Climate Change FAQs

This fact sheet from the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) provides a comprehensive overview of global warming and climate change, explaining their causes, impacts on health and environment, and the strategies used for mitigation and adaptation. It details the role of greenhouse gases, the specific contributions of the livestock sector, and the current state of climate action within the United States and through United Nations frameworks.

• Global warming is defined as the increase in average global temperature since the Industrial Revolution, with a rise of approximately one degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) since 1880. Projections indicate a further increase of 0.3 to 0.7 degrees Celsius (0.54–1.26 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2035.
• Human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels (oil, coal, and natural gas), deforestation, and livestock raising, increase the concentration of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane. These gases trap heat in the atmosphere, driving an anthropogenic rise in temperatures at a rate significantly faster than any time in the last 800,000 years.
• Climate change increases the frequency and severity of extreme weather. In the United States, the heat wave season has lengthened by more than 40 days in many cities since the 1960s, with major cities now averaging over six heat waves per year compared to two in the 1960s. Additionally, warmer sea surface temperatures are expected to increase the intensity of hurricanes and the proportion of storms reaching Category 4 or 5.
• Rising sea levels are driven by thermal expansion of warming oceans and the melting of land-based ice sheets and glaciers in the Antarctic, Greenland, and mountain regions. Since 1880, the global average sea level has risen by eight to nine inches; projections for 2100 range from one foot (low-emissions scenario) to more than eight feet (high-emissions scenario) above 2000 levels.
• The ocean absorbs 25 to 30 percent of carbon dioxide emissions, leading to ocean acidification. The ocean's pH value has decreased by 0.1 units, representing a 30 percent increase in acidity, which can dissolve the shells of marine organisms and stunt shellfish shell formation.
• In the United States, agriculture accounts for 10 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, with livestock and manure specifically responsible for 38 percent of total U.S. methane emissions. Methane is noted as being 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 100-year period.
• The United States has seen a shift in its primary emission sources; the transportation sector replaced the power sector as the largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, representing 28 percent of total emissions in 2023. This was aided by a transition from coal to cheaper natural gas and renewable energy.
• International efforts are coordinated through the UN, including the UNFCCC and the IPCC. The Paris Agreement, ratified by 195 parties as of July 2025, aims to limit global warming to "well below 2 degrees Celsius" this century. The United States' participation has fluctuated, rejoining in 2021 but withdrawing again in January 2025 via executive order.

APA

Wilson-Black, H., Laporte, A., McGinn, A., Anabel, E., Werner, C., & La Shier, B. (2025). Climate Change FAQs. Environmental and Energy Study Institute. https://www.eesi.org/climate-change-FAQ

Chicago

Wilson-Black, Hannah, Amaury Laporte, Anna McGinn, Ethan Anabel, Carol Werner, and Brian La Shier. Climate Change FAQs. Environmental and Energy Study Institute, 2025. https://www.eesi.org/climate-change-FAQ.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Wilson-Black |first1=Hannah |last2=Laporte |first2=Amaury |last3=McGinn |first3=Anna |last4=Anabel |first4=Ethan |last5=Werner |first5=Carol |last6=La Shier |first6=Brian |title=Climate Change FAQs |publisher=Environmental and Energy Study Institute |date=July 2025 |url=https://www.eesi.org/climate-change-FAQ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wilsonblack2025climate, author = {Wilson-Black, Hannah and Laporte, Amaury and McGinn, Anna and Anabel, Ethan and Werner, Carol and La Shier, Brian}, title = {{Climate Change FAQs}}, institution = {Environmental and Energy Study Institute}, year = {2025}, month = jul, url = {https://www.eesi.org/climate-change-FAQ}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }