Addressing environmental threats in Antarctica could help spur global action, an expert says.
Most of us will never make it to Antarctica, the ice-covered continent at Earth’s southern tip. But that doesn’t mean we should ignore its pressing environmental challenges, says Claire Christian, the executive director of the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition.
The Antarctic Peninsula is one of the fastest-warming regions, with average summer temperatures climbing 3 degrees C in the last 50 years. That’s bad news for Adélie penguins, whose populations have declined by as much as 90% in some areas. It’s also affecting the Southern Ocean, which plays a large role in the global ocean circulation system on which we all depend.
Action for Antarctica: Saving the World’s Last Great Wilderness • The Revelator
Most of us will never make it to Antarctica, the ice-covered continent at Earth’s southern tip. But that doesn’t mean we should ignore its pressing environmental challenges, says Claire Christian, the executive director of the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition.
The Antarctic Peninsula is one of the fastest-warming regions, with average summer temperatures climbing 3 degrees C in the last 50 years. That’s bad news for Adélie penguins, whose populations have declined by as much as 90% in some areas. It’s also affecting the Southern Ocean, which plays a large role in the global ocean circulation system on which we all depend.
Action for Antarctica: Saving the World’s Last Great Wilderness • The Revelator