Global Issues: Aid

1. Global Issues: Aid Aid is when a country or organisation give resources to another country. The resources can be in the form of money, goods, technology or people. Aid is provided to LEDCs to improve their standard of living and quality of life. Types of Aid • Official Aid – government of a MEDC takes money from taxes and gives to the government of a LEDC. Eg. Haiti Earthquake 2010 – UK government gave money to the Haitian government. • Bilateral Aid – “Strings Attached” – a country provides money from taxes to another country, but the recipient must buy things or services from the donor country. Eg. Aswan Dam Egypt – UK government gave the funding, but Egypt had to use British services and engineers. • Multilateral Aid – Many countries give to an international organisation (World Bank, United Nations) which then redistributes the funding to LEDC s. Eg. The Disaster Relief Fund for the Boxing Day Tsunami 2004. • Voluntary Aid – money raised by non-government organisations in wealthier countries like charities such as Oxfam and Christian Aid. Eg. Oxfam Beat the Drought campaign in Kenya, Sudan and Somalia. SHORT TERM (EMERGENCY) AID is sent to an area which has been affected by natural disaster or by social problems which have resulted in War. Aid is sent which is specific to that disaster. LONG TERM AID is given over a long period of time. Its aim is to develop self sufficiency rather than dependency, and help the country to help themselves. Eg. The Goat Scheme • Disadvantages of Aid: • Bilateral aid may force LEDCs to buy un-necessary technology like combine harvesters • Aid is frequently in the form of aid and this can cause LEDCS to go further into debt • Large scale infrastructure projects damage environment and increase national debt • Food aid may put local farmers out of business and cause local prices to fall. • Corrupt officials may pocket the money, or rich landowners may benefit more than poor farmers. • Advantages of Aid: • Long term aid can improves the standard of living for people in LEDCs. • Aid can open markets for goods from MEDCs, e.g. food aid. • Emergency Aid saves lives • Bilateral Aid boosts exports and secures jobs in MEDCs, e.g, arms industry.

2. Case Study: Aid in Bangladesh Cabeceras • The Cabeceras Aid project was founded in 1996 as a non-profit organisation. It aims to assure the physical and cultural survival of the indigenous peoples of the regions within which they work. • It works with geographically isolated people of the Amazon basin to provide humanitarian aid. The project works within the ‘cabeceras’, or headwaters, of rivers that flow on to join the Amazon. Some of the groups are in voluntary isolation, avoiding contact with the outside world. Contact with outside societies can be devastating; the tribes lack resistance to introduced diseases like measles, which can lead to death. • Strategies: • Providing basic, essential medical care to the indigenous groups. For example, medicines for introduced diseases which can spread and devastate small populations; rehydration for severe cases of diarrhoea; antibiotics for pneumonia. • Recording the language, culture and history of indigenous groups. • Project fieldwork team learns the language of the tribe, to show respect to the tribe and so that it is easy for them to communicate their views and opinions to the outside world. • Provide resources and knowledge to indigenous groups thereby minimising their dependence on the outside world.

3. Global Issues: Global Warming • The earth is warmed during the day by infrared radiation from the sun. the earth loses heat at night through outgoing infrared radiation. Over time, because there is a balance between the two, temperatures stay constant. • On cloudy nights, temperatures do not drop as low because the clouds act as a blanket and trap some of the heat. Greenhouse gases similarly act as a blanket, preventing the escape of infrared radiation. Without the greenhouse gases, the temperature would be 33 degrees colder than it is today. During the last ice age, temperatures were only 4 degrees colder than now. • Human activity has led to significant increase in the amount and type of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. This prevents heat from escaping into space, and is believed to be the cause of the rise in global temperatures. Temperatures rose by 0.5 degrees in the 20th century. Estimates suggest that a rise of a further 1.5 to 4.5 degrees could take place before the end of the 21st century. By adding to the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, more heat can be absorbed and re-radiated back to Earth, increasing global temperatures. There is evidence that global warming is a natural process; it seems to fit a pattern that over the past 450,000 years, temperatures periodically rise and fall. However, we are accelerating this process. • Causes of Global Warming • Halocarbons, 1% - CFCs and HFCs – the most damaging of the greenhouse gases from aerosols and refrigerators • Nitrous Oxides, 8% - emitted from car exhausts, power stations, fertiliser • Methane, 17% - from decaying organic matter, peat bogs, swamps, waste dumps • Carbon Dioxide – from fossil fuel combustion and deforestation. MEDCs consume 75% of the world’s energy.

4. Effects of Global Warming • Sea level rises – temperature rises fastest near to the poles, which speeds up the melting of the ice sheets. If the West Antarctic Ice sheet were to melt, global sea levels would rise by several metres. Water in the oceans warms as temperature rises, therefore molecules expand and sea level rises. • Lakes and rivers dry up; more frequent droughts; less water available for drinking, showers and sanitation • Plants and animals become extinct because they are unable to cope with the changes in climate • Hurricanes, tornadoes, and other tropical storms caused by heat and evaporation will become more common. • Global Effects: • Arctic and Antarctic – temperatures in the arctic ocean could rise by 10 degrees. Ice would melt, destruction of habitat for polar bears. • USA – some of the best farmland in the world would become too hot to grow crops. USA may not be able to grow enough food to export. • Africa – desertification would increase and the Sahara desert would expand as temperatures rose. This would ruin farming for some of the poorest people in the world. • Maldives – islands would be flooded and disappear into the Indian Ocean. • Tokyo – Lots of money would have to be spent on flood defences to protect rich cities on the coast like Tokyo from rising sea levels. Positives: More grain grows in Canada More farming in Southern Africa More rice grows in Japan • Effects in Britain • Eastern Coast – high quality arable land is reclaimed marsh land which is below sea level – this will all be flooded. Norfolk Broads National Park is an area of freshwater lakes and marshes – all of this would be flooded. Clay cliffs on East Anglican Coast near Cromer would be eroded at a greater rate. The Thames Barrier will be ineffectual; Houses of Parliament and Trafalgar Square will be flooded. • Changes in climate – temperatures will be 1.6 degrees higher than they are today. There will be more rain in North but less in South. Farmers in South will need to irrigate crops. Low ground will be flooded by sea levels rising by an estimated 37cm. • Agriculture and Forestry – Many deciduous trees would die from drought and disease. In the North, farmers will have to change to keeping cows for milk, butter and cheese because of the wetter weather. In the South, sunflower seeds and maize may be grown because it is too hot for wheat. More pests and diseases will exist because of milder winters. Positives: Length of growing season in Scotland will increase Area and yields of cereals will increase in the North Higher yields of potatoes, sugar beet and outdoor tomatoes Mediterranean summers

5. Dealing with Flooding in Bangladesh • Mangrove trees • Houses on stilts • Embankments • Dredging of river channel Effects on Bangladesh - Rising sea levels will have a huge impact on low lying countries such as Bangladesh Inlets and Estuaries – will be enlarges and deepened, salt levels will increase which will affect agriculture. Low Lying Areas will be permanently flooded resulting in loss of fertile agricultural land. Hazards – flooding from storm surges with increase and intensify, and flood heights will be higher. Population – a 1m rise will flood over 11% of the whole country and affect 9% of the population. A 3m rise will flood 29% of the country and effect 21% of the population Rise in sea levels would increase rate of coastal erosion Flood Defence mechanisms in the UK Concrete and Wooden Revetments break the force of waves and beach material builds up behind them Recurved Sea wall reflect rather than absorb sea’s energy Groynes are designed to stop long shore drift, and are built perpendicular to the coat. They stop the loss of sand and pebbles, protecting the base of cliffs. Built into cliff face, and are effective at breaking the force of the wave. Rock armour absorb and break the power of the waves.