Visualization Techniques for Climate Change with Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence

By Abhishek Kumar

Visualization Techniques for Climate Change with Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence covers computer-aided artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies as related to the impacts of climate change and its potential to prevent/remediate the effects. As such, different types of algorithms, mathematical relations and software models may help us to understand our current reality, predict future weather events and create new products and services to minimize human impact, chances of improving and saving lives and creating a healthier world.

This book covers different types of tools for the prediction of climate change and alternative systems which can reduce the levels of threats observed by climate change scientists. Moreover, the book will help to achieve at least one of 17 sustainable development goals i.e., climate action.

• Includes case studies on the application of AI and machine learning for monitoring climate change effects and management
• Features applications of software and algorithms for modeling and forecasting climate change
• Shows how real-time monitoring of specific factors (temperature, level of greenhouse gases, rain fall patterns, etc.) are responsible for climate change and possible mitigation efforts to achieve environmental sustainability

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Release date: Nov 11, 2022
• ISBN: 9780323997157

Book preview

Chapter 1

Climate uncertainties and biodiversity: An overview

Rohit Kamboja, Sweta Kamboja, Shikha Kambojb, Priyanka Kriplania, Rohit Duttc, Kumar Guarvea, Ajmer Singh Grewala, Arun Lal Srivastavd and Surya Prakash Gautame

aGuru Gobind Singh College of Pharmacy, Yamuna Nagar, Haryana, India

bGuru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology, Hisar, Haryana, India

cSchool of Medical and Allied Sciences, G. D. Goenka University, Gurugram, Haryana, India

dChitkara University School of Engineering and Technology, Chitkara University, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India

eCT Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, CT Group of Institutions, Jalandhar, Punjab, India

1.1 Introduction

Plant biologists, agronomists, and conservation biologists face one of the important research issues of our time: climate change. It describes long-term weather statistics shifts, such as distribution of weather conditions or variations in the average weather conditions around the average (i.e., extreme events of weather). Despite various debates and discussions over the roots of climate change, there is widespread agreement that global climate change is occurring and that human activities play a significant role in this process. According to research from all over the world, biological systems are being affected by anthropogenic climate change on a variety of dimensions, from genes to ecosystems (Weiskopf et al., 2020). Alleles and phenotypes in various populations, changes in plant community organization, and ecosystem functioning indices are all being investigated.

As per European Environment Agency (EEA, 2008), in twentieth century, there is increase in the global average surface temperature by 0.74°C, per decade Arctic Sea ice has been shrinking at a rate of 2.7% and since 1961 global sea levels are increasing at a rate of 1.8 mm per year. In addition, ocean water is becoming acidic, mountain glaciers are dwindling and extreme weather events are becoming more common (Wu et al., 2016). The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) forecasted a global average temperature increase of 21.5–5.8 °C in the twenty-first century, with more anomalous and extreme events of weather such as floods, heatwaves, and droughts. Overall, climatic conditions limit the seasonal and geographic distributions of infectious diseases, and the intensity and timing of disease outbreaks are affected by weather (Sonali and Nagesh Kumar, 2020).

1.1.1 Variations in the timing of periodic life cycle phases

Yearly life cycle phases of many species including blooming, migration, and reproduction are affected by the climate where the live. The timings of their occurrences are also influenced in many parts of the county as winter has become milder and shorter. Earlier springs in East coast of United States has caused in earlier nesting in 28 species of migratory birds. North-eastern birds are returning 13 days prior in spring which used to spend their winter in South. Similarly in one of the research projects conducted in California, 16 out of 23 butterfly species came earlier, altered their patterns of migration (Parmesan and Hanley, 2015). Biodiversity in nature is a self-sustaining engine. It contains all the necessary components for flawless operation. Climate change, on the other hand, has caused friction in this engine, and wildlife animals are facing the brunt of it. It has had an impact on their very survival. Variations in size of body are frequently associated with morphological variations. In North American migratory birds, for example, increasing summer temperatures are associated with augmented length of wings and reduced body size (Hoffmann et al., 2019). In ectotherms, warmer surroundings increase the development rates while metabolic rates depend on variations in temperature, but smaller body size in the end. Temperature has had a direct impact on growth in Atlantic cod and American lobster, for example, during current warming in the north-west Atlantic. The most visible change in climate is the fast evolution of wild species, which causes mutation and genetic variation loss. Because genetic differences are linked to adaptation, they are vital for survival. Another key factor in the survival of wild animals, especially birds, is migration. Birds migrate in search of improved breeding and feeding conditions. Siberian cranes used to migrate to Keoladeo National Park, but their numbers have declined due to inaccessibility of Bharatpur Lake (Bellard et al., 2012). They are now classified as an endangered species. The shifts in behavior, migration, and genetics have an impact on animal behavior and, as a result, the ecosystem. Rapid changes in one species have a substantial impact on others (MacDonald et al., 2008). The classic example of a shift in equilibrium is when the number of tigers decreases, and the number of deer increases. This results in abridged grass cover, which causes minimal rainfall, disrupting the biome. While change is unavoidable, it can be harmful to the flora and fauna if it is forced.

1.1.2 Why there was sudden change in climate?

Threshold behavior is a common occurrence in systems. Inclining somewhat over the edge of a canoe, for example, may only produce a tiny tilt, but leaning much more will likely roll you and the vessel into the lake (Malhi et al., 2020). Many models of climate, including basic versions of the atmospheric energy-balance models, atmospheric dynamic models, and oceanic thermohaline circulation demonstrating unprompted regime shifts, show such massive and quick threshold transitions between various states (Radchuk et al., 2019). An initiation or trigger such as you are leaning out of an amplifier, canoe or globalizer, such as friction between canoe and you make the boat to flip along with you, and a basis of persistence such as canoes resistance (upside down) to flip back over, are all essential for sudden change in canoe or the climate (Li et al., 2011). In the climate system, several triggers have been found. The drying of the Sahara in the late Holocene, as well as ice-age DO cycles, are both connected to orbital forcing in terms of timing and mechanism. The Sahara dries out when the African monsoon weakens due to a drop in incoming solar energy throughout the summer. The DO oscillations were most noticeable throughout the ice ages orbitally driven cooling and warming. Triggers can be quick (e.g., outpouring floods originating from glacier-dammed lakes), gradual (orbital forcing, continental drift), or someplace in amid (greenhouse gases produced by humans), and they can even be muddled. Amplifiers abound in the climate system, and they may create significant changes with little effort (Jones, 2015).

1.1.3 Effect of climate change on flora

Change in climate is one of the most pressing scientific alarms for plant biologists, agronomists, and conservation biologists today. It is undeniable that a warmer climate has an impact on spring plant phenology. The northern hemisphere's germination, leaf emergence, blooming and fruiting, and overall greening have all progressed in tandem trends in regional warming. In addition, the method that organisms respond to heat may be altering (Renno and Huang, 2015). In a study of temperate trees conducted between 1980 and 2012, researchers discovered that for leaf flushing, the need of heat has augmented over time in each case, on average by over 50%, a startling conclusion. Furthermore, as a consequence of changing climate, altered patterns of rainfall and rising temperatures can induce large-scale forest dieback, with serious effects on function of ecosystem, biodiversity, and resilience of woodlands and native forests. Components of climate changes are expected to exert impact on at all levels of biodiversity from biome to organism as shown in Fig. 1.1 (Boykoff, 2008).

Figure 1.1 Multiple components of climate change.

Ecosystems, populations, individuals, species, ecosystems, and ecological networks are all affected by varying forms of fitness loss and strengths, which manifest themselves at varying levels and affect populations, individuals, species, ecosystems, and ecological networks. Climate change can reduce genetic variety of populations owing to fast migration and directional selection that can influence ecosystem functioning and resilience at the most fundamental level of biodiversity (Cohen et al., 2018).Though, most research emphasizes on the effects of change in climate at higher organizational levels, and climate change, genetic implications have only been studied for a small number of species. Human generated greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) fuel the climate change. Only ten countries account for over 60% of GHG emissions, while the top 100 emitters account for less than 3%. Energy accounts for approximately three-quarters of world emissions, with agriculture coming in second. Electricity and heat generating are the most polluting sectors in the energy sector, trailed by manufacturing and transportation. For attaining net zero emissions, forestry (LULUCF) and land use along with its change are both a cause and sink of emissions (Historical GHG Emissions, 2022). In one of the studies published in Nature, on 50,000 species of plants and animals, by 2080, half of the species will be greatly affected by the greenhouse emissions (Nicholls et al., 2007). Climate change can affect the quality of natural products, their taste and even their medicinal value. In some cases, secondary plant metabolite production is augmented in stressed conditions, however the production is also affected by humidity, light, soil, etc. (Das et al., 2016).

1.2 Effect of climate change on fauna including Homo sapiens

Comprehend animals and bulk exposure to ecosystem are predicted to be pretentious by change in climate. A few mammals have highly generalized environmental adaptations, comparatively snow, sea ice, or hibernation temperatures that fall within a small range. Weather also affects some distributions (Dean, 2007; Banerjee, 2013). The masses of animals will be unable to decamp the impacts of climate change, which may have both beneficial and inadequate consequences (Rice, 2020). Mammal's requisite several resources, which are often incompatible. The prerequisite places to hide, feed, drink, and reproduce, and these locations are often nonidentical and substitute periodically (Loucks and van Beek, 2017). As a termination, climate change has assorted potential to alter animal life cycles. Most animals are likewise ambulatory and have transient life spans (usually less than 20 years) as compared to perennial plants. Furthermore, physical and mental health, environmental devastation, house destruction, forced relocation, mass migration, conflict over water and food, internal and international security, and the possible breakdown of society, energy, and transportation are all repercussions of climate change on humanity (McKelvey et al., 2013). Climate change has reoriented the Earth's geological, biological, and ecological processes in potentially irreversible ways (Teplitsky and Millien, 2014; National Research Council, 2011). These shifts have resulted in the rise of large-scale environmental threats to human health, encompassing as severe weather, greater wildfire risk, biodiversity loss, stress on food-production systems, and the ubiquitous proliferation of infectious diseases (Reichstein et al., 2013). As consequences, if conditions become inappropriate, mammalian responses are likely to be swift. In numerous ecosystems, mammals play a dominating role. They make up the majority of North America's terrestrial large-bodied predators, and these enormous, high-trophic animals have an extensive influence on the environments they live in (Heilman et al., 2015). Activities responsible for climate change such as fossil fuel combustion has also resulted in high nitrogen deposition which exerts effect on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. High temperature affects the carbon: nitrogen balance of the soil and also toxic algal (Alexandriumcatanella) growth is having bad effects on aquaculture, recreation, and water activities (Sahney et al., 2010).Climate change has a wide range of effects on human health, food supply, economic growth, migration, security, societal transformation, and public goods like drinking water, according to a growing corpus of studies. In Bangladesh, for example, climate-sensitive illnesses such as malaria, dengue fever, infantile diarrhea, and pneumonia have increased among susceptible groups. According to vast research, climate change's net present and future consequences on human society will continue to be largely negative. The poor and low-income populations across the world bear the brunt of climate change's negative consequences, since they are more vulnerable to environmental determinants of health, wealth, and other variables. They also have far less capacity for dealing with environmental change (Sandifer and Sutton-Grier, 2014).The Global Humanitarian Forum produced a report in 2009 on the global human effect of climate change, which predicted more than 300,000 fatalities and $125 billion in economic losses each year. This shows how the majority of climate-related mortality in underdeveloped nations is due to increased floods and droughts. The effects of climate change on human health have occurred in the past, present, and future. Even with immediate reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, health impacts due to climate change have already occurred in the past, are currently occurring, and will continue to occur, at least for the foreseeable future, according to Working Group II, Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Warming has resulted in increased heat-related mortality and decreased cold-related mortality in some places, according to the IPCC. Furthermore, local temperature and rainfall variations have shifted the distribution of various water-borne diseases and disease vectors. In an investigation, done by the researchers of University of Arizona, US, it is reported that climate change can drive 33% of earths flora and fauna to extinction by 2070 and about 50% of species will extinct if the temperature increased by more than 0.5°C and 95% if temperature increased by more than 2.9°C (Davidson and Janssens, 2006).

1.3 Effect of climate change on health of humans

1.3.1 Heat- and cold-related impacts

Since the 1970s, Europe has warmed by 0.3°C by each decade, and in the last two decades, maximum nations have observed an upsurge in the number of heat waves. As health of public approaches to mitigate the effects of hot weather and heat waves are developed, a greater understanding of the environmental and socioeconomic causes of heat-related mortality is required. There is a rising library of epidemiological research that comprises of risk factors for heat-associated mortality, in addition to clinical and physiological investigations of heat stress. Many of these studies, on the other hand, have utilized very large groups of age and do not adequately correct for the age, when looking at gender or other subgroups, leaving approximations vulnerable to residual perplexing. After correcting for age, in four Italian cities, a case-crossover multi-city investigation indicated that the risk of heat-related death was greater in women than in males, while other investigations found no differences by gender (Sherwood and Huber, 2010).Indoor thermal factors, such as ventilation, humidity, ceiling or wall radiation, and the absence and presence of air conditioning, are significant in observing if adverse effects occur, although these variables are rarely well-measured in epidemiological investigations. Other causes of mortality that are frequently linked to high temperatures, such as suicide, have less clear biological explanations. In Europe, only a few researchers have looked at the impact of socioeconomic level on heat mortality. Excess mortality was reduced among those with the greatest degree of education, in 2003, in Rome heat wave, but other studies in Barcelona, Paris, and the United Kingdom found no alteration in consequences between low- and high-income groups. This is a startling and concerning result. For instance, coastal towns throughout the globe have adjusted to 19 cm of rise in sea level, while certain coastal cities could need to adjust to 98 cm as the forecasts show. Adapting to such a difference may not be achievable in many cases (Petkova et al., 2013).

1.3.2 Storms and floods

Floods seem to be the widespread sort of weird catastrophe. Floods accounted for six of the top ten natural disasters in 2011, both in terms of the number of persons killed (3140) and number of people impacted (112 million). Owing to the development of property and population in flood plains, the incidence of occurrences of river flood is growing globally, as have economic damages. Hypothermia, drowning injuries, and infectious illness (e.g., drowning, injuries, hypothermia, and infectious illnesses [e.g., cholera, vector borne and diarrheal disease, and leptospirosis]) are all risks associated with flooding and windstorms. More research on the enduring health effects of floods has emerged after AR4. Flooding and storms also impact the mental health of people. Drowning, injuries, hypothermia, and infectious illnesses (e.g., diarrhea, leptospirosis, vector-borne diseases, and cholera) are all risks associated with flooding and windstorms. More research on the long-term health effects of floods has emerged after AR4. Flooding and storms have the potential to have a significant impact on people's mental health. When compared to nonflooded persons, the incidence of symptoms of mental health (depression, anxiety, psychological distress) was two to five times more than those who informed flood water in their residence (Smith et al., 2014).

1.3.3 Ozone depletion: Impacts of ultraviolet radiation

Midsummer day temperatures and levels of ultraviolet directly affect the contracts in eyes and nonmelanoma skin malignancies. In recent research conducted in the United States, there was rise of 5.5% in squamous cell carcinoma for each 1°C rise in average temperatures, whereas the number of cases of basal cell carcinoma increased by 2.9%. For each 1° rise in temperature, these values correspond to 2% rise in effective dosage of UV. Sunlight, on the other hand, has a positive influence on vitamin D production, which has crucial health implications. As a result, the equilibrium of losses and gains associated with augmented UV exposure varies depending on degree of exposure, place, and other factors (such as nutrition) that affect vitamin D levels. Higher temperatures in temperate climate nations, on the other hand, may lead to an increase in the amount of time individuals spend outside, resulting in extra UV-induced negative consequences. For the current evaluation (2010-2014), this is mainly focus on the detrimental and beneficial impacts of UV radiation on human beings, air quality, materials, and aquatic and terrestrial ecosystem. The impacts of ozone on climate, as well as the effects of climate on ozone, are explored. For low-aerosol and cloud free circumstances, ozone absorption is the primary aspect determining the UV-B surface levels (280–315 nm) radiation. With the modified and improved Montreal Protocol continuing to reduce ozone depleting substance (ODS) concentrations, the focus is now on detecting probable declines in UV-B radiation in retort to first cyphers of retrieval of ozone layer. Changes in climate induced by rising greenhouse gas concentrations may have an indirect impact on UV radiation at the surface of Earth. By affecting the quantity of ozone, climate change, UV-absorbing tropospheric gases, clouds in the atmosphere, aerosols and climate change may have indirectly altered UV radiation levels in the past. These impacts will very certainly persist in the future. Future alterations in the Earth's surface reflectance, whether as a result of melting sea ice and ice caps at high latitudes or decreasing snow cover, might be significant. As the rates of destruction of ozone in upper stratosphere and colder middle, at par polar regions, will fall as the stratosphere cools due to increasing GHG concentrations and CO2 levels, future ozone concentrations will be higher (Milman, 2021).

1.3.4 Environment

1.3.4.1 Lack of oxygen

A significant human mortality owing to a shortage of oxygen has been proposed in the scenario of a 6°C rise in temperature at par preindustrial levels. This is due to the fact that such circumstances might affect phytoplankton, which provides a significant portion of the oxygen on the planet. Phytoplankton is a kind of autotrophic plankton that is found in both ocean and freshwater habitats. Phytoplankton, like trees and other land plants, get their energy from photosynthesis. Phytoplankton resides in lakes and seas, that is, in well-lit areas or euphotic zone, as they need sunlight to survive. Phytoplankton, are compared to terrestrial plants, is dispersed across a wider surface area, is subjected to less seasonal change, and grow well than trees (decades vs days).Therefore, phytoplankton reacts to climate change quickly on a worldwide scale (Currie and Deschênes, 2016).

1.3.4.2 Temperature changes

Wet bulb temperature for prolonged time of more than 35°C at which resilience of human systems is not sufficient to cool the skin. As in 2013, NOAA research, under current emissions projections, heat stress will significantly limit labor capacity. According to one research, keeping warming to 1.5°C is important to avert densely populated areas in tropical climates from surpassing the brink of 35°C for wet bulb temperature. High temperatures have been shown to increase the death rates of children and fetuses. While the major attention is frequently on the effects on health and hazards of increasing temperatures, it is important to note that they similarly diminish productivity of workers and learning, which can have an economic and development impact on a country (University of Leicester, 2015).

1.3.4.3 Drowning

Researchers discovered a clear link between rising temperatures and drowning incidents in major lakes, which they attribute to the ice being thinner and weaker. Even while not all drowning incidents result in death, drowning may be an extremely dangerous experience, particularly for children and young people. Children suffer cardiac arrest and subsequent neurological impairment as a result of exposure to extremely cold water. Furthermore, indigenous peoples' dread of drowning has an impact on their way of life, since they depend on travel, fish, and ice lakes to hunt. Even though authorities are creating awareness about the dangers of forbidding snowmobiles from lakes, drowning, confining access till the ice is safe, researchers expect that drowning occurrences will continue to rise (World Health Organization, 2021).In November, 2014, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a global study on drowning. This paper stated that drowning prevention and integration with other public health priorities has been largely disregarded to date, and that governments, research communities and policy makers should do much more to priority prevention of drowning and incorporation with other agendas of public health.

1.4 Whether we are adjusting to change in climate

There is a wealth of evidence that the climate is changing. Regardless of mitigation measures, historic emissions bind the globe to some degree of future warming, and it will very certainly exceed the 2C barrier seen by many as indicating dangerous interference (Hartmann, 2007). Given the inability to establish an international framework for emissions stabilization, 4°C of global warming by 2100 is increasingly plausible. Adaptation is an inherent part of life. However, our understanding of the scale of the adaptation problem is lacking. Is there already some adaption going on? Who is adapting, what are they adapting to, and how are they adapting? Is there a difference in adaptability across and within nations, regions, and sectors? Are climate change adaptations compatible with the threats posed by the changing climate? Although much adaptation research has been done, the bulk of studies focus on vulnerability, assessments, and natural systems (or plans to respond), rather than adaptation actions. Adaptation activity is rarely motivated solely or primarily by climate change. Extreme occurrences serve as key adaptation cues in different parts of the world. In wealthy countries, proactive adaptation is the most typically reported adaptive response. Adaptation actions are reported more often in developed countries, with middle-income countries underrepresented and low-income areas dominated by reports from a limited number of countries. There is little coverage of adaptations being created to take advantage of the climate change, particularly those aimed at women, the elderly, or children (Kabir et al., 2016).

1.5 Applications of artificial intelligence and machine learning

Water pollution has resulted in waterborne diseases, biodiversity damage, and unsafe drinkable water, resulting in millions of fatalities each year. Despite increased attempts to address these critical issues, manpower alone cannot fix all the problems, let alone studies that require long-term water quality monitoring. As a result, new ways that are more intelligent, convenient, and less dangerous to implement are critical. Computational chemistry has been widely used to predict the transformation behaviors of contaminants in natural and artificial water systems using first-principles or empirical methodologies (He et al., 2021). Machine learning has become a strong study approach in unassociated sectors in recent years, and it has been applied to every single part of our lives, allocating an intelligent solution to problems that were before impossible or difficult to handle. Predominantly data is at the heart of machine learning. It creates a model using a segment of the input data (Rutenberg et al., 2021). To acquire the desired outcomes, the model is used to forecast and evaluates another component of the data. Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) development is promising, with applications that are constantly changing how we interact with our devices, people, and the environment. Scientific research is now focusing on the application of machine learning technologies to interpret and use ocean data, air temperature forecasting, wildfire science and management, river/stream water temperature forecasting, and aquatic chemistry research. Governments and technologists can go one step closer to achieving sustainable goals by employing powerful AI and machine learning applications. Industries can employ AI to construct more functional and automated resource management systems. Some of technology pioneers adopting AI for environmental intelligence include Google, Microsoft, and IBM. Scientific research is now focusing on the application of ML technologies to interpret and use ocean data. With the rising demand for AI across industries, environmental intelligence is also driving the demand with sustainable solutions to modern day challenges. AI has the potential to revolutionize the challenge of our deteriorating environmental circumstances as the urgency to respond to social, economic, and health repercussions at scale grows. We can modify legacy institutions and traditional approaches to solve critical concerns such as long-term food and water scarcity, insufficient urban planning, biodiversity loss, climate change, and a direct focus on overall human welfare are shown in Fig. 1.2. ML can be widely employed in ocean data in the future to avoid natural catastrophes, monitor the marine environment, develop marine resources, investigate maritime transportation, and other disciplines. The development of the maritime sector will be aided by the constant increase of marine data. Through the analysis of ML algorithms, the utilization of data acquired by marine sensors, meteorological satellites, and other observation techniques enhances the degree of forecasting and early warning of severe maritime weather in coastal regions, reducing the loss of life, and property (Lou et al., 2021). Over the last decade, there has been an increase in efforts to study the impact of historical climate change on global and regional levels. Climate effect studies on the agricultural, ecological, environmental, and industrial sectors have used air temperature estimations as a crucial element. Accurate temperature forecasting aids in the protection of life and property, as well as in the planning of operations for the government, industry, and the public (Cifuentes et al., 2020). The temperature of the water is one of the most essential indicators of the aquatic system, and precise water temperature forecasting is critical for rivers. Predicting stream water temperature properly is a difficult task since it is influenced by a variety of factors (e.g., meteorological, hydrological, and morphological parameters). AI models have been steadily employed for river water temperature (RWT) forecasting in recent years, as processing capability and AI have improved (Zhu and Piotrowski, 2020; Srivastav et al., 2021).

Figure 1.2 Role of AI on environment management.

1.6 Conclusion

Change in climate is persistent and is posing threat to our ecosystem, biodiversity, and ecosystem services which is affecting the species, individual and populations via changes in morphology, behavior, and range shifts. At the level of ecosystem, it is affecting emergent properties, extreme events, species interactions, and primary production. Biodiversity and ecosystem fortify relevant services to people which impacts regulating, provisioning, supporting, cultural services with implications for human well-being. In different sectors, efforts are being made to manage the natural sources. Especially, AI and ML can be employed to monitor climate change. Case studies and evaluation of their effectiveness are required to promote smart management of climate.

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Chapter 2

Historical perspectives on climate change and its influence on nature

Shama E. Haque

North South University, Bashundhara, Dhaka, Bangladesh

2.1 Introduction

Climate refers to the long-term weather pattern of an area and climate change is a shift in those average conditions. Earth's climate has been influenced and altered significantly over time (tens of thousands or millions of years) throughout the course of the planet's history by numerous natural factors, such as volcanic activities, ocean currents, variations in Earth's orbit and solar output along with internal variability in the climate system (McMichael et al., 2003; Licker, 2020). Our planet has experienced numerous warming and cooling phases in the past, and both natural variation and fluctuations of climate system have always been part of our planet's history. During the last 650,000 years, Earth has had seven cycles of glacial advance-retreat, with a rapid global warming event roughly 11,700 years ago, which marks the beginning of the modern climate era and expansion of civilization (NASA, n.d.).

Earth's most recent glacial period started roughly 110,000 years ago and the planet started warming abruptly between about 16,000 and 11,500 years ago (Stanley, 2000). Increasing global average temperature is associated with changes in weather patterns. Historically, people have always been aware of climatic variations, and changes in both weather and climate have influenced the rise and fall of many civilizations along with the livelihood and economic security of their people (Diamond, 1997). For example, foraging bands in areas that were sensitive to climate in semi-arid parts of Southwest Asia, North Africa and China responded with various food extraction techniques, which involved use of wild grasses and effective management of animal games, manufacturing and using grinding stones, trapping, bows and arrows, along with food preservation (Hassan, 2021). Many climate scientists believe that between 11,600 and 8200 years ago, Earth grew warmer and the Eastern Mediterranean experienced a relatively wetter climate. At this time, for agers utilized water abundant environments for survival and agriculture became the primary means of acquiring food (Hassan, 2021). During the Middle Ages, climatic change was seen as a natural process, the progressive deterioration of the environment of a living and ageing planet (von Storch and Stehr, 2000). Anthropogenic changes were assumed to be man's effort to fulfil God's task of completing creation, whereas adverse events were seen as a divine punishment to immoral conduct (Glacken, 1967).

Many climate scientists believe that currently Earth's average surface temperature is the highest it has been in at least 1700 years (Licker, 2020; IPCC, 2021). They agree that although human forcing are the primary cause of our planet's changing climate, nevertheless, a significant portion of the observed shifts might be explained by natural variability. Earth-orbiting artificial satellites and modern technologies have given scientists an advanced understanding of changing climate, and opportunities to collect detailed information on Earth's climate on a global scale (Ustin and Middleton, 2021). It is now well established that since the industrial revolution began in the 18th century, anthropogenic activities has raised the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2), a key GHG emitted through human-related emissions (USGCRP, 2017). Scientists predict that increasing emission of huge quantities of greenhouse gases (GHGs) due to anthropogenic activities will induce a long-term shift in Earth's climate (McMichael, 2003). An increase in the atmospheric GHG concentrations produces a positive warming effect, as such the increased speed in global mean surface temperature has become a growing concern (IPCC, 2021). It is also important to note that contemporary climate models produce good simulations of climatic warming, which has occurred during the past century when the impacts of increasing concentrations of GHGs and natural external factors are factored in IPCC (2007).

During the last two decades, the fundamental science of climate change has been established with high certainty and confidence. In 1998, Mann, Bradley and Hughes published the now iconic hockey stick graph, which shows how Earth's temperatures remained fairly flat for centuries before turning sharply upward. The simple curve was based on extensive networks of climate proxy data, which shows the extraordinary nature of the current warming trend of Earth. The hockey stick became a major point in the debate about anthropogenic climate change and mitigation measures (Mann, 1998, 2021). Following publication of Mann, Bradley and Hughes' research work, the graph also became an icon of the conflict between climate scientists and their critics. Even though there is wide-spread agreement on human-induced climate change within the scientific community, contemporary social science research reveal that the most common misconceptions about climate change is that it is a new concept. Another misconception is that as our planet's climate has changed numerous times in the distant past before fossil fuel combustion therefore, the current warming cannot be caused by humans burning fossil fuels (von Storch and Stehr, 2000; S.S., 2021). However, historically, many people have been aware that anthropogenic activities are capable of influencing the local climate (McMichael et al., 2003; Carey, 2012); for instance, cutting down trees might change patterns of precipitation in a region (Bennett and Barton, 2018), or the freezing of a river, or a successful harvest (Lamb, 1982). In addition, nature was the major focus of nineteenth and twentieth century philosophy, with interest primarily focusing on the impacts of deforestation and various types of land-use (von Storch and Stehr, 2000; Brennan and Yeunk-Sze, 2020). Nevertheless, whether the environmental changes were viewed as a natural or anthropogenic process hinged primarily on the philosophy of the times (von Storch and Stehr, 2000). Particularly, in many countries, climate change has been discussed from cultural and religious viewpoints with much attention paid to humanity's role toward Earth stewardship (Hope and Jones, 2014; Jenkins et al., 2018). Views on changing climate also continue to differ by religious affiliation, beliefs and practice (Morrison et al., 2015). In many cases, differences in opinions and attitudes towards climate change by various religious groups appear to be influenced by socio-economic variables, political beliefs or depth of scientific knowledge (Schuman et al., 2018).

Several scholarly works as well as popular literature on the decline of the Empire of ancient Rome, the Maya Collapse, the collapse of the Norse settlements in Greenland, the migration history of people living along the Yellow River in ancient China suggest that changing climate played a large role in the collapse of these societies (de Menocal et al., 2001; Anderson et al., 2007; Huang et al., 2009; Carey, 2012). However, a lack of written records or other documented communication along with unavailability of relevant artifacts makes it difficult to fully comprehend views, beliefs and narratives of climate change influences on early human societies (Carey, 2012).

This chapter aims to review previously published literature on historical perspective on climate change, with special reference to its influence on nature. This review paper is structured as follows: Section 2 describes ancient cultures' views on climate change; Section 3 discusses the difference between climate change and global warming, the evolution of concepts of greenhouse effect, the Keeling Curve, and the concept of anthropogenic climate change; Section 4 reviews the influence of mass media in public perception of changing climate, and climate change risk perception in developing versus developed countries; Section 5 briefly describes the primary purposes of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC); Section 6 focuses on the evolution of laws and policies related to climate change; Section 7 discusses contemporary environmental movements and environmental activism; Section 8 summarizes the main outcomes of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference; and conclusions are presented in Section 9.

2.2 Ancient cultures and climate change

The word climate descends from a Greek word Klima, meaning inclination, slope or latitude. The history of climate change science is quite long. Zarkadoulas et al. (2008) report that unlike the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia and Indus, which thrived in water-rich environments, ancient Greeks favored arid, water-scarce environments to establish their settlements. It is likely that climate and health were dominant criteria in site selection as dry conditions are more favorable towards healthy living as such environment protect humans from water related ailments (Nutton 2005; Zarkadoulas et al., 2008). The idea of climate was established in ancient Greece in a geographic perspective, however, it developed a statistical content in recent times when meteorological measurements became more common (Koutsoyiannis,