environmental issues
Earth's pressing concerns
Environmental issues are problems affecting the natural world—pollution, climate change, deforestation, species extinction, resource depletion.
The term frames these as matters requiring attention and action: Environmental issues dominated the campaign.
In plural, it often serves as a broad category in policy discussions, journalism, and activism, encompassing anything from local water quality to global warming.
- acid rainPolluted atmospheric moisture falling
- carbon footprintTotal greenhouse gases produced
- carbon emissionsReleased greenhouse gases
- air pollutionToxic atmospheric contamination
- coral bleachingStress-induced reef discoloration
chemical spills · desertification · microplastics · invasive species · wildlife trafficking · dead zones · greenhouse effect · radioactive waste · factory farming · greenwashing · global warming · ocean acidification · species extinction · water pollution · eutrophication · emissions · ozone layer · melting ice caps
- Modern ChinaDeng Xiaoping, Xi Jinping, economic reforms, economic zones, opening up
- 20th CenturyWorld War I aftermath, Cuban Missile Crisis, atomic bomb, New Deal, Nazi Germany
- Regulatory Policyfederal regulation, telecommunications, energy policy, health policy, data privacy
environmental issueseconomic prosperity
Sustained financial health broadly
economic growth · industrial development · business interests · corporate profits · market expansion
environmental issuessocial issues
Collective challenges facing communities
domestic policy · health issues · humanitarian concerns · international relations · national security
environmental issuesshort-term gains
Profits from brief investments
quarterly earnings · instant gratification · short-term thinking