Lesson video

Hello, my name's Mrs. Harking.

The title of today's lesson is "Consumption and Climate Change" taken from the unit "Natural Resources: Can Earth Meet Our Needs." We'll explore how food production and energy production create greenhouse gas emissions, but also have a look at some of the solutions which include quite innovative and unique methods such as growing meat in a laboratory.

So, an interesting lesson ahead.

Let's get started.

Our outcome today is to explain how consumption of resources contributes to climate change and identify solutions to reduce the impacts.

Here are some useful words that we'll be using in today's lesson.

First of all, we have consumption.

This is the process of using up resources.

Climate change, a large-scale and long-term change in the planet's climate, including weather patterns and average temperatures.

We know that actually the planet is warming up at the moment, so the type of climate change that we have got is global warming.

Greenhouse gases are gases in the Earth's atmosphere that trap in heat.

You might have heard of carbon dioxide before.

We'll talk about some more as we go through the lesson as well.

Today's lesson outline is in two parts.

First of all, we've got consumption and climate change, and then we're moving on to the solutions.

Consumption and climate change to start.

Carbon dioxide levels in Earth's atmosphere began to increase dramatically soon after the industrial revolution.

You can see here on the graph that actually in the 1900's the carbon dioxide concentrations really started to rise.

It's worth noting that the industrial revolution started in 1750, so there's a bit of a delay after it started.

That's simply because the emissions grew with time.

They didn't step up to quite such high levels right at the beginning.

This increase in carbon dioxide correlates with rising temperatures.

When we use that word correlates, we just mean that actually it shows a very similar pattern, and that means that maybe one of these factors is causing the other.

So it could be that an increase in carbon dioxide concentrations is what's causing our rise in temperature.

Here it's worth noting that the timescale at the bottom of the graph is different than on the previous graph.

However, when we look at the 1900's we can see that temperatures do increase, and that's that red line at the end of the graph, you can see the temperature is rising significantly.

The enhanced greenhouse effect explains this correlation.

So, more greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, trap more heat in the atmosphere causing Earth to become warmer.

We can see on the diagram here how that works.

So, the solar radiation from the sun enters the atmosphere.

The more greenhouse gases we have in the atmosphere, the more of that heat gets trapped in.

Some will escape back into space, but that will be less and less the more greenhouse gases we have in our atmosphere.

Time for a check for understanding now.

Which statement best describes the relationship between greenhouse gas emissions and global warming? Is it A, carbon dioxide emissions do not correlate to increasing temperatures.

B, rising carbon dioxide emissions correlate with rising temperatures.

Or C, carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas which traps in heat.

Well done.

Yes.

So it's B, rising carbon dioxide emissions correlate with rising temperatures.

Alex says, "I completed an online questionnaire to work out how much I contribute to climate change.

It turns out I create the equivalent of seven tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year." Have you ever calculated your contribution to climate change? It's an interesting one to do.

We are going to look at some of the common factors that come up in these sorts of questionnaires because these factors are the main contributors of human consumption to climate change.

So, first of all we're going to look at energy production, and then we're also going to look at food supply.

Energy production can be increased because of the need for lighting, heating, and cooling, digital use, and also transport.

We'll take a look at each of these.

Food supply can contribute to climate change due to meats, dairy, and grain farming, deforestation, fertilisers used on crops, and also food waste.

So, energy first.

The most common way of generating energy used to be by burning fossil fuels to convert water to steam.

This would turn a turbine to drive a generator to create electricity.

So you can see this on the diagram here where we have coal entering a power station, being burnt, creating steam from water, and that is turning a turbine, which is powering a generator, and then that electricity would then go to the grid and end up, eventually, in our homes.

Carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere when fossil fuels are burned.

So, this is a greenhouse gas and it worsens global warming.

Coal is mined and is burned in power stations to produce 1/3 of the world's electricity.

This electricity is often used for lighting, heating, and cooling buildings.

Natural gas is a fossil fuel that is often still piped to homes where it's burned to fuel cooking and heating.

Digital electricity use is a big contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.

Digital use needs huge data centres to store, process, and distribute data.

UK data centres currently consume around 2.

5% of national electricity, but this is forecast to rise to nearly 6% by 2030, and this is due to AI expansion.

So every time we use AI, we are drawing on data centres, and that is creating an energy requirement.

Another use of energy is transportation.

Oil is burnt in vehicles in the form of petrol, diesel, kerosene, which is jet fuel, or heavy fuel oil, which is used in large ships.

It's the equivalent of the petrol, but for planes and for ships.

These release carbon dioxide and nitrous oxides, both of which are greenhouse gases.

So, inside these vehicles, this fossil fuel oil is burned and is releasing two different greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxides, significantly.

Time for a check for understanding.

Which greenhouse gases are released through burning fossil fuels? Yes, well done.

It's carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide.

Did you get the nitrous oxide as well? Good, okay.

So, food supply now.

We've looked at energy.

Now we're moving on to having a look at food supply.

It's another major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and therefore global warming.

Fertiliser use contributes around 5% of total greenhouse gas emissions.

That is more than flights and shipping combines.

This is quite significant as we talk a lot, don't we, about taking a flight and how that impacts global warming, but potentially don't think about the impacts that fertilisers on the foods that are being grown for us is having, actually, on our climate.

Fertilisers are chemicals that can be liquid or solid, that are added to fields in order to increase the nutrients in the soil to produce better crops.

Manufacturing fertilisers uses 1 to 2% of the world's energy and releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

After the fertilisers are applied to the soil, microbes in the soil break down the excess nitrogen releasing nitrous oxide, which is a greenhouse gas 300 times more potent, more powerful, than carbon dioxide.

That's pretty significant, isn't it? Food production can worsen global warming through meat and dairy farming as well.

So, ruminant animals such as cows and sheep, they produce methane during digestion of the food they eat.

Lots of people think that cows farting add methane to the atmosphere, and that is worsening global warming.

And that is true.

A bit of that does happen.

However, 90 to 95% of the methane from ruminants is released through eructation, which is burping.

So, not entirely true.

Most of it comes from cows burping, and also other ruminant animals burping.

It's worth noting that often people think that if we eat all the cows, if you eat lots of beef burgers for example, that would mean that there is less methane being added to the atmosphere.

That is incorrect.

The cows are there because they're being farmed for foods, and if we didn't eat as much meat, there would be less cows reared, and therefore less methane entering the atmosphere.

And that's the same for all other ruminant animals as well.

Laura says, "Cows fart methane causing global warming." How can we help Izzy improve her answer? What would you say? Right, well have a look at some answers.

Feel free to pause the video if you need a bit longer.

Izzy has said, "Ruminant animals like cows and sheep," They're not just saying cows.

We're actually using higher-level language.

We're saying ruminant animals and recognising it's more than one species.

"Produce methane during digestion.

Most of this is released through eructation." So, burping.

Remember, not just farting.

And, "Methane is a greenhouse gas which insulates our planet." Rice farming also produces methane as rice is often grown in flooded fields, creating anaerobic conditions.

Anaerobic just means that the situation lacks.

This is ideal for methane-producing microbes.

So, rice is a big cause of methane emissions as well as our ruminant animals.

Carbon emissions also increase due to deforestation.

So this is because forests are carbon sinks, that means that they absorb and store carbon.

When trees are removed and replaced with farmland or plantations, less carbon is absorbed from the atmosphere.

You can see on the left-hand side here, this is a palm oil plantation and the rainforest has been cut down, removed, in order for this plantation of oil palm trees to be put in You can see that the forest in the background is far denser, contains a lot more trees, a lot more vegetation than the plantation, and therefore the plantation does not absorb and store as much carbon at all.

A third of food produced globally is wasted.

Now, this adds to global warming as well.

As the food breaks down, it releases more of the potent greenhouse gas methane into the atmosphere.

This worsens global warming.

Time for a check for understanding now.

Which of the following is not known for releasing methane? Is it A, rice farming, B, dairy farming, C, food waste, or D, fertilisers? Well done.

So, they all produce greenhouse gases, don't they? But I ask specifically for methane.

So the only one that doesn't produce methane is fertiliser production.

Rice, dairy, and food waste or produce methane.

Then time for our task, now.

for our first question, I'd like you to complete the sentence, "Human consumption can worsen climate change, particularly in relation to.

." What were the two aspects that we looked at today? Question two, fossil fuels release which greenhouse gas when burned? Question three, which fossil fuel do boilers often burn in order to heat homes? Question four, which fossil fuel is often burned to create electricity in power stations? Question five, which fossil fuel is often burned in vehicles? Question six, why is AI contributing to global warming? Question seven, which gas is released after fertilisers are applied to the soil? Question eight, name three types of farm which emit methane.

Question nine, which gas is released from decomposing food waste? Right, pause the video now to give yourself time to do the task.

The answers only need to be short.

Well done, everyone.

Let's take a look at some answers.

So, your answers may look like this.

For question one, we have human consumption can worsen climate change, particularly in relation to energy production and food supply.

Question two, fossil fuels release which greenhouse gas when burned? That's carbon dioxide.

Question three, which fossil fuel do boilers often burn in order to heat homes? That's gas.

Question four, which fossil fuel was often burned to create electricity in power stations? That's coal.

Question five, which fossil fuel is often burned in vehicles? That's oil.

So, petrol or diesel.

You may have talked about kerosene as well.

Question six, why is AI contributing to global warming? Data centres require a lot of electricity to run.

Question seven, which gas is released after fertilisers are applied to the soil? That's nitrous oxide.

Question eight, name three types of farm which emits methane.

That's dairy, meats, and rice farming.

Question nine, which gas is released from decomposing food waste? That's methane.

Time for the second parts of our lesson now.

Solutions.

We can tackle the effects of human consumption through strategies at different scales, including influencing individual consumer choices, using innovative farming practises, and new government policies.

Many individual consumers are choosing to follow a vegan diet in order to reduce their contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.

So, by choosing a vegan diet there'll be less methane entering the atmosphere.

Others choose to shop for locally-grown produce or even grow their own in order to reduce food miles.

Some check labels to ensure the products they buy as sustainably sourced and don't lead to deforestation.

It is not just in relation to food that consumer decisions make a difference.

For example, electric cars and renewable energy purchases affect greenhouse gas emissions too.

Time for a check for understanding now.

Which consumer decision would help reduce global warming? Is it A, purchasing less meat, B, sourcing imported products, or C, buying a new car? Well done.

Yes, it's A, purchasing less meats.

Innovative farming practises have the potential to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

For example, methods which result in reduction in fertiliser use can be effective.

This can be seen with some genetically modified crops, and hydroponics, and aquaponics.

These can all have reduced emissions compared to traditional farming.

Another example of an innovative technique is lab-grown meats, which could produce up to 96% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than conventional beef if renewable energy sources are used.

There are a lot of energy requirements to producing this food.

This is not yet approved for human consumption in the UK, but it is used in restaurants in countries such as Singapore.

Which solution or solutions reduce methane emissions from farming meats and dairy? Is it A, hydroponics, B, following a vegan diet, or C, lab-grown meats.

Well done.

Yes.

So that should be following a vegan diet and lab-grown meats.

Broader-scale strategies can be implemented by governments.

Governments may offer financial incentives, for example taxes or subsidies to make greener choices more affordable for buying an electric vehicle, installing solar panels, improving home insulation.

Home insulation means that the heat in a house is trapped in, and therefore you have to produce less heat.

So less gas, if you're using a gas boiler, will be burned in order to heat the water that runs around those radiators.

So more insulation in a home means less energy needs to be used to heat that home.

In some circumstances, governments work together to set emission targets.

For example, the Conference of Parties, or COP, organised by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the UNFCCC, which is a meeting between as many countries as can be gathered, and they try to agree targets and methods to reduce concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

At COP 29 in 2024, the UK committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81% by 2035 compared to 1990 levels.

True or false, at COP 29 2024 the UK committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81% by 2035 compared to 1990 levels.

Well done.

That is true.

So, the Conference of Parties, or COP, is organised by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

At the COP 29 in 2024, the UK committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81% by 2035 compared to 1990 levels.

Time for task B now.

First I'd like to match the contribution to climate change to a potential solution.

So, on the left-hand side of the table here, we've got the contribution to climate change, for example, lighting, heating, and cooling.

And on the right-hand side we have solutions to these specific contributions.

So for example, for lighting, heating, and cooling an appropriate solution would be to switch to renewable electricity.

So draw a line from lighting, heating, and cooling to switch to renewable electricity, or maybe you're going to write it out.

That's fine.

Secondly, I'd like you to explain how the impacts of resource consumption on climate change can be reduced.

It's a good idea to have a look at the three different scales that will be investigated.

First of all, we looked at individual consumer choices.

Then we looked at changes to farming practises.

And finally we looked at what governments can do.

So, three paragraphs, one on each would be really good.

Pause the video now.

Just give yourself time to do the task.

Good luck, everyone.

Well done.

Right, let's take a look at some answers.

First of all, for our matchup task, your answers should look like this.

We should have lighting, heating, and cooling can be solved using a switch to renewable electricity, as we already mentioned.

Food miles can be solved by encouraging locally-sourced products.

Transports can be solved by financial incentives to make greener vehicle choices.

Meat and dairy farming can be solved by switching to a vegan diet or lab-grown meat.

Fertilisers used on crops can be reduced by using GM crops or hydroponics.

How did you get on? Feel free to edit your answers now, if you need to.

Right, let's have a look at question two.

Explain how the impacts of resource consumption on climate change can be reduced.

Your answer may look like this.

First of all, I've looked at individual consumers.

So, many individual consumers are choosing to follow a vegan diet to reduce methane emissions, shop for locally grown produce to reduce their food miles, and ensure products they buy are sustainably sourced and don't lead to deforestation.

They may also purchase electric cars and renewable energy to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

I've then moved on to the farming.

So, innovative farming practises have the potential to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

For example, advances with GM crops can allow for a reduction in fertiliser use and lab-grown meats could produce 78 to 96% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than conventional beef if renewable energy sources are used.

Finally, I looked at government's role.

So, governments may offer financial incentives, for example, taxes or subsidies, to make greener choices more affordable for electric vehicles, solar panels, and home insulation.

In some circumstances governments work together to set emissions targets.

For example, at COP 29, in 2024, the UK committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81% by 2035 compared to 1990 levels.

How did you get on? Would you like to edit your work at all? Well done, everyone.

We are onto this summary.

More greenhouse gases means more insulation of the planet, causing global warming.

Human energy and food consumption can worsen global warming.

Individual consumer choices, innovative farming practises, and government policies can attempt to solve the problem of global warming due to human consumption.

In 2024, the UK committed to reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 81% by 2035, compared to 1990 levels.

Thank you for learning with me today.

I hope you enjoyed it, and I'll see you next time.

Bye.