Climate change represents one of the greatest environmental, social, and economic problems facing the planet. The Earth's average surface temperature has risen by 0.76° C since 1850. Most of the warming that has occurred over the last 50 years is very likely to have been caused by human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation. We need to take action now if we are to pass on a healthy planet to future generations!
This themed page is cross-curricular and will touch on aspects of both post-primary CSPE and Geography.
What is Climate Change?The Greenhouse Effect Global warming occurs through a process known as the greenhouse effect. This interactive simulation depicts how the greenhouse effect occurs.
Al Gore on Climate Change Once the US Vice President, then star of 'An Inconvenient Truth', now Nobel Peace Prize winner, Al Gore has succeeded in focusing the world's attention on climate change. Watch this video of his 2008 slideshow on climate change. Video is 28 minutes in length.
Effects of Climate ChangeInteractive Map Interactive map from the National Geographic website showing the potential long term effects of climate change. Click on the hot spots to display information.
See the Impact - A Student Guide to Global WarmingSizzling hot summers, colder winters, flooding, melting glaciers, frightening storms are all results of global warming. Learn more.
So What Can We Do?12 Ways to Stop Global Warming 12 really important things you as an individual can do to stop global warming. Click on the highlighted words to see further information and explore related links.
ActivitiesNY Times - Climate Change in the ClassroomTen teaching ideas that use interesting multimedia, articles and blog posts from around The Times. Could be interesting to apply some of the ideas here to reports in Irish newspapers.
Global Warming - Panic or Reality? Activity asking students to explore the links provided to answer 6 key questions on the topic of global warming. Resource includes a glossary of terms and a frequently asked questions section.
The Kyoto Protocol You must complete a series of activities before being asked to write a letter to the president of your country expressing your concern about the problem of climate change. Activities include survey, complete the sentences, watching a video narrated by Hollywood actor Leonardo Dicaprio and much more.
Anagram Quiz You must re-assemble 10 key words associated with climate change. You have 30 seconds to re-assemble each anagram. Can you beat the clock?
Fill in the Gaps Fill in all the gaps and press 'Check' to test your knowledge of climate change. You may use the 'Hint' button for help, but you will lose points for this! Best of luck!
Energy Source Sudoku Interactive drag and drop energy source sudoku. Instead of numbers this puzzle uses energy source symbols. May also be printed. Best of luck!
Test Your Knowledge
Scoilnet Quiz Fun 8 question quiz on the topic of climate change. Get them all right and become a climate change whizz!
National Geographic Quiz Informative 12 question quiz from the National Geographic website. Includes links to four other environmental quizzes.
Teacher's Corner
Understanding Climate Change Four activities designed for use by CSPE teachers looking at different aspects of climate change. Includes climate change facts, energy action sheets and a variety of suggested activities.
Understanding Global WarmingSeries of links from a Garden Centre website pulling together links on the topic. Among other things, it looks at the consequences of global warming; causes and solutions; aerosol impact on global warming; climate statistics from the past.