English “Issues” Creating and Presenting SAC

Topic: That the global issues that faced by the world are in need of our attention.
(8min30sec)

Contexts: (1) http://scitizen.com/stories/future-energies/, 2009/11, /Peak-Oil--IEA-s-

predictions-seeming-more-and-more-infeasible-with-time/ ,Peak Oil : IEA's
predictions seeming more and more infeasible with time

(2) http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/apec-leaders-vow-new-
economic-model/story-e6frf7k6-1225798021377, APEC leaders vow new
economic model, November 16, 2009

(3) http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8338880.stm, 25 Nov, 2009 10:28 am, Species' extinction

threat grows

Good evening gentleman,

The global community faces problems toady that are both global in scope, and have the
potential to rapidly escalate into severe crises. Today I’ll be discussing social, political,
economic and environmental issues that affect us all and require our attention and action.
These include:

• Economic Collapse : Fragilities in the current global economy could tip the
developed world into conditions not seen since the 1920s.
• Peak Oil : Petroleum has powered the modern world for almost 100 years; today,
many industry insiders say the we may be reaching a permanent peak in oil
production.
• Global Water Crisis : Over the last 50 years the human population has nearly
tripled, while industrial pollution, unsustainable agriculture, and poor civic
planning have decreased the overall water supply.
• Species Extinction : Certain species that human beings depend upon for our food
supply are going extinct; if their numbers fall too low we may face extinction
ourselves.
• Rapid Climate Change : While the debate rages on about the causes of climate
change, particularly whether or not humans are responsible. Global warming is an
empirical fact. The problem is both a curse and blessing, in that people from
different cultures will either have to work together or face mutual destruction.

Economic Collapse

The global economy binds together the fate of the international community and all its
member nations. It precludes the possibility of a third World War, and exposes
individuals all over the world to new ideas, products, and information. Today, the world
economy is facing two looming crises.

The U.S., by far the world’s largest and most powerful economy, is completely in debt
at the individual, institutional, and governmental levels. The Dollar is at its lowest rate in
English “Issues” Creating and Presenting SAC

years, and the fundamental driver of the US economy – the housing market – appears to
be coming undone. Well respected investors like Warren Buffet and George Soros, as
well as Intellectual Property expert Dr. David Martin, are beginning to warn of a
coming economic collapse.

Throughout the developed world, demographic trends that began centuries ago are
coming to a point; people are living longer than every before, while having fewer
children than at any other point in human history. As the Baby Boomer generation retires,
governments with already strained budgets are scrambling to fund the retirement
programs they have promised. Most nations find themselves having to choose between
raising taxes or cutting benefits, with both options seriously threatening the stability of
the modern world…

Peak Oil

Petroleum powers 96% of the transportation on the planet and is the key ingredient in
plastics and fertilizers. Its integral role in human civilization cannot be overestimated -
without it modern life would be impossible. Over the last century, the global petroleum
supply could be counted on to meet demand; today however, the situation appears to be
changing.

The developing world - led by China and India - is modernizing at a blistering pace,
and their appetite for oil is driving up demand all over the globe. At the same time,
production is declining in all but a few countries.

For decades, scientists, government officials, and business leaders have warned of Peak
Oil, the point at which global petroleum production reaches its maximum level and
begins to drop. While many official sources claim that Peak Oil is decades away,
numerous signals suggest that Peak Oil may happen much sooner than that…

Global Water Crisis

Water - the essential ingredient for life on this planet – is becoming an increasingly
scarce resource. According to the World Bank and World Health Organization, 2 billion
people lack access to clean water and 1 billion people do not have enough to even meet
their daily needs.

Every day an increasing amount of pollution seeps into rivers and lakes making them
toxic to humans, and underground aquifers – our most significant sources of water – are
being depleted at an alarming rate.

By 2050 the number of people on the planet is projected to exceed 9 billion, and if
current trends continue more and more useable water will be lost. Making an adequate
supply of water available to everyone alive today is a monumental task, and ensuring
that there is enough water for all future generations will require an unprecedented level
of international cooperation and compassion…
English “Issues” Creating and Presenting SAC

Species Extinction

Modern science has shown that nature is not always “red in tooth and claw”, but rather
that cooperation is often the norm. Human beings often act as if we are in direct
competition with every other form of life, when in truth our very survival depends on a
myriad of species from simple bacteria to complex mammals.

Today, human activities are causing a massive extinction of species, the full implications
of which are barely understood. Rising ocean temperatures reduce the ability of plankton
to reproduce, thereby undermining the entire oceanic ecosystem. Commercial fishing’s
increasing size and scope threaten to empty of the ocean of fish within several decades.

Modern agricultural practices strip the Earth of its thin layer of topsoil through water and
wind erosion, destroying this precious micro ecosystem that takes centuries to form and
supports all life on land. Furthermore, bee populations are plummeting as a result of
mite infestations and a mysterious problem called Colony Collapse Disorder. Over 70%
of our food is pollinated by bees; if bee populations fall too far, our food supplies will
be seriously threatened. . .

Rapid Climate Change

The global warming debate, despite having vociferous proponents on each side, appears
to have been decided. Global warming is very real, and it is the preeminent danger to
human civilization today. The rising global temperature threatens to create catastrophic
weather systems, crop failures, disease outbreaks, and water shortages worldwide.

Emissions of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane are trapping heat
within the Earths’ atmosphere, slowly increasing the overall temperature. These
emissions are the byproduct of our modern way of life, and to halt them would require
a voluntary shift in the very structure of our society, a move unprecedented in human
history.

To not take action, however, would be to alter the very chemical composition of our
planet. Life on Earth evolved over hundreds of millions of years to survive within very
specific conditions, and those conditions are changing…

We are living in an era of global transition, to the degree that humanity has encountered
few times before. The exponential increase of human knowledge, and the acceleration of
its application through technology, political and economic reform and social change is
propelling humanity towards a new era of thought and endeavor. Society, communication
science, ecology and commerce are converging at the intersection of danger and
opportunity. A complexity and unpredictability that is beyond our past experience
characterize the challenges at hand. If humanity's preferred future is to be realized, new
tools for strategic planning and problem solving must be invented and combined. We
must think differently in the face today’s issues.