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Christopher McKinnis

Professor Malcolm Campbell

English 1103

Insert Date

How Global Warming is Changing What’s On the Dinner Table

Introduction/Overview

Ever since I was in middle school, I have always been mesmerized by the magic of

weather, wanting to know more and more about tornadoes and thunderstorms. However, my

first taste of what the weather was all about wasn’t exactly associated directly with the weather.

In sixth grade, I had begun my journey exploring climate change and global warming, thanks to

my experience in Science Olympiad. Realizing that there were issues with the way humans were

carrying themselves and the impacts of our actions on the environment, I wanted to learn more.

For me, global warming has always been a go-to topic for writing important essays and papers.

However, although I know quite a deal about how global warming and how it affects animals

and humans, I wanted for this topic to take a slightly different approach and target a specific

aspect of our lives that we can all relate to: food. With that said, I will be doing my Extended

Inquiry Project on the impact of global warming on our environment and how it affects our food.

There is no doubt how global warming and climate change have coincided with each

other to affect our world in negative ways. The ozone hole has gradually gotten bigger, glacial

ice is melting at a quicker pace than ever before, sea water heights have increased, and our global

temperatures have reached all-time highs. Although these points may seem crucially important

to our existence as a species, many forget those effects of global warming that hit a little closer

to home, specifically food. An article published in 2014 by The Guardian discusses a report by

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the United Nation and how researchers have been examining a possible famine fueled by global

warming. The finding that the potential of climate change threatening global food security

caught the attention of government officials from 115 countries after examining the report.

According to the report, “changes in temperature and rainfall patterns could lead to food price

rises of between 3% and 84% by 2050”; this is due to a slowing of the rate of increase in crop

yields, especially wheat. Other sources of food are in potential danger; fish catches in some

tropical areas “are projected to fall by between 40% and 60%”.

In order to begin with my preliminary research, I examined numerous online sources that

were available for me to access. I found a scholarly article that discussed how soil contents

affected by climate change and global warming have altered crop yields, which was very

comprehensive and detailed with lots of diagrams and graphics. Going forward, I am going to

need to continue with looking online for good scholarly articles as well as credible articles and

reports published by reliable organizations and people. In addition, I would like to find some

print sources in the library to add some variety to my research; however, with global warming

and climate change being something that’s constantly changing with time, it is going to be much

more difficult to find up-to-date print sources.

This topic is quite complex, for although my main focus is the impact of climate change

on food, there are many other issues that also arise from the lack of food production, including

famine, economical struggles, and political issues. From the scientific articles and websites that

I have looked at so far, it appears to me that the controversy isn’t so much in the fact that climate

change is affecting our food production, but is targeted towards how to tackle the issue and the

secondary effects that will resonate as a result. In order to tackle such a complicated topic, I will

need to target scientific papers, as well articles and reports that are reliable. The main focus

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group of people that I will need to confront would be scientists primarily, with farmers,

fishermen, and anyone who is involved with food production in addition.

Initial Inquiry Question(s)

How have global warming and climate change altered our food production? How will

these changes affect global political and economical affairs?

My Interest in this Topic

I am interested in global warming and climate change because it has been a topic that I

have had much experience with in years past. It has always been my go-to topic, and it’s a topic

that contains so much controversy, which allows a writer to approach this topic at many different

angles. However, I understood that global warming tends to be an overused topic, so I decided

to take a different approach that I wasn’t as familiar in. Food is such a crucial part of global

culture, and I want to investigate the effects that our actions have had on our food and how it will

affect our way of life in the future.

Next Steps

I will definitely utilize the resources that are available to me at UNC Charlotte’s library,

especially to get some print sources on my topic if at all possible. I will probably look into some

scientific journals such as Time and Scientific American. In addition, because the United Nations

has a branch specific to climate change, I will investigate into more reports published from the

UN, since they are a highly credible source. Along with the UN, the International Panel of

Climate Change may also have some information on my topic as well, which I will look into

even more as I progress with my research. Finally, any scientific research papers will be most

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crucial to my research, for they are specific and precise, and will provide a lot of insight into not

only the effects of climate change on food, but also how it affects our culture and global affairs.

Chris,

I really appreciate that you stuck to the umbrella topic that interests you while honing it down

into a less overdone field. I would like to know more about why food is what you chose to focus

on, be that personal importance or global. That’s the other thing—what scale(s) are you

planning to examine this on? Will your paper tell us how this affects people in countries in every

corner of the world? Will it tell us how this affects Charlotte, NC? Will it tell us both?

As far as sources, particularly with economic and political repercussions, I highly recommend

The Economist. It is a highly credible, internationally distributed source that will have a lot of

good information, analysis, and statistics for you. I’m excited to see where you go with this and

ready to know what you find out!

Beth