Global climate change: a cause of concern.

Climate change has been recognized as the foremost environmental problem of the twenty-first century and has become a subject of considerable debate. It is predicted to lead to adverse, irreversible impacts on earth and the ecosystem as a whole. Although it is difficult to connect specific weather events to global warming, increases in global temperatures have been predicted to cause broader changes, including glacial retreat, arctic shrinkage, and worldwide sea level rise. Climate change has been implicated in mass mortalities of many aquatic species, including plants, fish, corals, and mammals. Climate change is an emerging threat to global public health and is predicted to affect human health in many ways including heat stress (stroke), air pollution, food scarcity, spread of infectious diseases and intensity of disease outbreaks. Thus, 'Global Climate Change' has been a major issue that has created global concern and this has been highlighted by awarding the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for this cause, on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climatic Change (IPCC) and Albert Arnold (Al) Gore Jr., the former American Vice-President, jointly. The present paper focuses on different aspects of 'global climate change'; the causes, predicted impacts, probable steps for mitigation and the need for greater understanding of climate change and bringing global awareness on the issue.