.

And last, you can choose your level of participation.

Everyone has the right to choose not to answer a question or join in with the discussion.

We'll never put anyone on the spot.

Let's get started.

The keywords we're going to hear in today's lesson are climate change.

These are the long-term changes in the Earth's weather patterns and temperatures, often caused by human activities such as burning fossil fuels, deforestation and pollution.

Human rights, these are basic rights and freedoms that all people are entitled to.

And resource scarcity.

This is the limited availability of natural resources, such as food, water, fuel, and raw materials, which are required to meet the needs of the population.

Keep an eye out for these in today's lesson.

We're going to start by thinking about, how is climate change impacting the environment? Climate change refers to the long-term shift in the temperature and the weather patterns that we see moving through time.

Since the 1800s, human activity has been a key driver of changes to the Earth's climate.

Climate change has significant environmental impact, affecting areas such as the extinction of species, destruction of habitats or wildlife, loss of biodiversity and soil erosion.

Animal and plant life is at risk of extinction because of rising temperatures.

We're losing species at 1,000 times faster than at any other point in human history.

If climate change continues, it's estimated that one million species are at risk of extinction in the next few decades.

Species most at risk include polar bears, bees, and whales.

Habitats where animals live are also at risk.

For example, our oceans are becoming more acidic, which is devastating for marine life like fish and coral.

Sand dunes are moving further inland as those sea levels rise.

Peat bogs are nutrient-rich lands that capture carbon dioxide.

As the temperatures increase, these fertile lands become dry and will eventually erode.

We can see a photo of a peat bog there on the slide.

Let's do a check.

Climate change is driving the destruction of entire species.

This process is called.

Is it A, evolution; B, eruption; or C, extinction? Pause your video and choose an answer.

The correct answer is C, extinction.

Climate change is also leading to a loss of biodiversity.

Biodiversity refers to the variety of species, things like plants, animals, and insects, that live together within an ecosystem.

Like the word diversity, we can think of difference.

As species go extinct, biodiversity declines, because we have less different species living together.

The full effects of this are still unknown because we haven't seen it happen longterm yet.

Additionally, we see invasive species disrupting habitats and threaten the native species.

The native ones are the ones that lived there originally, invasive species have to move because their habitats have been destroyed.

Soil erosion is another impact of climate change.

We can see a photo of some coastal erosion at Flamborough on the slide there.

Climate change affects the soil by increasing erosion.

Coastal soils are salty and infertile due to the rising sea levels.

They also will then release stored CO2 as that soil erodes.

This furthermore worsens climate change.

Although we have all of these challenges, it's important to remember that positive action is being taken to address them.

Efforts to combat these issues are happening at lots of different levels.

The individual levels, what people do in their local communities, the group level, but also the government level.

For example, Rewilding UK is an organisation that shares projects that are currently ongoing to return biodiversity to locations around the UK.

Citizens can play their part in the cause by donating money, visiting, and even supporting projects on the ground by doing things like planting native seeds in their gardens.

Rewilding helps to reverse the damage that is caused by environmental damage.

We also have pressure groups that are working to change government policy in the UK.

Alex is reminding us that pressure groups are groups that put pressure on the government or those in power to do something or to change something, so they're normally working towards a specific cause.

Greenpeace is a pressure group that launches legal challenges against the UK government.

They hold publicity stunts to draw attention to the climate crisis and get people involved and aware that this is a problem.

Let's do another check.

I'd like you to complete the following sentences.

Pause your video and have a go at this now.

Let's check our answers.

One way climate change impacts the environment is.

You could have said through biodiversity loss, the extinction of species or soil erosion.

One example of action that can be taken to combat this is.

You could have said rewilding or supporting pressure groups.

Let's put this into practise.

I'd like you to write an email to your MP that outlines some of the impacts of climate change on the environment.

Try to include at least two impacts.

Pause your video and have a go at this now.

I asked you to write a letter to your MP that outlines the impact of climate change on the environment.

You might have said, "Urgent action needed to address the impact of climate change.

Dear MP, I'm writing to express my concern about the impacts of climate change on our natural world.

The effects are becoming increasingly alarming and more needs to be done to combat these issues.

Climate change is driving the extinction of many plant and animal species, with the risk of losing up to one million species, including whales and bees, in the next few decades.

This is partly due to the destruction of natural habitats, which also leads to the spread of invasive species that further disrupt ecosystems. In addition, climate change is also affecting soil by increasing erosion, making coastal soils more salty and infertile due to rising sea levels, and releasing stored CO2 as the soil erodes, further worsening the climate crisis.

However, positive action is being taken.

Citizens are supporting efforts like rewilding, which helps restore biodiversity to damaged ecosystems. Similarly, pressure groups like Greenpeace are challenging government policies and raising awareness of the climate crisis through legal actions and public campaigns.

I urge you to consider how the government can support these initiatives and take stronger steps to protect our environment for future generations.

Kind regards." Well done if you included some of that in your answer.

Next, we're going to think about, how is climate change impacting human rights? All humans have basic rights and freedoms. These are known globally as our human rights.

Even if people's human rights aren't always respected, everyone is entitled to them.

Jacob's reminding us that "the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UDHR, sets out fundamental human rights that need to be universally protected.

For example, the right to life." Laura is reminding us, "The UN Convention of the Rights of a Child, the UNCRC, has 54 articles covering all aspects of a child's life.

For example, the right to the best health possible and the right to an adequate standard of living." The UNCRC exists to protect children because they are more vulnerable than adults, so need to have even more rights embedded.

Climate change has a significant impact on human rights.

It affects areas such as health, food security, and national security.

We're gonna think about these three areas in more depth.

Climate change is a really key political issue.

In the 2024 general election within the UK, lots of different political parties included comments on climate change in their manifestos.

The Conservative Party said, "We are proud of our record and remain committed to delivering net zero by 2050." The Labour Party said, "The climate and nature crisis is the greatest long-term global challenge that we face." The Liberal Democrats said, "Climate change is an existential threat.

Urgent action is needed, in the UK and around the world, to achieve net zero and avert catastrophe." And the Green Party said, "The climate emergency continues to accelerate." We get a sense of how important this is to say that despite political differences, all parties still felt the need to speak about this issue.

Laura is saying, "Changing weather patterns pose significant risks to human health, affecting people's right to live in a healthy environment.

How might climate change impact human health and wellbeing?" This is a really good question.

Climate change has led to a 48% increase in severe weather events happening in Europe, including lots of significant occurrences.

For example, in the summer of 2022, Switzerland experienced a heat wave that killed hundreds of people.

In the autumn of 2024, Spain was hit by extreme rainfall.

This resulted in devastating floods, and again, over 200 deaths.

And in the winter of 2024, the storms in Britain were stronger due to the effects of climate change, which caused a lot of people to lose homes, belongings, and have an economic impact.

Laura is asking, "What impact might these events have?" Severe weather can greatly impact humans.

Strong storms damage properties and businesses; this can lead to them needing to make costly repairs.

And flooding can destroy homes and crops, which can also lead to deaths.

Vulnerable groups, such as the elderly or children, are at a higher risk, particularly during things like heat waves because dehydration is more likely.

Climate-change-induced extreme weather events also impact the economy.

Izzy's reminding us that "the economy is the state of a country or region in terms of production and consumption of goods and services and the supply of money." Weather events might impact the economy because they cost national governments a lot and put increased pressure on them to fund repairs and think about preventative methods to put in place protection against these things happening in the future.

For example, in the 2024 Spanish floods, there was an expectation that these would reduce the GDP by 0.

2%, particularly with affected areas, including Valencia, which represents 2% of the economy.

Additionally, the Spanish government had to allocate $15.

15 billion in aid to support the homes and businesses that needed to be rebuilt after this happened.

In 2024, insurers in the UK paid out a record 585 million pounds for storm damage, so this has a big impact on the money and services moving within countries.

Let's do a check.

Which of the following is an extreme weather event? A, on a summer's day, the average temperature reaches 25 degrees Celsius.

B, in Spain in 2024, an entire year's worth of rain fell in just a day.

Or C, the temperature during Christmas 2023 was too mild for it to be a white Christmas.

Pause your video and choose your answer.

The correct answer is B.

Sam's saying, "Humans heavily depend on the environment for food.

Our crops are grown in fields that depend on regular rainfall and healthy soil." Izzy says, "We also use lots of land as space for raising animals for meat and dairy.

If it's too hot or too cold, animals are at risk of dying," meaning we wouldn't have meat or dairy.

As the climate changes, resource scarcity is making it more difficult to produce the food humans need.

Scarcity is where we don't have enough of something.

Farms require significant amounts of water to sustain their crops and animals, but rising temperatures are reducing the availability of that water.

When we have extreme temperatures and heavy rainfall, we also have an impact on the fertility of the land.

That means how able they are to grow crops.

This might cause crops to fail, which again would mean that we have less food, leading to more scarcity.

Because of this scarcity, people may need to migrate, meaning they move to a different country in search of food and water in order to feed themselves and their families.

Resource scarcity is a growing global issue, but its impact isn't evenly distributed when it comes to countries.

Lower-income countries are often affected the most, despite the fact that they contribute the least to the causes of the problem, things like the temperature increasing because they use less energy and resources.

For example, in 2021, 30 million individuals in low-income countries were pushed into food insecurity, meaning they didn't know if they would have access to food over the next coming months.

Furthermore, without action on resource scarcity, an estimated 43 million people in Africa could fall below the poverty line, increasing limited access to resources.

The United Nations established the World Food Programme in 1961.

This operates in 120 countries worldwide to address food scarcity.

Non-government organisations and charities, such as Concern Worldwide, are also working on the ground to distribute food and develop more sustainable ways to feed people.

While their efforts are making a difference, climate change might limit the long-term effectiveness of their work.

Let's do another check.

True or false? Climate change is a factor in rising food prices which is causing food poverty.

Pause your video and choose your answer.

The correct answer is true.

This is because as more crops fail, prices increase.

And that pushes poverty even higher, particularly in lower income countries.

National security refers to how safe a country is from external threats.

Climate change is increasingly seen as a significant national security issue.

This is for lots of reasons.

Jacob's asking, "How might climate change make people less safe in their country?" Resource scarcity could lead to increased competition between different nations to get the essential resources that their citizens need to live.

Things like fuel, food, and materials.

This may contribute tensions and in some case conflict between those countries.

Additionally, civil unrest could become more common because governments face growing pressure to meet citizens' demands for basic resources.

Civil unrest is where you have disagreements and tension between people within countries.

So we have these two ideas, both between countries and within citizens in a country.

Climate change is warming the planet, leading to rising sea levels as polar ice caps melt.

As sea levels continue to rise, some low-lying nations may face significant threats to their land and become uninhabitable by 2050.

For example, islands like the Maldives and Kiribati in the Pacific Ocean are at risk of being submerged, meaning all of those people would be displaced.

Let's do a check.

True or false? Resource scarcity will cause issues of national security in the future.

Pause your video and choose your answer now.

The correct answer is true.

This is because as resources become more difficult to obtain, countries might fight for what they can acquire.

This is considered a threat to national security.

Let's put this into practise.

I'd like you to explain how climate change impacts human rights.

I'd like you to consider food production, health, and national security in your answer.

Pause your video and have a go at this now.

I asked you to explain how climate change impacts on human rights.

You might have included some of the following in your answer.

Climate change presents significant challenges to human rights worldwide.

As temperatures rise, crop failures are becoming more frequent, leading to higher food prices and pushing more people into poverty.

This affects their right to access adequate food.

Extreme weather events, such as the 2024 floods in Spain, caused significant damage to infrastructure and led to fatalities, whilst heat heatwaves put vulnerable groups, like older people and children, at higher risk.

This impacts their right to health and safety.

Climate change is also creating national security challenges.

For example, rising sea levels threaten low-lying nations like Kiribati and the Maldives, forcing people to leave their homes, jeopardising their right to a secure living environment.

Furthermore, scarce resources as a result of the impacts of climate change may lead to increased conflict because countries compete for what is available.

Today, we have been learning about, how is climate change a threat to nations? We have learned that climate change is a threat to the environment as it's causing species extinction, habitat loss, soil erosion, and infertility and rising sea levels.

Climate change affects human rights, especially those of vulnerable communities, as it leads to food insecurity, health risks and displacement.

Resource scarcity caused by climate change also increases the risk of conflict and instability, affecting people worldwide.

Positive action is happening at all levels.

Individuals supporting rewilding, groups like Greenpeace challenging policies, and governments taking action to safeguard the future.

That's the end of today's lesson, thank you for joining me.