Global Warming vs Climate Change: The Truth About Terminology
Can you remember when this phenomenon used to be called “global warming,” but somehow along the way it changed to “climate change”?
If not, that was a really good sleight of hand by public leaders that not many people have picked up on.
In this article, I’ll clarify:
What the difference is between global warming and climate change
Why “climate change” has become the more commonly used label
How to determine which term you should use and when
Why the topics of climate change and global warming are being discussed on a vegan blog
The truth is, when politics are involved, strategies are used to either mask or reveal an issue to benefit the individual, party, company, organization, or country dictating the narrative.
Sometimes you have to read between the lines, and this article is here to help with that!
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GLOBAL WARMING AND CLIMATE CHANGE?
Global warming and climate change are often used synonymously, but there are differences between them that are worth highlighting -- especially if you’re vegan and want to help draw attention to the crisis.
When you ask politicians, they might give you one answer. When you ask scientists, they may give you another.
To be honest, I prefer science, but that’s just me!
Once you know about the difference between the terminology, it’s great to consider how you use them and the impact these labels can have in everyday conversations.
GLOBAL WARMING
Essentially, global warming is the rate at which the Earth’s surface temperature is increasing.
When we ask the scientists, NASA says, “Global warming is the long-term heating of Earth’s climate system observed since the pre-industrial period (between 1850 and 1900) due to human activities, primarily fossil fuel burning, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth’s atmosphere.”
There’s no denying that humanity has caused mayhem on this planet.
To not acknowledge our impact is truly choosing ignorance, which, I’m sure if you’re reading this, you’re not one of those people.
For the last few hundred years, we’ve grown tremendously as a species. We’ve built an overabundance of buildings; we drive a profound number of non-electric vehicles; and, most significantly, we farm a disturbing number of animals for human consumption. All of these practices are making a massive footprint on this planet through carbon emissions and pollution.
The more our population increases, the more the factors above increase. More humans = higher demand for buildings, cars, and livestock products.
Quick Facts:
“The livestock sector requires a significant amount of natural resources and is responsible for about 14.5% of total anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions (7.1 Gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents for the year 2005; Gerber et al., 2013)” -- Source
“93% of heat accumulated in the Earth’s atmosphere is absorbed by the oceans,” which means warmer waters will melt more ice caps and glaciers to cause a rise in sea level (marine heat waves are a thing!). -- Source
Animal agriculture is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than all of the transportation industry combined, which stands at 13% contribution itself. -- Source
CLIMATE CHANGE
Since Earth became a part of the universe, its climate has been changing. The temperature has fluctuated since the planet’s inception and it will continue to change long into the future.
Climate change is not the same thing as global warming in the sense that the change can be an increase or decrease in temperature. However, climate change includes global warming in its meaning.
Our NASA friends state that “Climate change is a long-term change in the average weather patterns that have come to define Earth’s local, regional and global climates.”
Climate change includes a wide variety of effects seen across the planet, which means, in addition to global warming, climate change also includes:
Rise in sea levels
Increase in ocean temperatures
Intensification of the water system
Stress on plants and animals
Retreat of mountain glaciers
GLOBAL WARMING VS. CLIMATE CHANGE
SCIENCE
To summarize, “global warming” is a term specifically used to describe the phenomenon of the rising temperature in our atmosphere and “climate change” is a term that encompasses all effects creating change across our planet (most of which all derive from global warming).
POLITICS
When used in politics, it’s likely you’ll hear leaders using “climate change” rather than “global warming.” The term “global warming” has been seen to cause more alarm across populations, whereas “climate change” does not trigger people quite as much.
World leaders often politicize climate change, because it’s entangled with large industries inherently linked to the state of the Earth (i.e. fossil fuel industries). They can manipulate the facts to better benefit their decision making and messaging to the public simply by using a broader, less panic-inducing term (Not to say people aren’t still panicking over climate change).
WHY HAS “CLIMATE CHANGE” BECOME THE MORE COMMONLY USED LABEL?
With more and more human-induced impact showing up across our planet, climate change is able to capture all of the effects the Earth is experiencing in its terminology.
Although global warming is the driving force behind the cascade of other impacts, climate change does include all of the damage us humans are creating.
As I’ve previously mentioned, “climate change” is used more often than “global warming,” because it’s pushed into the dialogue more often from a political angle to detract from the emotional impact “global warming” has on the human brain.
HOW TO DETERMINE WHICH TERM YOU SHOULD USE AND WHEN
Let’s break it down.
Increased output from human activities -- like agriculture and transportation -- drives higher greenhouse gas emissions to be released into our environment, which get trapped in our atmosphere causing a rise in our planet’s surface temperature.
That’s called global warming.
Global warming then has a ripple effect on the ocean, glaciers, weather, and a variety of other things, which are included in the term “climate change.”
When you’re specifically talking about the temperature of our atmosphere, use “global warming.”
When you’re talking about the widespread effects and environmental changes across our planet due to an increase in greenhouse gas emissions, use “climate change.”
WHY ARE GLOBAL WARMING AND CLIMATE CHANGE BEING DISCUSSED ON A VEGAN BLOG?
As previously mentioned, animal agriculture is a leading cause of global warming and climate change.
The higher the demand for products like beef, pork, chicken, fish, eggs, dairy, wool, and more, the higher the impact on the planet. When we remove that demand, or at least decrease it, it shows manufacturers that the demand is not with animal products.
The first thing that pushed me into going vegan was learning about the destruction of our environment from animal agriculture.
Animal agriculture is not only responsible for CO2 emissions, but it’s also responsible for pollution, deforestation, animal extinction, overfishing, and depletion of natural resources.
Animals are bred into existence for human consumption, which means the more animals that exist, the more burps and farts that they emit into the environment, the worse our planet is.
When I realized this impact, I knew that the legacy I left behind would not contribute to the ongoing planetary problems as much as I can control. Starting with what’s on my plate is the easiest place to begin making changes.
If you want to contribute to the fight against global warming and climate change, then please consider going vegan. Every single person makes a difference and our planet is counting on us.
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please comment below.
