What is climate change?
Persistent human activities like driving cars, farming, burning coal and cutting down forests produce greenhouse gases – mainly carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. These gases gather in the atmosphere, wrap around the earth and trap the sun's heat.
The more greenhouse gases we emit, the faster the world's climate heats up. This process is often called ‘global warming’ but it is better to think of it as ‘climate change’ because it is likely to bring about more extreme events – floods, storms, cyclones, droughts and landslips – rather than an increase in temperature alone. Climate change could have significant impacts on our economy, environment and the way we live – the effects of a warming planet and subsequent changing climate patterns are already becoming evident.