Climate change refers to the long-term and permanent shift in the Earth's climate system associated with the human extraction, emission and alteration of atmospheric pollutants, including carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane. This type of climate change results in global warming, causing changes to global temperature and weather patterns, ocean levels, glaciers, and ecosystems. The effects of climate change, if left unaddressed, could have catastrophic consequences on our natural world and future generations.

See also: carrying capacity, fossil fuel, climate model, renewable energy, carbon pulse