Research Guides: Current Issues: Climate Change

Starting Points

Gale in Context: Opposing Viewpoints This link opens in a new window Provides topic overviews as well as collects a variety of sources, including statistics, reference materials, journal articles, news articles, images, and audio broadcasts.
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Issues & Controversies This link opens in a new window Full-text articles from different points of view on important issues in today's news, plus statistics, images, related court cases, and more.
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CQ Researcher This link opens in a new window Full-text, balanced, comprehensive journalistic reports and analysis of current and controversial issues of the day.
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Credo Reference This link opens in a new window Useful when you're starting out on a research project. Do simple searches to find topic introductions in a variety of subjects. The mind map tool will help you discover related ideas and terms.
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Climate change is now the recognized term for what used to be called padlock icon: needs LSC barcode to access "global warming," and it is the rise of average temperatures of the earth's surfaces, including the air and ocean. The increase is attributed to the experience known as the "greenhouse effect," caused by the build-up of carbon dioxide, methane, and other padlock icon: needs LSC barcode to access greenhouse gases (GHGs) and prevents infrared energy from escaping and traps heat at the earth surfaces.

In 1997 the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) formed the padlock icon: needs LSC barcode to access Kyoto Protocol, which was signed in Kyoto, Japan. The protocol had 186 countries sign in commitment to reduce greenhouse gasses. Then in December 2015, the Paris Agreement was adopted in order to improve or replace the Kyoto Protocol. It was signed by 197 countries and ratified by 187 countries as of November 2019.

An article on climate change from CQResearcher.

From Global Social Issue: An Encylopedia.

A pro/con article from Issues & Controversies.

An image found on Gale in Context: Science.

Finding Resources

When using databases, it is useful to know related terms that might be used interchangeably but do not always mean the same thing, below are useful search terms:

Climate change, global warming, greenhouse effect
Impacts: sea-level rise, extreme weather, reduced biodiversity
Greenhouse gases: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane
Energy production & consumption
- emissions, fossil fuels, renewable energy
Regulations & Agreements
- Kyoto Protocol
- Paris Agreement

GlobalChange.gov - Glossary
A glossary of terms together by the U.S. Global Change Research Program.
Climate Change Terms and Definitions
From UC Davis here is a list of key terms and definitions related to climate change.

Be aware that just because an article is found within a library database does not mean it's a scholarly article!

Some databases contain a variety of resource types (like Academic Search Complete or Opposing Viewpoints) while a few others are exclusively scholarly (like JSTOR). Be aware of options to filter your results to scholarly articles as well as the criteria for recognizing a scholarly source.

Databases:

Use the search terms from above to search the databases

Science Online This link opens in a new window
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This full-text, weekly multidisciplinary scientific journal publishes original peer-reviewed research and noteworthy science news (1997 to the present).
SciTech Premium Collection (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
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Full-text from an international collection of scholarly journals, trade and industry journals, magazines, technical reports, conference proceedings, government publications, and more.
Includes the Natural Science Collection, Science Collection, and Technology Collection
GreenFILE (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
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This comprehensive resource draws on the connections between the environment and a variety of disciplines such as agriculture, education, law, health and technology. Topics covered include global climate change, green building, pollution, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, recycling and more.
Access will end on 31 Aug. 2023 due to changes in the TexShare program. Learn more.
Sustainability Reference Center (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
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Provides full text for industry-leading journals, magazines, books, trade publications on sustainability initiative management.
Access will end on 31 Aug. 2023 due to changes in the TexShare program. Learn more.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
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Complete historical full text of all issues of peer-reviewed journals in a wide range of humanities and social science fields.

Jump into Your Research

Check out this sample search to get a feel for how to construct a limited search.

Academic Search Complete - Example for Advanced Search
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View search results for an example of advanced search strategy:
"(climate change or global warming) AND impact AND coastal cities," limited to full-text, scholarly (peer-reviewed), and no older than 2012.

Ebook Central This link opens in a new window
Over 100,000 ebook titles covering a full range of academic topics. General reference works are also included.
EBSCO eBook Collection This link opens in a new window
Search complete electronic books. Read in browser, or create an account to download books to various devices.

Climate Change Science and Policy by Stephen H. Schneider (Editor); Armin Rosencranz (Editor); Michael D. Mastrandrea (Editor); Kristin Kuntz-Duriseti (Editor)
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Call Number: Ebook Central (unlimited user)
This is the most comprehensive and current reference resource on climate change available today. It features forty-nine individual chapters by some of the world's leading climate scientists. Its five sections address climate change in five dimensions: ecological impacts, policy analysis, international considerations, United States considerations, and mitigation options to reduce carbon emissions.
What We Know about Climate Change by Kerry Emanuel; Bob Inglis (Foreword by)
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Call Number: EBSCO Ebook Collection (unlimited user)
The vast majority of scientists agree that human activity has significantly increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere--most dramatically since the 1970s. Yet global warming skeptics and ill-informed elected officials continue to dismiss this broad scientific consensus. In this updated edition of his authoritative book, MIT atmospheric scientist Kerry Emanuel outlines the basic science of global warming and how the current consensus has emerged. Emanuel calls for urgent action to reduce greenhouse gases and criticizes the media for downplaying the dangers of global warming (and, in search of "balance," quoting extremists who deny its existence).
Disputing Global Warming by Anton Horvath; Boris Molnar
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Call Number: Ebook Central (unlimited user)
Global Warming - just that term evokes many people to nod their heads and fret about an impending climate disaster. In this book, the authors address some of the recent media coverage of global warming and Hollywood's involvement in the issue. Included is a discussion on former Vice President Al Gore's movie "An Inconvenient Truth". Recently, advocates of alarmism have grown increasingly desperate to try to convince the public that global warming is the greatest moral issue of our generation.
Why We Argue about Climate Change by Eric Knight
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Call Number: Ebook Central (unlimited user)
In Why We Argue about Climate Change, Eric Knight unpicks the misconceptions that keep us arguing about, and stop us seeing, the true nature of the problem - and its solutions. Why can't we learn anything about climate change from snowstorms or scorching temperatures? How have sceptics and believers confused politics and science in their war for public opinion? Is climate change a moral challenge or a technological one? With optimism and clarity, Knight cuts throught the distortions and distractions and proposes a better way forward.
The Madhouse Effect by Michael E. Mann; Tom Toles
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Call Number: Ebook Central (unlimited user)
The award-winning climate scientist Michael E. Mann and the Pulitzer Prize-winning political cartoonist Tom Toles have been on the front lines of the fight against climate denialism for most of their careers. They have witnessed the manipulation of the media by business and political interests and the unconscionable play to partisanship on issues that affect the well-being of billions. The lessons they have learned have been invaluable, inspiring this brilliant, colorful escape hatch from the madhouse of the climate wars. The synergy of these two climate science crusaders enlivens the gloom and doom of so many climate-themed books--and may even convert die-hard doubters to the side of sound science.

Get the News:

Use these sample searches to begin your inquiry:

NPR: search results for "climate change"
From the National Public Radio, read or listen to news stories regarding climate change.
Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly has chronicled life in contemporary Texas since 1973, reporting on vital issues such as politics, the environment, industry, and education.
The Texas Tribune (search results: "climate change")
The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, digital-first, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.
StateImpact Texas: Climate Change
StateImpact is a reporting project from NPR on energy and environment issues for Texas.

More News!

Use other databases to get news on climate change (and get around paywalls).

US Major Dailies (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
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US Major Dailies provides access to The New York Times, Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Chicago Tribune. The content is available by 8 a.m. each day and provides archives stretching as far back as 1985.
New York Times: Subscription Access This link opens in a new window
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Find both news and reviews as well as access to historical NY Times issues dating back to 1851.

First time user: To get access, you need to first register for an NYT account.
1. Click the link. You will have to enter your LSC library barcode.
2. Select Create Account and complete registration fields. Use your LSC email address!
3. Once you have an account, you may access NYTimes.com and NYT mobile apps like any subscriber, or go through this link but select "log in."

Note: Site passes will expire after 365 days. To renew, you will have to activate a new pass by repeating this process.

If Google Chrome shows a warning about this link, hit Ignore. You must use the proxy to get the special access.
Newspaper Source Plus (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
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Selected full-text from 30 US national and international newspapers and 200 regional papers, plus TV & radio news transcripts.
Access will end on 31 Aug. 2023 due to changes in the TexShare program. Learn more.
Regional Business News (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
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Daily international newswires and regional business publications, including news articles, trade publications, and radio/tv transcripts.
Access will end on 31 Aug. 2023 due to changes in the TexShare program. Learn more.

4 Charts Explain Greenhouse Gas Emissions
From the World Resource Institute: here are four charts that explain where the emissions come from and who is responsible.
Climate Change Knowledge Portal
Published by The World Bank it supplies data and graphs for countries and regions and the impacts of climate change.
Global Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet
Presented by NASA, provides the public with accurate and timely news and information about the Earth's changing climate.
National Snow and Ice Data Center
Scientific analysis on Arctic sea ice conditions.
The World Bank: CO2 Emissions
Released from The World Bank are graphs dealing with climate change from CO2 emissions, population growth, renewable energy, forest area, and others.

IPCC: Intergovermental Panel on Climate Change
The IPCC is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change.
The Climate Reality Project
Led by former US Vice President Al Gore and CEO and President Ken Berlin, they are focused on educating people about climate change, and solving the crisis.
UNFCCC: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
United Nations entity tasked with supporting the global response to the threat of climate change.
U.S. Global Change Research Program
The USGCRP is a federal program mandated by Congress to coordinate federal research and investments in understanding the forces shaping the global environment, both human and natural, and their impacts on society.

Current Issues