What causes climate change and how can it be managed?
Evidence for climate change, natural and human causes, the impacts of climate change, and strategies for mitigation and adaptation.
A focused CCEA A-Level Geography answer on climate change, covering the evidence for past and present change, natural and human causes, the environmental and human impacts, and the mitigation and adaptation strategies used to manage it, with located global and Irish examples including the Maldives and the Paris Agreement.
Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed
Have a quick question? Jump to the Q&A page
Jump to a section
What this dot point is asking
CCEA wants you to outline the evidence for climate change, distinguish natural and human causes, explain the environmental and human impacts, and evaluate mitigation and adaptation strategies, using located examples at a range of scales such as the Maldives and the Sahel.
Evidence for climate change
Evidence comes from ice cores (trapped air recording past carbon dioxide and temperature), tree rings, pollen analysis, ocean sediments and historical and instrumental records. Together these show natural variability over thousands of years and a sharp, recent rise in temperature and carbon dioxide.
Natural and human causes
Natural causes include Milankovitch cycles (variations in the Earth's orbit and tilt over tens of thousands of years), changes in solar output (sunspot cycles) and volcanic eruptions (which can cause short-term cooling from ash and aerosols). Human causes are mainly the burning of fossil fuels, deforestation and intensive agriculture (methane from livestock and rice).
Impacts
Environmental impacts include rising sea levels, melting ice and glaciers, ocean acidification, shifting biomes and more frequent and intense extreme weather. Human impacts include threats to water and food security, coastal flooding, health risks (heat, disease spread) and climate-driven migration.
Managing climate change
Examples in context
Example 1. The Maldives and sea-level rise (adaptation under threat). With an average elevation of about , the Maldives is among the world's most threatened nations. Adaptation includes sea walls around Male, the engineered higher island of Hulhumale (raised by reclamation), and contingency plans for relocation. The country has been a vocal advocate at climate summits for stronger global mitigation. It illustrates both the severe impacts of climate change and the limits of adaptation for low-income, low-lying states.
Example 2. The Paris Agreement and global mitigation (2015 onward). Nearly countries agreed to limit warming to well below C, aiming for C, through nationally determined contributions to cut emissions. Strengths include near-universal participation and regular review; weaknesses include the voluntary nature of pledges and the gap between promises and the cuts needed. It illustrates international mitigation, showing how coordinated action depends on national commitment and the tension between developed and developing countries over responsibility and finance.
Try this
Q1. Define the enhanced greenhouse effect. [2 marks]
- Cue. Extra warming caused by human emissions of greenhouse gases trapping more long-wave radiation.
Q2. Distinguish between mitigation and adaptation strategies. [4 marks]
- Cue. Mitigation reduces emissions to tackle causes; adaptation adjusts to impacts, for example building flood defences or planting drought-resistant crops.
Q3. With reference to a located example, evaluate one strategy used to manage climate change. [6 marks]
- Cue. Maldives adaptation or the Paris Agreement; weigh effectiveness, cost and limits, and reach a judgement.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of CCEA exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
CCEA 20195 marksOutline the evidence used to show that climate has changed over time.Show worked answer →
Worth 5 marks. Markers reward several distinct lines of evidence, each explained as to what it reveals.
Ice cores: trapped air bubbles in Antarctic and Greenland ice give a record of past carbon dioxide and temperature stretching back hundreds of thousands of years.
Tree rings (dendrochronology): ring width records growing-season conditions, with wider rings in warmer, wetter years.
Pollen analysis: pollen preserved in peat and sediment shows which plants grew, indicating past climate.
Historical and instrumental records: harvest dates, paintings and direct temperature records since the mid nineteenth century show recent warming.
Together they reveal natural variability plus a sharp recent rise.
CCEA 20229 marksWith reference to located examples, evaluate strategies used to manage climate change.Show worked answer →
Worth 9 marks. Evaluate requires weighing mitigation and adaptation with located evidence and a judgement.
Mitigation: cutting emissions through renewables, carbon capture and reforestation. The Paris Agreement (2015) commits nations to limit warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius, but relies on voluntary national pledges, so progress is uneven.
Adaptation: adjusting to impacts, for example sea defences and raised buildings in the Maldives, or drought-resistant crops in the Sahel. These reduce harm but do not tackle the cause and can be costly for poorer countries.
Judgement: mitigation is essential to limit long-term change but is slow and politically difficult, so adaptation is increasingly necessary; the most effective response combines both, with richer nations supporting poorer ones.
Related dot points
- The principles of sustainability, sustainable urban planning and design, managing transport and waste, and evaluating sustainable settlement schemes.
A focused CCEA A-Level Geography answer on planning for sustainable settlements, covering the principles of sustainability, sustainable urban design, managing transport, energy and waste, and evaluating sustainable settlement schemes, with located examples such as Freiburg-Vauban and Northern Ireland regeneration.
- The characteristics of tropical and extreme environments, the challenges they pose, human adaptation and use, and their sustainable management.
A focused CCEA A-Level Geography answer on tropical and extreme environments, covering the characteristics of tropical rainforests and hot deserts, the challenges they pose, human adaptation and use, and their sustainable management, with located examples such as the Amazon, the Sahel and Costa Rica ecotourism.
- Cartographic, graphical and ICT skills, the interpretation of maps, photographs and data, and the use of geographical information systems.
A focused CCEA A-Level Geography answer on geographical skills and techniques, covering cartographic, graphical and ICT skills, the interpretation of maps, photographs and data, and the use of geographical information systems, applied across the written papers and the A2 3 Decision Making paper.
- Fieldwork design and sampling strategies, the collection of primary and secondary data, and statistical tests such as Spearman's rank and chi-squared.
A focused CCEA A-Level Geography answer on statistical and fieldwork methods, covering fieldwork design and sampling strategies, primary and secondary data collection, and statistical tests such as Spearman's rank correlation and the chi-squared test, with a worked calculation, assessed in the CCEA written papers.
Sources & how we know this
- CCEA GCE Geography specification — CCEA (2016)