A Buddhist Perspective on Global Warming: Causes, Effects and

Solutions

Nowadays, we are facing so many issues in the world. Among them, global warming
is the one of issue we must considerably to solve. What is global warming? Global warming
is increasing the temperature of our earth's atmosphere. It is caused by increasing vast
quantity of greenhouse gases into the air. These gases are produced from both naturally and
human activities. They are duality. Without these gases, our earth would be too cold for
humans, other creatures and plants so that they cannot live. These gases trap heat come from
the sun in the earth's atmosphere to keep warm the creatures and plants to sustain life.
Unfortunately, human activities such as burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, industrial
revolution, increase in usage of chemical fertilizers on croplands produce large amount of
greenhouse gases emission and adds to the atmosphere faster than natural process can remove
them. This process is called the greenhouse effect. The current levels of CO2 have risen
steeply over the last 200 years and scientists concluded that human activities are responsible
for global warming. The large amount of greenhouse gases warms the global and cause the
changing of climate around the world.

Due to the global warming, Melting snow and ice at both poles, raising the sea level,
disturbing circulation of water in the oceans and loss of biodiversity occur around the world.
It is a great crisis time of all beings and we must find the solution of global warming cause
and solve it.

Indeed, in my opinion, today society is consumerist. All people, mostly in developed

countries, are overwhelmed by various forms of encouragement to acquire well beyond our
needs. People recognize affluence as virtue. They spend more electricity to circulate their
standard of living, their industries, etc. Air condition, driving cars without necessary, military
competition of developed countries consume a lot of electricity and waste natural resources.
We burn fossil fuel, reason of GHG and built nuclear power plants to produce electricity. So,
our environment pollutes from these activities and climate also changes badly. Our own
collective karma creates our environment and future. We get what we have done.

In the Buddhism, The Lord Buddha said that the weather pattern depends on the
beings ' mind (i.e diflements) and it may change because of carving, greed, anger, hatred,
pride, corruption of virtuous and lacks of morality of beings. Global warming interacts with
the defilements of livings. For example, there are sutras called Adammika sutra, Paloka sutra,
Aggaňňa sutra, The Buddha described the reason of climate changing. If kings, leaders and
their citizens, are driven by greed, commit evil deeds in their daily life, take which is not
theirs and over consume natural resources belong to future generation, their environment
become so badly and weather pattern are more radical, including hurricanes, lacking of crop,
famine and natural disaster will happen. Then people are become more and more short life-
span, causing diseases.
 Therefore, in order to reduce excessive amount of GHG and its effect, we must
distinguish what we need and what we want. "Need" is essential but "Want" is just craving.
We should not waste our resources because of our craving. To keep our environments
healthy, we should not throwing away recycle things such as paper, glass, not to waste purify
water, saving energy, planting tree and protect forest accordance with scientist
announcement.

From the perspective view of the Buddhism, People must be developing 4 mutually
reinforcing approaches: loving kindness for all living and sentient beings, compassing for the
suffering of others, sympathetic joy for the happiness of others and inner equanimity.
Besides, our action must be mindful, peace and have good intention to keep the world
healthy. We are not to be selfish and put wisdom, compassion, generosity instead of greed,
hatred and delusion etc. Only the cultivating of good mental factors, keeping morality,
compassion for future generation will solve the global warming, save the beings and other
creatures too, can create the beautiful environments in which we all want to live.

Ashin Dhammapiya