Wicked problems

Climate change is an extremely difficult problem to

solve due to the complexity of the issue. It transcends
world borders, presenting the problem of
communicating, and cooperating with other countries.
This might be because some countries are at war with
others, and so communicating with these countries
openly would mean having to put differences aside and
focus on a common enemy.
Another challenge is the economy’s dependence
on fossil fuels, one of our main sources of energy and
heat. Putting this aside would mean having to invest
money to develop sustainable energy; this becomes a
problem for low-income countries because they need
this money to further develop their economy and
fundamental services (e.g healthcare and education),
therefore putting money towards energy is not a
priority as some countries don’t even have clean, safe
water for most people.
However, if we could put all our differences aside
and focus on solving climate change, here is what I
would propose we do. First of all, we would need to find
a sustainable alternative for wood and plastic. This
would make a major difference because reducing our
demand for wood would decrease deforestation,
therefore increasing oxygen and decreasing carbon
dioxide, reducing the greenhouse effect. This would
have the added benefit of tackling habitat loss in these
environments too.
 Plastic comes from fossil fuels, which, as I have
stated before, we are dependent upon. Why are fossil
fuels so bad, you might ask? Well, when these fuels are
burned, they release carbon dioxide into the
atmosphere, this in turn leads to the increased
greenhouse effect, warming our planet, melting ice
caps and contributing to chaotic weather patterns.
Ok, now you know what plastic and wood do to the
environment and why we should find alternatives. Now
let’s talk about what alternatives. For wood, there are
sustainable and natural alternatives, for example
bamboo. Bamboo grows much more quickly; about 3-5
years to reach full maturity, compared to the decades
that trees can take to grow. Another reason is that
bamboo absorbs more carbon dioxide and makes more
oxygen than most trees do, making it extremely
environmentally friendly. Now what about plastic, what
could we use to replace that? Well, I did some research
and found that starch-based plastics are the way to go.
Wait, starch, did I hear you say? Doesn’t that come
from potatoes? To that I would say, why yes it does,
from potatoes and other plants. This is what makes it
so amazing. You can just grow it. These are already
being used in many areas and you have probably
already come across them in shops, as a replacement
for plastic bags and packaging and in catering,
replacing things such as disposable cups and plates.
However, it’s not always as simple as that. With
prices and the cost of living on the rise, these new
technologies are not as viable as they might seem.
People need to know how environmentally friendly they
are and care enough so they can justify spending the
extra money for, in some cases, a less durable and
lower quality product. So, it’s important to raise
awareness through education as well as having the
technology for consumer behaviour to change.
How about another solution; carbon dioxide
removal. If we could take the Co2 from the atmosphere
using robots with filters and find a way to split Co2 into
carbon and oxygen, then we could release the oxygen
into the air and use the carbon in running the
machines. This would provide a clean atmosphere,
sustainable energy, and increased oxygen levels. Some
scientists are researching this and have found that this
method produces more carbon dioxide than it is
removing from the atmosphere, as you need to burn
fuels to reach the high temperatures needed to split
Co2. Therefore, this method, until scientists find a more
efficient way, is not a practical solution. People are
currently working on better options and prizes like the
XPRIZE competition offer huge amounts of money to
whoever finds one.
A good thing we can do in our everyday lives is
make the switch to electric cars. Different sources
suggest that road transport accounts for between 15%
and 25% of global carbon emissions, so it is a
significant factor in global warming. Our government
has put a law in place that by 2035 the car you buy has
to be fully electric. This is a good example of how
changing the law can more quickly influence the
public’s decisions and change behaviour.
 The downside of this method is that the electricity
used to charge the car has to be renewable because if
they use electricity from fossil fuels how are electric
cars any better than normal cars?

One last important issue is agriculture and in

particular animal farming. It is estimated that this
produces 26% of global emissions and uses 50% of all
habitable land on earth. Science may have a part to
play here too. One way people have been trying to
address this issue is through a feed supplement called
‘Bovaer’ which makes cows produce 30% - 50% less
methane than normal. This helps because methane gas
can enter the atmosphere and lead to increased
greenhouse effect. Some people believe that this is not
safe for cows or humans. However, this has been
disproven by scientists and could be a useful product.
Of course, we could also reduce the demand for
cows and other animals that produce a lot of methane
by being a vegetarian or at least reduce the amount of
meat we eat.
In conclusion, I think that all these methods have
downsides, but with more development and incentive,
and some government intervention we have the ability
to solve climate change before it gets out of hand.