10 Signs that climate change is happening

1 - Global temperature trends estimated by four different research groups all show a warming of the Earth over the past century, with particularly rapid increases over the past few decades.

The groups are the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NASA, Britain’s Hadley Center and Climatic Research Unit (Univ. of East Anglia) and Japan’s meteorological agency.
Image: Michael Schlesinger / University of Illinois via DotEarth


2 - Since 1901, global average surface temperatures have risen at an average rate of 0.13ºF per decade. The United States has warmed at nearly twice the global rate since the 1970s.

Image: NOAA
Source: EPA

3 - The years between 1995 and 2006 rank among the 12 warmest years in the instrumental record of global surface temperature (since 1850).

Image: Wikipedia
Source: IPCC 2007

4 - Average Arctic temperatures have increased at almost twice the global average rate in the past 100 years

Image: Wikipedia
Source: IPCC 2007

5 - Since 1978, the Arctic Sea ice shrunk on average 2.7% per decade, with larger decreases in the summer of about 7.4%. Arctic summer sea ice has decreased by roughly 34% since 1979.

Source: IPCC 2007

6 - Since 1960, glaciers worldwide have lost more than 2,000 cubic miles of water, contributing to observed changes in sea level rise.

Source: EPA

7 - Three different studies show that ocean heat content (the amount of energy the ocean absorbs) has increased substantially since 1955. Ocean heat content not only determines sea surface temperature, but also affects sea level and currents.

Source: EPA

8 - Between 1993 and 2005 sea level rose, on average, 3mm (0.1 inches) per year, attributed to an increase in melting ice and thermal expansion as the ocean absorbs excess energy.

Image: NASA
Source: NASA

9 - Intensity of cyclones (hurricanes, tropical storms, and other intense rotating storm) has risen noticeably over the past 20 years. Six of the 10 most active years have occurred since the mid-1990s, likely caused by increasing sea surface temperatures.

Image: IPCC 2007
Source: EPA

10 - Satellite images show the three lowest minimum extents of Arctic Sea ice were reached in 2007, 2008 and 2009. The 2007 total reflected a loss of 490,000 square miles of sea ice—an area larger than Texas and California combined. The Arctic summer could be ice-free by mid-century, according to a study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.



Read more over at www.businessinsider.com/climate-change-global-warming-scientific-evidence-2011

Going Digital - is it more sustainable than print?

If you're a regular to this blog then you'll know that the paper industry is a big contributor to CO2 emissions, uses huge quantities of water and has petroleum inputs all along the product life-cycle.  It would seem that going digital is the sustainable option; Websites, eBooks and digital magazines don't use paper - Bingo problem solved!

But is that all there is to this equation?

Is buying and reading a magazine, newspaper or book more of less energy efficient than accessing the same information online?

To answer this we would need to do a full LCA (life cycle analysis) so let me throw a few general questions out there for you to consider:

• How many articles are read on an electronic device before it's disposed of?
• What percentage of a newspaper is actually read?
• How recyclable are tablets, eBook readers and computers? And what are their usable life span?
• How do newspapers and magazines add up in terms of recyclability and transport miles? 
• What heavy metals and toxic byproducts come from electronic goods?
• What is the impact of forestry, paper making, and ink production?
• What about the data centres that host the online versions; the aircon costs and the equipment?
• Can print on demand at regional centres reduce waste and transport costs?

Not so simple after all.. many competing factors, complex relationships and lack of information.

Case study:

Over at the guardian newspaper in the UK they are asking a similar question.  They acknowledge climate change and the economic, social and environmental challenges ahead, and are exploring their environmental footprint.
In response they have started a two year academic study to look at various scenarios know as the Sympact project. For more info - check out the this link.

Answers?
This doesn't get us any closer to answering the question, "Is digital more sustainable?" so let's make some sweeping assumptions and try and draw some sort of conclusion (un-scentifically).

• People will have computers and tablets whether I/you publish online or not. The contribution of my/your publication to the environmental cost of electronic manufacture and disposal is nearly negligible.
• Using virgin-wood paper, petroleum ink, transporting newsprint miles and dumping in landfills is not the most sustainable option.
• Using post-consumer recycled paper, vegetable-based ink and regional printing with household recycling pickups is more sustainable than the previous option.

Conclusion:
Looks like digital publishing is more sustainable if you pass the blame of production, use and disposal of all the electronic stuff onto "someone else".  The question we now have to ask is - who picks up the environmental tab for all this electronic stuff?


Find out more about the story of stuff here.
If you're interested in the sustainability of paper, ink or glue check out the sustainable graphic design quick guides here.

Materials life cycle assessment in Graphic Design

Life cycle assessment is also known as life cycle analysis or LCA and can be used to assess the environmental impacts of a product's life and provide a sound basis for informed decisions.
It sounds analytical and complex but with some basic theory under your belt you can apply some practical LCA to your graphic design projects.

The main stages of the life cycle usually follows the cradle-to-grave model (full life-cycle) or occasionally the cradle-to-gate model (partial life-cycle until it reaches the consumer).

This graphic shows the main stages of a cradle-to-grave full life-cycle and the resources that go into the system and waste that comes out (this can happen at every stage, not just at the end). Click on the image to zoom in.

The main stages for analysis include:

• Raw material extraction
• Material processing
• Design
• Manufacture
• Distribution
• Use
• Repair/maintenance
• Disposal

With regard to the following factors:

• Raw Material use
• Water use
• Energy use
• Waste production 
• Waste disposal (air, land, water)
• Transportation steps

Life Cycle Analysis can be as simple as making a basic matrix of these main stages against the factors like in the following graphic (click to enlarge):

Setting up a simple spreadsheet for each material, product, project or the options to satisfy a design brief will bring focus.  It's easy to work out what you don't know (there will be a hole in the matrix) and then you can assess the options against each other.

This is where you'll have to ask your suppliers where their products come from, and if they can source locally extracted/manufactured goods.  You'll have to do some research into what happens at the end of the line.  How do these materials get disposed of?  What actually happens to them in the environment?

I've included "cost" into the matrix even though this strictly isn't a LCA factor, because realistically - will your client stump up extra money for a more sustainable product?

Further posts will look at this in more depth - including open loop production (recycling) and evaluating options that give more useable life for each product.

If you're interested in sustainable design life-cycles check out this post about a graphic designers perspective on sustainability.