Climate changewhich can be defined as change of weather patterns that has persisted for a period of not less than ten years. (IPCC, 2007).The change affects the social, economic and cultural aspect of human life,both positively and negativelyespecially; human health, settlement, infrastructure, food and water supply. Natural resources and wildlife has not been spared either as they continue to feel the effects of climate change. While some peoples will be suffering from the harmful effects of climate change, some elsewhere will be reaping from what can be said as positive side of this change, as their food production will be given a boost, dry areas will be receiving rains and harsh hot and cold temperatures will be tolerable by having warmer winters which are short and ecosystems productivity will increase (Rosenberg, 2011).

The human health is affected negatively in that, changes in temperature especially rise in temperatures, will create favorable conditions for disease causing organisms. This is so, as once cold regions that discouraged habitation of these microbes and disease carrying insects, will become tolerable to them, like mosquitoes, and cases of malaria would be on the rise. WHO (World Health Organization) attributed 150,000 deaths to climate change alone in the year 2000 and said worse can be expected in the future. Heat waves is known to claim lives throughout the world with one in 2003 that claimed 20,000 and 1,500 lives in Europe and India respectively (Nature, nd). Climate change will increase the severity, duration and frequency of more deadly heat waves and cold spells in summer and winter respectively, and deaths from latter will outweigh the former (Karl, Melillo& Peterson, 2009).

However Riddley (2013), quoting from Prof Tol’swork, is of contrary opinion that cold not heat is the biggest killer, and that there are more deaths due to cold in winter than is summer due to heat waves, as 29,000 lives are lost each winter in Britain compared to 15,000 lives claimed by heat waves in summer in France and only 2000 in Britain. Climate change will results to shorter winters that are warmer and will reduce the number of lives killed.

Another harmful effect would increase intensity of hurricanes, storms and tropical storms and extremity of weather conditions like precipitation leading to flooding. This would adversely affect human settlement as people will be displaced, destroy utility infrastructure like electricity and water supply and also results to psychological and psychosocial impacts on victims due to migration and depression due to loss of property (Doherty et.al, 2011). Insurance will also be affected as they will become less affordable especially to middle income and poor families and they wont be able to recover from the loss and destruction of their property (Choi & Fischer, 2003). Human social economic aspects in tourism will also be affected by the change due to migration of wildlife (Nature, nd). However in Siberia, Canada, Russia and other countries in higher latitudes, food production will be boosted as temperature belts will shift upwards and also due to rise in co_2, will have greener and more productive ecosystems.

In conclusion, climate change results to both negative and positive effects, but since the negative effects outstrip the positives ones in terms of number, severity and that it threatens survival of all living things in the planet, serious mitigation should be put into place to reduce or cut the effects of the change and also the industrialized nations who are custodians of the change, should facilitate in capacity building of developing and least developing countries to adapt to climate change as they are the most vulnerable interms of nature of their economies and lack of financial inadequacy.

References

Choi, O.; A. Fisher (2003).“The Impacts of Socioeconomic Development and Climate Change on Severe Weather Catastrophe Losses: Mid-Atlantic Region (MAR) and the U.S”. Climatic Change58 (1–2): 149–170. doi:10.1023/A:1023459216609.

Doherty, Thomas J.; Clayton, Susan (2011).“The psychological impacts of global climate change”. PsycNET66 (4): 265–276. doi:10.1037/a0023141.

IPCC.Intergovernmental Panel Convention on Climate Change. Accessed march 6 2014. Retrived http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/syr/en/mains1.html.

Karl, T.R., Melillo J.M., & Peterson T.C (eds.). (2009) United States Global Change Research Program.Cambridge University Press, New York, NY, USA.

Nature.The Nature Conservancy.Climate Change Impacts.Accessed March 6, 2014.Retrived http://www.nature.org/how-we-work/index.htm?intc=nature.tnav.

Ridley M. (2013).The Spectator. Why climate change is good for the world. Accessed March 6 2014.Retrieved http://www.spectator.co.uk/features/9057151/carry-on-warming/

Rosenberg.M. Advantages and Disadvantages of Global Warming. Positive and Negative Effects of Global Warming to People and the Planet.http://geography.about.com/od/globalproblemsandissues/a/advantages.htm