What Will Happen as the World Warms Half A Degree?
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a report that painted a grim picture of what would happen if global warming exceeded 2°C. This benchmark went from an interpretation of a climate summit back in 1992 to a target that the world agreed to. However, fast-forward to the Paris climate agreement in 2015, that goal has been lowered to 1.5°C due to alarming concerns that some countries may not survive rising sea levels.
We’ve already been seeing the consequences of rising global temperatures in the form of severe droughts, extreme heatwaves, mega hurricanes and tsunamis, and food shortages due to these natural disasters. Without significant changes, the world will look vastly different within the next hundred years. There’s still a possibility that we could stay on track to reach 1.5°C, but we must start now. In December, countries will meet in Poland to finalize the Paris agreement.
First South African Female Pilot
Refilwe Ledwaba became the first black female pilot to fly for the South African Police Services, but she doesn’t want to stop there! She created a nonprofit, the Girl Fly Program in Africa Foundation, to encourage girls to study STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, mathematics). Ledwaba herself was inspired to study aviation when she saw that a woman was the pilot of one of her flights.
Having been a pilot for over a decade, her journey towards her dream hasn’t been easy. She started as a flight attendant to pay for flight school and eventually received her license. She hopes to make the path a bit more accessible by showing young women that there is representation and they too could strive for this goal. Through her nonprofit, an annual camp teaches girls about flying, coding, and robotics.
Brazilian Elections Are Coming Up
Brazilians will be heading to the polls at the end of the month to vote for a new president. Currently in the lead is far right candidate Jair Bolsonaro with Fernando Haddad trailing in second. Bolsonaro has attracted a lot of criticism for his comments about women, black people, indigenous people, and the LGBTQ community. While he has his critics, he also has many supporters.
There have been reports of hate crimes that many say are due to his views. A nineteen-year-old woman was attacked and marked with a swastika by a group of men for her opposition to Bolsonaro. What concerns many Brazilians, is Bolsonaro’s nostalgia for Brazil’s military dictatorship. Despite the reservations many have about him, he’s still the favorite to win the presidency. Hundreds have been gathering to rally against Bolsonaro chanting “dictatorship never again.” The election will take place on October 28.
