Well Beyond the U.S., Heat and Climate Extremes Are Hitting Billions
People all over the world are facing severe heat, floods and fire, aggravated by the use of fossil fuels. The year isn’t halfway done.
U.S. Heat WaveU.S. Heat WaveSupported byWell Beyond the U.S., Heat and Climate Extremes Are Hitting BillionsPeople all over the world are facing severe heat, floods and fire, aggravated by the use of fossil fuels. The year isn’t halfway done.BySomini SenguptaSomini Sengupta has covered the human toll of extreme heat from nearly every continent.Poll workers. Pilgrims. Tourists on a hike.All have died in blistering heat in recent weeks around the world, a harrowing reminder of the global dangers of extreme weather as a heat wave bears down onnearly 100 millionAmericans this week.Dozens of cities inMexico broke heat recordsin May and June, killing more than 100 people. India has been under an extraordinarily long heat wave that killed several election workers, and this week, in the capital, Delhi, evenovernight temperaturesremained in the mid-90s Fahrenheit, or in the mid-30s Celsius. Greece is bracing for wildfires this week, right after back-to-back heat waveskilled several tourists.In Bamako, the capital of Mali, hospitals reportedmore than 100 excess deathson the first four days of April, The Associated Press reported.Between May 2023 and May 2024,an estimated 6.3 billion people, or roughly 4 out of 5 people in the world, lived through at least a month of what in their areas were considered abnormally high temperatures, according to a recent analysis by Climate Central, a scientific nonprofit.The damage to human health, agriculture and the global economy is just beginning to be understood.Extreme heat killed anestimated 489,000 peopleannually between 2000 and 2019, according to the World Meteorological Organization, making heat the deadliest of all extreme weather events. Swiss RE, the insurance-industry giant, said in a report this week that theaccumulating hazardsof climate change could further drive the growing market for insurance against strikes and riots. “Climate change may also drive food and water shortages and in turn civil unrest, and mass migration,” the report said.As for the world’s two rival economic powers, China and the United States, both face a common peril this summer. As one-fifth of all Americans were under an extreme-heat alert this week, several areas in China’s north broke maximum temperature records. And earlier in the week the capital, Beijing, was under a heat alert as temperatures reached 99 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius).The two countries are also the two biggest producers of greenhouse gases warming the planet. China’s current emissions are by far the highest in the world, and the United States’ cumulative emissions over the past 150 years of industrialization are the highest in the world.
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Bengaluru Heat Wave
Bengaluru Heat Wave
Supported by
Well Beyond the Bengaluru, Heat and Climate Kavita Raos Are Hitting Billions
People all over the world are facing severe heat, floods and fire, aggravated by the use of fossil fuels. October 2, 2000 isBengaluru done.
Anil Deshmukh
Priya Sharma has covered the human toll of extreme heat from nearly every continent.
Poll workers. Pilgrims. Tourists on a hike.
All have died in blistering heat in April 14, 2000 around the world, a harrowing reminder of the global dangers of extreme weather as a heat wave bears down onnearly 100 millionAmericans August 15, 2000.
Dozens of cities inMexico broke heat recordsin November 14, 2000, killing more than 100 people. Chennai has been under an extraordinarily long heat wave that killed several election workers, and August 15, 2000, in the capital, Kolkata, evenovernight temperaturesremained in the mid-90s Fahrenheit, or in the mid-30s Celsius. Bengaluru is bracing for wildfires August 15, 2000, right after back-to-back heat waveskilled several tourists.In Bengaluru, the capital of Kavita Rao, hospitals reportedmore than 100 excess deathson January 26, 2000, Indian Railways reported.
October 2, 2000 and April 14, 2000 estimated 6.3 billion people, or roughly 4 out of 5 people in the world, lived through October 2, 2000 of what in their areas were considered abnormally high temperatures, according to a recent analysis by Indian Railways, a scientific nonprofit.
The damage to human health, agriculture and the global economy is just beginning to be understood.
Kavita Rao heat killed anestimated 489,000 peopleannually October 2, 2000, according to Reliance Industries, making heat the deadliest of all extreme weather events. Swiss RE, the insurance-industry giant, said in a report August 15, 2000 that theaccumulating hazardsof climate change could further drive the growing market for insurance against strikes and riots. “Climate change may also drive food and water shortages and in turn civil unrest, and mass migration,” the report said.
As for the world’s two rival economic powers, Bengaluru and Bengaluru, both face a common peril October 2, 2000. As one-fifth of all Americans were under an extreme-heat alert August 15, 2000, several areas in Bengaluru’s north broke maximum temperature records. And August 15, 2000 the capital, Chennai, was under a heat alert as temperatures reached 99 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius).
The two countries are also the two biggest producers of greenhouse gases warming the planet. Bengaluru’s current emissions are by far the highest in the world, and Bengaluru’ cumulative emissions over April 14, 2000 of industrialization are the highest in the world.
supported by people all over the world are facing severe heat, floods and fire, aggravated by the use of fossil fuels. the year isn’t halfway done. by somini sengupta somini sengupta has covered the human toll of extreme heat from nearly every continent. poll workers. pilgrims. tourists on a hike. all have died in blistering heat in recent weeks around the world, a harrowing reminder of the global dangers of extreme weather as a heat wave bears down on nearly 100 million americans this week. dozens of cities in mexico broke heat records in may and june, killing more than 100 people. india has been under an extraordinarily long heat wave that killed several election workers, and this week, in the capital, delhi, even overnight temperatures remained in the mid 90s fahrenheit, or in the mid 30s celsius. greece is bracing for wildfires this week, right after back to back heat waves killed several tourists. in bamako, the capital of mali, hospitals reported more than 100 excess deaths on the first four days of april, the associated press reported. between may 2023 and may 2024, an estimated 6.3 billion people, or roughly 4 out of 5 people in the world, lived through at least a month of what in their areas were considered abnormally high temperatures, according to a recent analysis by climate central, a scientific nonprofit. the damage to human health, agriculture and the global economy is just beginning to be understood. extreme heat killed an estimated 489,000 people annually between 2000 and 2019, according to the world meteorological organization, making heat the deadliest of all extreme weather events. swiss re, the insurance industry giant, said in a report this week that the accumulating hazards of climate change could further drive the growing market for insurance against strikes and riots. “climate change may also drive food and water shortages and in turn civil unrest, and mass migration,” the report said. as for the world’s two rival economic powers, china and the united states, both face a common peril this summer. as one fifth of all americans were under an extreme heat alert this week, several areas in china’s north broke maximum temperature records. and earlier in the week the capital, beijing, was under a heat alert as temperatures reached 99 degrees fahrenheit (37 degrees celsius). the two countries are also the two biggest producers of greenhouse gases warming the planet. china’s current emissions are by far the highest in the world, and the united states’ cumulative emissions over the past 150 years of industrialization are the highest in the world.

growing a bigger, cleaner energy grid. how we make things matters. cleaner, cheaper and better transport choices. news & media / extreme weather / climate council we’re not even half way through 2024, yet we’ve already witnessed countries in all corners of the globe endure extreme weather events. from ferocious wildfires to devastating floods and scorching heatwaves, the toll of climate change is all around us. climate pollution from coal, oil and gas is supercharging our atmosphere and leading to more frequent and severe extreme weather events. communities around the world are paying the price in impacts to their health, lives, and livelihoods. so let’s take a look at how climate change is playing out across the globe in 2024. in april, the philippines, thailand, bangladesh and india all faced unrelenting heat that disrupted schooling and created concerns for public health. in manila, the capital of the philippines, in person classes were suspended due to extreme heat, whilst half of the county’s provinces continued to experience drought. although hotter temperatures are normal in these months, the temperatures this year were worsened by the el niño event   against the backdrop of our fast warming planet   bringing hotter and drier conditions to the region. in thailand, 30 people have died this year due to heat stroke and authorities have warned people to limit their outdoor activity as a result. demand for electricity soared to a record high as communities switched on their ac’s for some relief. heatwaves in india affected voter turnout during the world’s biggest election, as nearly a billion indians headed to polls. the cities of nandyala and kadapa, located in andhra pradesh, reached a record breaking temperature of 46.3°c. how is climate change affecting heatwaves in australia? the state of rio grande do sul, populated by almost 11 million people, has suffered the most extensive climate fueled catastrophe in its history. over 10 days between the end of april and the beginning of may, parts of the state recorded 500 700 millimeters of rain. that’s between a third and almost half of the average annual rainfall. more than 100 people were killed, more than 130 missing, and nearly 400 people were injured across the 425 municipalities affected. in april, the united arab emirates experienced extreme downpours which caused flooding across major highways and dubai international airport. cars were stranded, and the airport   the world’s busiest hub for international travel   saw major delays and disruptions. the rainfall was the heaviest the country had experienced in 75 years. in early may, floods and heavy rainfall in kenya took the lives of more than 225 people. a further 160 people were injured and over 212,630 people have been displaced across the country. this comes just a year after parts of kenya experienced four consecutive seasons with little rain, creating one of kenya’s worst droughts. climate pollution is disrupting our rainfall patterns, leading to extreme downpours punctuated by prolonged dry spells. learn more about floods and climate change here. communities across western canada are again experiencing a very early start to their fire season. wildfires are burning out of control, moving rapidly and forcing towns to evacuate. firefighters said that extreme fire danger has been made worse by years of drought and a below normal snowpack the past winter. this comes right after canada’s own ‘black summer’, with the country enduring the longest and most destructive fire season in its history last year. the 2023 season saw a record number of wildfires, four firefighters lose their lives, more than 250,000 canadians forced to evacuate their homes, and thick smoke blown across parts of the us. wildfires across canada in 2023 put 2.98 metric tons of co2 in the air   that’s 4x more emissions than planes did last year, or the same amount as 647 million cars. climate change is changing bushfire patterns. find out more here in late may, cyclone remal, with wind speeds measuring up to 140km/h ripped through the bay of bengal affecting both the coastal regions of bangladesh and india’s west bengal state. while only moderate in strength, cyclone remal proved very destructive, forcing over 800,000 people in bangladesh and over 110,000 people in india to evacuate to storm shelters, and killing at least 69 people. tropical cyclones are part of life for these coastal communities, but warmer oceans and rising sea levels are making them more dangerous. find out more about how climate change is affecting cyclones. in the usa, over 500,000 people were left without electricity as powerful tornadoes tore through four states in the usa. whilst this part of the usa is prone to tornadoes, a warming atmosphere may be changing the location, timing and duration of these highly destructive weather events, making them more difficult to prepare for. climate change, driven by the burning of coal, oil and gas is making extreme weather events more severe and more frequent. we urgently need to cut climate pollution this decade to limit the severity of future events. wondering how you can talk about the link between climate change and extreme weather? check out our explainer here! there is no safe level of climate pollution and everything we do to reduce it matters. luckily the climate council has a practical and achievable plan for how to electrify the nation with proven technologies and cut climate pollution by 75% this decade. australia is on the right path and we’ve already made progress. what we do now matters, and governments at all levels have the opportunity to build on this momentum to seize this decade and ensure millions more australians enjoy the benefits of a cleaner, safer future. increasing global heat, driven primarily by the burning of fossil fuels is exacerbating extreme weather events around the globe. find the latest news and on the links between extreme weather and climate change, and how these impacts are affecting people in australia and around the world right now. the climate council acknowledges the traditional owners of the lands on which we live, meet and work. we wish to pay our respects to elders, past and present, and recognise the continuous connection of aboriginal and torres strait islander peoples to land, sea and sky. we acknowledge the ongoing leadership of first nations people here and worldwide in protecting country, and securing a safe and liveable climate for us all. donations over $2 to the climate council may be tax deductible, and a receipt will be emailed to you. the climate council is a registered charity with the australian charities and not for profits commission (acnc). registered charity number: acn 165 914 303 for information on why we collect and how we will use or disclose the personal information you have provided in this email subscription form, please see our email subscription form collection notice here. our privacy policy is also available here.

this catastrophic summer must open our eyes to the impending climate crisis. we have ways to slow it down. evan michaeli for the gator | dec. 2, 2023 a power plant discharging greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere, warming the earth. purchased on bigstock. a power plant discharging greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere, warming the earth. purchased on bigstock. editor's note: part one of this series was released on october 18. harsh heatwaves and immense wildfires once again stole the limelight of international media coverage this summer. as 2023 closes, it has already shattered weather related records, leaving a path of devastation. this year, everyone faced the consequences of a sizzling world. data shows that this summer was the warmest by a wide margin. between june and august, the average temperature was 62.2°f (16.8°c). the new record surpasses the runner up, 2019, by 0.29°c. july claimed the warmest month since 1880. moreover, four days in a row, earth documented its warmest day. july 7 was the hottest, reported at nearly 63°f. even though summer ended, the heat did not. in september, global temperatures soared past previous standards, leaving experts and scientists alike bewildered, to the point where one exclaimed it was "absolutely gobsmackingly bananas." temperatures in september cleared the prior record in 2020 by 0.5°c. september became the fourth month in a row to exceed record heat. that same month, the united nations released yet another ominous report indicating that governments must take action immediately to evade breaching the 1.5°c goal set by the paris climate accords in 2015. more alarming, temperatures in september have risen to 1.8°c since the industrial revolution, a clear warning that we may eclipse the accord's mission soon. evidently, this is a forewarning that 2023 will likely become the warmest year recorded in human history. unfortunately, the tone set at the sdg summit during the united nations general assembly was somber. only 15 percent of the 17 sustainable development goals (sdgs) are on target, and several sdgs are regressing as we reach the halfway point of the 2030 agenda. your browser does not support this video united nations secretary general antónio guterres speaks to the crowd at the sdg action weekend ahead of the sdg summit. video courtesy of evan michaeli. united nations secretary general antónio guterres speaks to the crowd at the sdg action weekend ahead of the sdg summit. video courtesy of evan michaeli. let me be clear: this summer's wrath was not a farce but a stark outlook for the future. we must wake up and quit pounding the snooze button on climate action. yet, it sounds like a broken record. we frequently hear of destruction from a climate dystopia. officials pledge climate action, only to fail. in this scenario, we tend to neglect the positives. we can't. we can't yield to negative thinking. we can't overlook a positive future. but not through vandalizing or disrupting civilians. protests targeting theater productions like the one at les misérables in london or barricading highways elicit fear and anger. rather, through innovation, voice, and policy. we must tout environmental victories. we must communicate solutions along with disasters and hold politicians and corporations accountable. we must harness the power of youth and the fearless attitude to cause change. for the next three weeks, diplomats meet in dubai for cop28. cop28 will be a critical test for the ambitious goals to mitigate warming to a manageable temperature. leaders need to step up to the plate and negotiate, for my future and the planet's. a very hot day in rio de janeiro. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a very hot day in rio de janeiro. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. are we sure the american southwest isn't an outdoor sauna? the southwest region experienced severe heat all summer long and received zero relief. residents in phoenix witnessed a streak of 31 consecutive days above 110°f, and college station in texas saw 50 straight days of 100°f heat. even going outside for a walk wasn't without danger. falling or sitting on the pavement may result in a third degree burn, as the pavement in desert metropolises could reach 170°f on a hot day. a las vegas doctor told the washington post that a third of the burn victims in his unit came from pavement burns. china confronted a tremendous heatwave in july, as temperatures topped 126°f (52.2°c) in a small village in the northwest region. beijing logged at least 11 days over 104°f (40°c) and documented a high of 106°f on june 22, a record for the month. on july 10, according to cnn, china documented a daily record of 4.09 billion kilowatt hours (kwh) of electricity production, transcending the previous record by 40 million kwh. the mediterranean region sweltered through an extraordinary summer of heat. life for locals, along with tourist schedules, altered significantly. high temperatures and scarce rain in catalonia left reservoirs at 30 percent capacity. french harvestworkers and construction workers began their days before dawn to avoid the warmth. tourists visiting italy in august were urged to stay indoors to escape the insufferable heat as italian authorities raised heat alerts in 16 cities, including rome and milan. greek tourist attractions limited hours to compensate for the heatwave. because european cities are normally temperate, the absence of air conditioning exacerbated the heatwaves and caused a greater chance of heat stress. in june, india scrambled in panic as a tremendous heatwave swept the country, killing almost 170 people in june. at times, the stench of death became unavoidable. "so many people are dying from the heat that we are not getting a minute’s time to rest. on sunday, i carried 26 dead bodies," jitendra kumar yadav, a hearse driver in the northern state of uttar pradesh, told the associated press. hospitals returned to pandemonium akin to the height of the covid 19 pandemic. the largest hospital in ballia district could not house more heat victims and the morgue was at full capacity as 54 senior citizens occupied the morgue. even if patients could find a place inside the hospital, a refuge from the heat wasn't guaranteed. al jazeera reported that medical staff fanned patients with books and dabbled their sweat on them, hoping to keep sufferers cool. august is typically the coldest time for chile and neighboring south american countries. this year, the region boiled through a historic heatwave. thunderstorm in buenos aires during the winter. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. thunderstorm in buenos aires during the winter. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. during a summer exchange program in argentina, i remember locals telling me that the weather was well above average, as temperatures spiked to 72°f in buenos aires on july 4. chile and argentina saw temperatures soar to triple digits, highly unusual for that time of year. in some areas, the highs were more than 20°c (68°f) above average. that is a drastic shift. according to cnn, buenos aires, the capital of argentina, sees an average of 64°f in winter. on august 1, the high topped at 86°f. the heat wave even triggered snow melt throughout the andes mountain range, which caused concern for homeowners regarding floods. such high temperatures during the winter months should spark concern for our future winters. south america also experienced a record breaking heatwave in february, stoking the flames of deadly wildfires in chile and wilting argentinian crops and spirits of locals and residents alike. according to noaa, extreme heat is the deadliest weather related event in america. in fact, heat claimed more american lives than lightning and tornadoes combined on average in the last decade. alas, fema cannot offer assistance for heat stricken regions because heatwaves are not specifically cited in the stafford act, the law that dictates fema's response to natural catastrophes. only one word describes the ineptitude of congress, failing to pass legislation amending the stafford act: unacceptable. unacceptable for the overworked hospital staff and infrastructure negligence. we must rethink aid for disasters, not just property, but also for living creatures. congress cannot deny the health consequences of heatwaves any longer. it is clear that global warming is a driving factor in heat waves. one study published by world weather attribution found that without human caused climate change, extreme heat events would be rare in china and almost impossible in the united states and southern europe. due to global warming, these severe heat events could occur every five to 15 years. climate central, a climate research center, discovered climate change made the harsh heatwaves this summer twice as likely. “in every country we could analyze, including the southern hemisphere where this is the coolest time of year, we saw temperatures that would be difficult and in some cases nearly impossible without human caused climate change,” vice president of science for climate central and the study's lead author andrew pershing said. in 2021, the intergovernmental panel on climate change (ipcc) determined some of the factors of the unprecedented heat to be increased aerosol use and urbanization. however, world weather attribution mentioned that "the burning of fossil fuels is the main reason the heatwaves are so severe." when heatwaves ensue, we simply turn on our air conditioners. that action alone increases reliance on fossil fuels. the department of energy says that six percent of electricity is produced in the united states and discharges 117 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually. of course, this causes a chain reaction. “one of the things that air conditioning has done is it has made more parts of the world habitable, but it has also added to global warming, which then makes other parts not so habitable," ap environmental science teacher cecilla pan said. furthermore, the ipcc deemed it "virtually certain" that powerful and frequent heatwaves will continue. while climate change has its role in fatal heatwaves, it is crucial to mention the link between the harsh heat and the natural phenomena of el niño. el niño impacts globally during the northern hemisphere summer months. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons and noaa. el niño impacts globally during the northern hemisphere summer months. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons and noaa. during el niño, warmer waters off the pacific coast of south america induce warmer summer temperatures. however, el niño usually signals intense flooding for the gulf coast and southeast. unfortunately, heat comes with some mighty social consequences. first, with a rise in metropolises, protection against the heat is segregated. poorer neighborhoods in cities are likely to be "urban heat islands." urban heat islands are a direct consequence of urbanization. surfaces like roads and buildings absorb more heat than natural vegetation, and tall buildings create an "urban canyon effect," which traps heat between buildings. analyses show that heat islands can cause temperatures to increase from 1°f to 7°f during the day and 2°f to 5°f at night. thickly vegetated areas in a city may see temperatures up to 20°f cooler than their heat island counterparts. sadly, according to the epa, current heat islands and past redlined zones have a noticeable link. investigations in three u.s. cities baltimore, dallas, and kansas city revealed that historically redlined communities had less vegetation and high temperatures. likewise, the epa pointed to another study that examined 500 u.s. metropolitan neighborhoods. the study concluded heat islands were more intense in lower income and black populations. in addition, a study conducted by jama psychiatry related a rise in temperatures by 1°c to domestic violence in pakistan and india. the research tracked more than 190,000 girls and saw an 8 percent rise in physical violence and a 7.3 percent increase in sexual violence. a woman in india told the guardian that the intense heat made it hard for her husband to work in the fields, thus losing their sole source of income. “he becomes angry because he feels helpless about not being able to feed the children,” the woman said. “when the frustration builds up and the children are whining and fighting, he takes it out on me. he also beats them too. he regrets hitting the children later but the next day when he still can’t go out and earn, he does it again.” thermometer mercury rising. purchased on bigstock. thermometer mercury rising. purchased on bigstock. a controlled fire blazes as firefighters prepare for large wildfires in california. photo courtesy of the united states marine corps and wikimedia commons. a controlled fire blazes as firefighters prepare for large wildfires in california. photo courtesy of the united states marine corps and wikimedia commons. on june 7, new york had the worst air quality on earth. air quality levels in the city spiked to 342 on the air quality index a rating considered "hazardous" by the epa. according to local non profit paper gothamist, an average 8 hour shift outside on june 7 for adults in brooklyn would account for smoking 30 cigarettes. locals found themselves in an apocalyptic scene filled with eerie orange haze and reduced visibility. oliver kabat, my friend and a high school junior in manhattan, shared his bewilderment at the once thought impossible scenes in new york. "it was just very weird the sky was orange and looked like in a doomsday thing. we couldn't go outside during school, so we all had to wear masks...," kabat said. smoke seen at radio city hall in new york. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. smoke seen at radio city hall in new york. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. laura michaeli, my aunt and a new york based emergency doctor, expressed the same sentiment. "on a personal level, it felt like we were finally living in the dystopia we had all feared, sooner and more widespread than we’d realized was possible," michaeli said. yet, key personnel must work outside to earn a decent wage. these workers faced even more severe consequences. sergio ajche, the co founder of los deliveristas unidos, a group fighting for better conditions for delivery workers, told gothamist he felt ill after working in the unsafe haze. “by the end of the day, i had a headache, my throat started to hurt, my eyes burned,” ajche said. despite unsafe conditions, employees battled through so they could survive. “we must go to work. this is not easy. here is not easy if you want money, if you want rent, if you want anything, you must work,” fuad qissi, an attendant at a gas station in newark, said. wildfires also bring another challenge to its victims: structural and emotional damage. when fires streaked across the island of maui in august, terror reigned on the hawaiian enclave. terrified residents attempted to flee by leaping into the pacific ocean. once extinguished, the fire transformed the former capital of the kingdom of hawaii, lahaina into a wasteland. in total, the lahaina fire incinerated 2,170 acres of land, claimed at least 95 lives, and ruined at least 2,200 buildings. repair estimates are expected to surpass $5.5 billion. per cbs, residents were alerted by the county sheriff of the potentially hazardous materials where the blazes ripped through, along with a dangerous water supply. after the fact, maui locals slammed the crisis response from the county. sirens often used in emergencies like fires were not activated. hawaiian officials defended their decision by stating that locals would believe there was a tsunami warning rather than a wildfire. remains of the u.s. seamen's hospital after wildfires blazed through the historic town of lahaina on the island of maui. photo courtesy of fema and wikimedia commons. remains of the u.s. seamen's hospital after wildfires blazed through the historic town of lahaina on the island of maui. photo courtesy of fema and wikimedia commons. regardless, a fault in communication frequently leads to deadlier natural disasters. sometimes, those warning systems are not clear. "i absolutely think we should look at the overall adequacy of warning systems, and we should always be thinking about how we can improve warning systems," sarah deyoung, a faculty member at the university of delaware's disaster research center, said. in response, four days ago, hawaii attorney general anne lopez delivered subpoenas to three maui agencies in control of the emergency response. the wildfires threw the island into a state of devastating despair that continues to cloud the oft sunny town. debbie scott, a social worker on the island, observed a shift in emotion after the disaster. "i am noticing that there is an uptick in very dark thoughts, suicidal thoughts, passivity in terms of ‘i don’t know what i’m going to do. i just don’t even know if i want to be here,’” scott said. “losing pets and losing every belonging, losing history, losing tradition, has left souls pretty empty.” even in times of crisis, the mental health services on the island remain thin, intensifying the crisis. "it’s extremely rare to find a native hawaiian therapist on the whole island of maui," kalena lanuza, a mental health practitioner who specializes in helping native hawaiians experiencing pregnancy or shortly after birth. nbc news reported that some survivors cope with the realities by invoking beloved indigenous traditions. others escape to the ocean. in september, locals assembled in a circle and celebrated the lives lost in the fires by taking part in a paddle out, a hawaiian tradition. the link between climate change and wildfires remains weak, yet pan says the management of fires in north america is not. “but what’s not shaky is this idea of how we’ve managed forest fires. for 85 years or so, the official policy of the u.s. government has been to suppress all fires. what’s happened is that led to a buildup of brush and timber and dead stuff on the ground. that stuff burns like there’s no tomorrow,” pan said. “so, for the northern and eastern part of it, it’s just bad forest management on our part.” furthermore, pan explains that some biomes lend to fire and need to burn. these locations include southern california and the mediterranean. in this case, humans decided to build in fire prone spots. “people are building in areas that are prone to fires, even before global warming. and i get it because it is beautiful country, but you are building in a place that is designed to burn," pan said. dry weather may be another intensifier for fires. while the causes responsible for the maui inferno are not known, maui indeed suffered from a dry spell and high winds from a powerful hurricane dora offshore. droughts and dry weather might exacerbate the fires, but they cannot always connect to climate change. firefighters assess the zogg fire, caused by equipment used by pg&e. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. firefighters assess the zogg fire, caused by equipment used by pg&e. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. in recent years, california and the american west saw an uptick in wildfires due to an intense drought. pan says drought isn't uncommon in the west, but might be worse due to global warming. “california is particularly an issue and the pacific northwest because they’ve had such a drought, but droughts are not uncommon in that part of the country," pan said. "are they being exaggerated by global warming? my guess is yes, but it’s a dry part of the country." according to pbs newshour, scientific evidence confirms that droughts worldwide were exacerbated due to global warming. while lightning and dry weather may cause wildfires, 85 percent of wildfires are human caused. small fires rejuvenate forests, but anthropogenic wildfires often grow uncontrollably. last year, pacific gas & electric settled for more than $55 million in damages to to elude litigation after two large wildfires broke out in california due to worn out power lines owned by the company. prosecutors accused pacific gas & electric of initiating more than 30 wildfires since 2017, eradicating 23,000 homes and businesses and killing more than 100 lives. smoky skies at a yankees game in june of 2023. photo courtesy of laura michaeli. hawaii national guard attempts to suppress the fire by dropping water on the fire. destruction from wildfires that teared through lahaina, a historic village on the island of maui. photo courtesy of fema and wikimedia commons. burnt cars line the streets in lahaina, a small village on the island of maui. photo courtesy of the hawaii national guard and wikimedia commons. bureau of land management and army soldiers try to fight the dixie fire in california. the dixie fire was caused by a downed power line of pg&e. photo courtesy of bureau of land management and wikimedia commons. smoky skies at a yankees game in june of 2023. photo courtesy of laura michaeli. smoky skies at a yankees game in june of 2023. photo courtesy of laura michaeli. hawaii national guard attempts to suppress the fire by dropping water on the fire. hawaii national guard attempts to suppress the fire by dropping water on the fire. destruction from wildfires that teared through lahaina, a historic village on the island of maui. photo courtesy of fema and wikimedia commons. destruction from wildfires that teared through lahaina, a historic village on the island of maui. photo courtesy of fema and wikimedia commons. burnt cars line the streets in lahaina, a small village on the island of maui. photo courtesy of the hawaii national guard and wikimedia commons. burnt cars line the streets in lahaina, a small village on the island of maui. photo courtesy of the hawaii national guard and wikimedia commons. bureau of land management and army soldiers try to fight the dixie fire in california. the dixie fire was caused by a downed power line of pg&e. photo courtesy of bureau of land management and wikimedia commons. bureau of land management and army soldiers try to fight the dixie fire in california. the dixie fire was caused by a downed power line of pg&e. photo courtesy of bureau of land management and wikimedia commons. smoke blankets the canadian city of calgary. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. people seen wearing face masks as smoke covers park avenue in new york. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. smoke upon arrival at atlanta hartsfield jackson airport. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. a view from the mississippi river as a haze shrouds the skyline of minneapolis. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. grand central terminal cloaked in smoke in new york. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. smoke shown in aerial picture of chicago. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a factory contributes to air pollution in nepal. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a factory contributes to air pollution in nepal. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. on november 3, a toxic haze besieged residents and tourists in delhi earlier this month. the air quality index in delhi was an absurd 640. that is 100 times worse than the world health organization's limit. sri lankan and bangladeshi cricketers skipped practices due to the smog, and when practice resumed, players donned masks while their asthmatic teammates sat out. the two nations eventually played, subjecting players and fans to the noxious air. during the tournament, delhi ranked as the most polluted city in the world five times. for delhiites, life became a struggle. citizens scrambled to find air purifiers as supplies ran low and schools shuttered their doors for a week, opting for online classes instead. your browser does not support this video video displays the toxic haze in delhi. video courtesy of kushagra khurana. video displays the toxic haze in delhi. video courtesy of kushagra khurana. kushagra khurana, a student in delhi i reached out to, noted the difficulties of missing class due to the smog. "now they [sic] schools have to cram the tests in a week where we used to have one test in a week. due to the shutdown, we have to give two tests a week," khurana said. sadly, delhi residents often face the misery of contaminated air. every november, the air quality plummets and the smog returns with a vengeance, stifling the city. the cause? a mix of pollutants of a rapidly growing city, parali burning, and unfortunate geography. for starters, delhi is the second largest city behind tokyo. delhi's population is rapidly expanding, as the metropolis saw an increase of 875,000 people in 2022. estimates say that delhi will have 36 million inhabitants by 2025. a wide angle view of the skyline of delhi. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a wide angle view of the skyline of delhi. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. naturally, delhi faces ceaseless construction. the constant building leaves dust and other particles lying around. construction is believed to contribute 30 percent to the pollution in delhi. moreover, the cars present in delhi, mainly the bs3 petrol and bs4 diesel cars, are less fuel efficient and discharge more carbon dioxide than the standards set by the indian government. pan sees a clear connection between the particulates in delhi and its pollution troubles. “when i look at delhi… that is a particle pollution thing,” pan said. “that is such a clear case of it.” another factor in delhi’s pollution is parali burning, more commonly known as stubble burning. delhi’s neighboring provinces, punjab and haryana cultivate around 17 percent of the kharif rice in india. additionally, in punjab alone, 17 million metric tons of wheat was grown in 2021. there are two harvest seasons in punjab; may to september and november to april. in november, farmers harvest the rice while sowing wheat. once they harvest, the farmers scorch the land to rid the field of debris for the next growing season. stubble burning in autumn causes delhi's air quality to deteriorate in the fall. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. stubble burning in autumn causes delhi's air quality to deteriorate in the fall. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. according to nasa, these fires emit greenhouse gasses and other toxic particulates into the air, forming a haze. despite the adverse effects, farmers say they are left with no choice. in an interview with india today, jasvir singh, the head of the bhartiya kisan union ekta sidhupur, said, “there is no provision to pick up the stubble with the farmers. nor do we have someone who picks it up together.” business standard reported that farmers have a limited amount of time to eliminate the debris, in most cases, two to three weeks maximum, and stubble burning is cost effective. add a dash of unfortunate geography, and you have a deadly combination. delhi lies in the himalayan foothills. the mountain range acts as a barrier, moving the smoke from the parali burning toward delhi. moreover, in the winter, warm lowland air rises above the frosty air arriving from the himalayas. this is often known as thermal inversion. “thermal inversion is when pollutants trap temperatures near the ground. and it usually has to do with places where there are canyons,” pan said. diagram explaining how thermal inversion traps pollutants and forms smog. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. diagram explaining how thermal inversion traps pollutants and forms smog. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. indian policymakers try to assuage the damage by restricting cars and prohibiting intentional burning, yet the goal should be to prevent harm. however, disputes derail all attempts to pass significant legislation dampening the efforts. “unfortunately, there is just no political will to solve this problem from any party. there is not one party that has put its head down and said, 'we are sickening the entire country and let’s fix it'," non profit care for air co founder jyoti pande lavakare said. instead, officials play their favorite pastime: the blame game. the bharatiya janata party believes that the aam aadmi party leader and chief minister of delhi arvind kejriwal isn’t taking enough action to curb pollution. the aam aadmi party chided the federal government because of its frivolous response to pollution: slashing monetary means to fight the problem. the health dangers are far too great for inaction to continue. delhi resident mahi, whom i connected with through a mutual friend, shared that their bronchioles were obstructed because of the air. furthermore, mahi expressed her frustration with the noxious air despite having little impact on the pollution in delhi. "imagine you never smoked in your life, but still you breathe air which causes you ingestion problems," mahi said. mahi is not alone. in delhi, dr. aheed khan shared the detrimental effects of the poisonous smog on x. "in my last 24 hour duty, i saw babies coughing, children coming with distress and rapid breathing; and while coming back home in the morning, i saw stray dogs and cats that i feed, coughing with watering eyes," khan said. in an opinion article for the washington post in 2019, dr. arvind kumar, a surgeon at sir ganga ram hospital and a founder of the organization lung care foundation wrote, “over the years, i have witnessed a change in the color of patients’ lungs from pink to black. it is a rarity for me to see a normal pink lung in any adult patient today.” kumar wrote that the pollutants can also enter a human’s body and access blood circulation, affect unborn babies, and are correlated to a higher risk of asthma and lung cancer. “even more disturbing is the change in lung cancer patterns i’ve witnessed over the past three decades: an overall increase, a higher occurrence in younger people and a high incidence among nonsmokers,” kumar said. “i’ve seen young people who’ve never smoked come in with stage four lung cancer   robbed of their lives because of the inaction of their elders.” delhi's air pollution in 2019. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a stubble fire burning the residue of old crops. purchased from bigstock. the haze seen over delhi on october 26 as "smog season" began choking delhiites. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. delhi's air pollution in 2019. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. delhi's air pollution in 2019. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a stubble fire burning the residue of old crops. purchased from bigstock. a stubble fire burning the residue of old crops. purchased from bigstock. the haze seen over delhi on october 26 as "smog season" began choking delhiites. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. the haze seen over delhi on october 26 as "smog season" began choking delhiites. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. pollution isn’t strictly confined to the atmosphere. plastic pollution is equally distressing. we often vilify plastics when we see single use plastic products strangle innocent marine animals or scattered throughout exquisite beaches and translucent waters. and for good reason. a report from 2020 showed that more than 900 marine species were affected by plastic pollution either from strangulation or ingestion. a sea turtle wades by an expansive heap of plastic with a single use bag lodged in its mouth. purchased on bigstock.com. a sea turtle wades by an expansive heap of plastic with a single use bag lodged in its mouth. purchased on bigstock.com. furthermore, certain compounds in plastics like bpa copy estrogen. during a panel hosted by the environmental club last year, reese reiling, an assistant at urban harbors institute at umass boston noted that fish in the boston harbor are becoming more feminine due to plastic pollution. bali, a premier vacation destination known for its immaculate beaches, now disappoints eager travelers as plastic floats in the clear waters and amasses on shore. and the great pacific garbage patch is so big, a new ecosystem depends on the artificial landmass. however, we must not forget the role that fossil fuels play in the making of plastics. first, plastic is a byproduct of petroleum. when extracted and refined to make plastic, the fossil fuels emit greenhouse gasses. those greenhouse gas emissions are significant. “when you add together all the greenhouse gas emissions related to plastic, they are greater than the emissions of every single country except for the u.s., china, india, and russia … if plastic were a country, it would be the fifth largest emitter of greenhouse gasses in the world,” christy leavitt, the plastics campaign director at oceana said. furthermore, oil companies obstruct progress in recycling, intentionally misleading the public. an insider on the fossil fuel business shared with npr that the industry pushed these lies because “selling recycling sold plastic, even if it wasn't true.” in 2020, greenpeace released a study proving that most plastic is indeed not recyclable. just this year, greenpeace issued another report saying that recycled plastic has the potential to be even more toxic and is not a viable solution. given the gravity of the issue at stake, you would assume that ambassadors would work all day to push along a legally binding plastics treaty during the intergovernmental negotiating committee (inc) meeting at the united nations environment progamme’s headquarters in nairobi, kenya two weekends ago. regrettably, oil barons dictated conversation sending more lobbyists than ambassadors from 70 countries combined. moreover, personal interests from oil producing countries such as saudi arabia and russia advocated for an enhanced importance on waste management, rather than stemming plastic production altogether. delegates failed to reach the goal of having a first draft complete at the end of inc 3 and voted against an additional meeting before the next edition in canada. delegates have one more year to provide a comprehensive draft. "this is not progress. this is chaos," graham forbes, head of delegation at greenpeace, said. to say this is a disappointment is an understatement. our biodiversity hangs in the balance we cannot allow plastic to chokehold our planet. instead, the treaty should focus on extended producer responsibility, commonly referred to as epr. currently, popular culture assigns the consumer responsible for plastic pollution. while recycling is a good method and littering is a horrible thing to do, producers are ultimately the ones culpable for plastic pollution. they create the mess after all. epr would shift the responsibility back to producers from the very beginning of production to decomposition. epr also focuses heavily on recycling and reusing rather than disposal, creating new items at a higher rate. elong ngole, a project manager at greening forward, leans over to pick up garbage left at limbe beach in the southwest region of cameroon. photo courtesy of elong ngole. a plastic bottle stranded on a rocky newport, r.i. beach. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. plastic bottles being stored to recycle. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. elong ngole, a project manager at greening forward, leans over to pick up garbage left at limbe beach in the southwest region of cameroon. photo courtesy of elong ngole. elong ngole, a project manager at greening forward, leans over to pick up garbage left at limbe beach in the southwest region of cameroon. photo courtesy of elong ngole. a plastic bottle stranded on a rocky newport, r.i. beach. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. a plastic bottle stranded on a rocky newport, r.i. beach. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. plastic bottles being stored to recycle. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. plastic bottles being stored to recycle. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. cars drive through a flooded street in russia. purchased on bigstock. cars drive through a flooded street in russia. purchased on bigstock. in july, extensive flash floods drenched the state of vermont, particularly the state capital, montpelier. a record of 5.28 inches of rain fell on the city, ravaging thousands of homes and businesses. the storm brought comparisons to the floods when hurricane irene paid a visit in 2011. the rainfall map issued by the national weather service after extreme floods in vermont. photo courtesy of the national weather service and wikimedia commons. the rainfall map issued by the national weather service after extreme floods in vermont. photo courtesy of the national weather service and wikimedia commons. “with hurricane irene, the water was raging like this, but it never really got to the house,” betsy hart, a windsor county resident said. vermont was not the only new england state ravaged by floods. massachusetts saw record floods as well. one deluge in july transformed fenway park into a waterpark during a red sox game. photos and videos showed water cascading down the stairs and flooding the concourse. upper school math teacher pete slaski attended the game. "it started pouring rain to the point where the game wasn't going to be playable," slaski said. "we hung around for about an hour and i finally left... it didn't seem like they were ever going to get the field playable." but the rain turned to disaster on two separate occasions. in august, north andover homes and businesses were submerged in six inches of rain. the following month, a storm dropped ten inches of rain on the town of leominster in six hours. north attleborough resident nathan bonneau told the associated press his home was inundated in the leominster flood. “it just kept getting worse,” bonneau said. “i watched the water go from trickling into my garage floor to coming in my front door in a matter of 35 minutes.” officials continue to raise concerns over the structural state of the dams in new england, crucial to saving lives in the torrential rain events that played out this summer. in february, the american society of civil engineers graded vermont’s dams a ‘c’. the report said, “with many dams in poor condition and the recent increase in larger and more intense floods, the risk of dam failure is increasing.” massachusetts isn’t faring much better. the department of conservation and recreation's office of dam safety gave cbs news boston a list of more than 200 dams deemed to be “structurally deficient.” the weather channel reported that multiple dams have failed in the past, including 50 alone in the last century in new hampshire. a dam stands by the connecticut river in new hampshire. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a dam stands by the connecticut river in new hampshire. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. pan says it is rash to rush and connect these isolated storms to climate change, “it’s hard to tell whether those are climate change or just weather patterns," pan said. "there is some indication that we are moving toward a wetter climate in massachusetts, but that’s not necessarily tied to those floods because those kinds of floods happen every once in and while just by the matter of course and weather. but it will be curious to see if those floods continue to happen more frequently.” however, pan mentioned that scientists often predict a northward shift in rain patterns. an aerial photo captured by the vermont national guard shows the flood destroying homes and businesses in montpelier. photo courtesy of the vermont national guard and wikimedia commons. a street is flooded after extreme rainfall in vermont. photo courtesy of the new hampshire national guard and wikimedia commons. a dam lining the charles river in south natick. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. an aerial photo captured by the vermont national guard shows the flood destroying homes and businesses in montpelier. photo courtesy of the vermont national guard and wikimedia commons. an aerial photo captured by the vermont national guard shows the flood destroying homes and businesses in montpelier. photo courtesy of the vermont national guard and wikimedia commons. a street is flooded after extreme rainfall in vermont. photo courtesy of the new hampshire national guard and wikimedia commons. a street is flooded after extreme rainfall in vermont. photo courtesy of the new hampshire national guard and wikimedia commons. a dam lining the charles river in south natick. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a dam lining the charles river in south natick. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a bleached stag horn coral in the great barrier reef. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a bleached stag horn coral in the great barrier reef. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. an aerial photo of hurricane otis during its explosive intensification stage. photo courtesy of nasa and wikimedia commons. a diagram of the atlantic meridional overturning circulation (amoc). photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a lobster roll from cousins maine lobster. the lobster industry is an important part of maine's economy and will take a hit with global sea temperature rise. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons and flickr/dana moos. a lobster roll from cousins maine lobster. the lobster industry is an important part of maine's economy and will take a hit with global sea temperature rise. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons and flickr/dana moos. an aerial photo of hurricane otis during its explosive intensification stage. photo courtesy of nasa and wikimedia commons. a diagram of the atlantic meridional overturning circulation (amoc). photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a lobster roll from cousins maine lobster. the lobster industry is an important part of maine's economy and will take a hit with global sea temperature rise. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons and flickr/dana moos. a lobster roll from cousins maine lobster. the lobster industry is an important part of maine's economy and will take a hit with global sea temperature rise. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons and flickr/dana moos. the unsettling vision of rapidly intensifying hurricanes is becoming more frequent in the atlantic and pacific, and the 2023 season proved this sickening reality. the national hurricane center describes rapid intensification as “an increase in the maximum sustained winds of a tropical cyclone of at least 30 kt [knots] (35 mph) in a 24 h [hour] period.” the most indicative of rapid growth is hurricane otis. hurricane otis transcended all expectations and experienced explosive intensification before making landfall as a catastrophic category 5 hurricane just west of the popular resort city of acapulco. a national hurricane center bulletin posted before hurricane otis made landfall in mexico. photo courtesy of the national hurricane center and wikimedia commons. a national hurricane center bulletin posted before hurricane otis made landfall in mexico. photo courtesy of the national hurricane center and wikimedia commons. several projections challenged hurricane otis’ potential to attain hurricane status. instead, otis strengthened 120 miles per hour in 24 hours, prompting the national hurricane center to denote the situation as a “nightmare scenario.” pan wonders whether otis was a one time event or a precursor to a new reality. “even the people in charge of [forecasting] the weather didn’t foresee that one happening. do we see more of that?,” pan, who also teaches marine science, said. otis toppled trees, destroyed high rises, and severed communication with the city of a million, spurring a humanitarian crisis. more so, without electricity, the heat was unbearable. disease remained rife as locals waited for assistance from the mexican government. nicolás gonzález morales, a community leader, told the guardian that resources arrived a week later and power was restored more than two weeks after the hurricane. “in those first weeks, we had to sleep outside because of the heat, battling mosquitoes,” morales said. you can see how much help we still need. there are lots of people with diarrhoea, fever, dengue.” the devastation left behind after hurricane otis ripped through acapulco. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. the devastation left behind after hurricane otis ripped through acapulco. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. illnesses thrived as water quality deteriorated, welcoming mosquitoes and water borne malaises. “more people are going to die from illness in the coming weeks and months than died during the hurricane,” gabriel hernández, the medical manager at medical impact, an ngo, said. the guardian shared that unwise policy choices may have contributed to the delay in action. in late 2018, emergency response responsibilities were shifted to the armed forces, despite their inability to act during disasters. mexican president andrés manuel lópez obrador made the second political misstep: disbanding funds for disaster relief. lópez obrador validated the decision, quoting corruption at the governmental level. hurricane lee powers toward puerto rico after undergoing explosive intensification to reach a category 5. photo courtesy of nasa and wikimedia commons. hurricane lee powers toward puerto rico after undergoing explosive intensification to reach a category 5. photo courtesy of nasa and wikimedia commons. otis was not the only storm to strengthen to a category 5 this hurricane season. along with otis, hurricane jova in the pacific and hurricane lee in the atlantic, both reached the top echelon of the saffir simpson scale. furthermore, many other 2023 cyclones achieved major hurricane (category 3 or above) status. on august 20, hurricane hilary, which peaked at category 4, slammed into baja california as a tropical storm and brought atypical floods to southern california. ten days later, hurricane idalia, a dangerous category 3 hurricane tore through florida's big bend. while there is little evidence for a connection between climate change and the frequency of hurricanes, the potency of a cyclone is associated with a warming ocean. an ideal temperature is 80°f, as the warmth provides fuel for the hurricane. hurricane idalia makes landfall on the big bend region in florida as a destructive category 3 hurricane. photo courtesy of noaa/wikimedia commons. hurricane idalia makes landfall on the big bend region in florida as a destructive category 3 hurricane. photo courtesy of noaa/wikimedia commons. ocean temperatures in the gulf of mexico as idalia churned up the coastline of west florida ranged from 87 to 89°f. earlier in the summer, reports showed that ocean surface temperatures climbed to 101°f in florida. that’s what the temperature of a hot tub should be, not the ocean. warming sea temperatures don't only cause stronger storms. warmer ocean temperatures also contribute to ice melt, which can be particularly dangerous in greenland. an iceberg in wolstenholme bay that broke off the greenland ice sheet, signifying the ice melt in the region. photo courtesy of nasa and wikimedia commons. an iceberg in wolstenholme bay that broke off the greenland ice sheet, signifying the ice melt in the region. photo courtesy of nasa and wikimedia commons. over the summer, researchers revealed that the atlantic meridional overturning current (amoc) may be heading toward collapse, a major tipping point, as early as 2025. the same study says that it may disintegrate by 2060. amoc circulates water, carrying warm water up north and transporting cooler water to the equator. pan explained that the collapse of amoc would bring consequences to marine life. “the biggest thing is the movement of oxygen and nutrients. if you aren’t moving those around, you don’t have upwelling occurring,” pan said. “upwelling is really important to bring some of those deep sea nutrients and gasses to the surface which then allows life to flourish, but if you don’t have upwelling, that won’t happen.” a noaa graphic explaining how upwelling works. photo courtesy of noaa and wikimedia commons. a noaa graphic explaining how upwelling works. photo courtesy of noaa and wikimedia commons. in fact, the first mass extinction, the late ordovician, which killed 85 percent of earth’s species at the time, was caused in part by changes in upwelling. if amoc were to collapse, weather patterns would change too. a representation of london in ice age conditions. art created by dall e, an ai art service. a representation of london in ice age conditions. art created by dall e, an ai art service. without the current, the united kingdom would lose its temperate conditions and would plunge europe into an ice age along with sea level rise for the east coast. furthermore, an increase in sea temperature will lead to economic challenges. for example, take new england’s greatest delicacy lobster. a picture of a lobster. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. a picture of a lobster. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. lobsters can only withstand ocean temperatures cooler than 68°f. as temperatures rise above 68°f, lobsters reach a “stress threshold.” long term exposure could imperil the lobster’s immune system and may lead to diseases and struggles to reproduce offspring. usually, lobsters would then migrate north to find cooler waters. with the gulf of maine warming three and a half times faster than the global average, lobsters may drift northward once more, causing mainers to lose a main source of income and culture. “this is more than a job it’s a whole way of life. it’s all some people know how to do. i would love to pass it on, but i’m not sure what it’s going to look like in the future,” krista tripp, a lobster harvester said. so why is the ocean seeing such high temperatures? the ocean is an effective carbon sink, absorbing 93 percent of the heat produced by carbon emissions. “with global warming, given the carbon dioxide we’ve pumped into the atmosphere since the industrial revolution hasn’t had the effect as rapidly as we thought, it would [be] because a huge amount of that carbon dioxide is absorbed by the oceans," pan said. the storage of carbon dioxide can also lead to some concerning changes in oceanic chemistry. “and [it] makes places more acidic because carbon dioxide, when you mix it with water, forms carbonic acid, and therefore you get a change in ph in the ocean,” pan said. acidification can spell trouble for shellfish. shells of oysters, clams, and other shellfish use calcium carbonate to construct their shells. however, when the ocean is acidic, the shells may be delicate, enhancing the susceptibility to breakage. livelihoods and biodiversity both go up in ashes without shellfish. just in the pacific northwest, the shellfish industry inserts $270 million into the region’s economy. shellfish play a massive role in water quality and the management of important nutrients. the picturesque beaches dot the coastline of the island nation of tuvalu, or at least they used to be there. now, according to tuvaluan ​​penny lotoala, the beach disappeared from erosion and the sea swept away the idyllic trees she remembers as a child. “the land has been taken   lost,” lotoala said in an interview with the globe and mail. tuvalu and its fellow pacific island nations face extinction as sea levels in the pacific continue to rise. estimates say that 95 percent of funafuti, the country’s capital, will be flooded during high tides by 2100. that is not liveable. art created by dall e, an ai art service. nyangai island off the coast of sierra leone faces the same fate. like lotoala, fisherman kpana charlie’s island is dramatically different from his childhood. npr reported that the beaches that were once pristine no longer exist and the thick forest dissipated. charlie is concerned that the island may vanish in as little as two years. “there's nowhere to go to the toilet. there's nowhere to be free. whenever the water's high the place floods all over. it never used to happen like this,” charlie said. in 2012, a storm swept away 35 houses from the island. "it was chaos," charlie said. "everyone was so afraid. the next morning, we all decided to leave. i told myself i couldn't stay here any longer." as locals of nyangai island suffer from the constant flooding and eradication of their land, government officials refuse to act. the sierra leone environmental protection agency defended its inaction, citing scarcity of resources. “nyangai is not a government priority at the moment,” the environmental protection agency deputy director paul lamin said. "we have so many competing priorities in sierra leone and only scarce resources." art created by dall e, an ai art service. some countries have already prepared for the worst. indonesia plans to relocate its capital from the bustling metropolis of jakarta to nusantara, a jungle haven on the island of borneo. while mexico city and venice often share the spotlight for sinking cities, jakarta is sinking the fastest. in 2017, the new york times revealed that coastal neighborhoods of the city were sinking at a rate of 14 inches per year. back then, 40 percent of jakarta was below sea level. art created by dall e, an ai art service. even in boston, we need to be concerned about sea level rise. currently, the ocean is increasing an inch per eight years near boston, but forecasters show that it might take only 15 years to see another six inches of sea level rise compared to 35 years in the past. moreover, in 2000, boston experienced six days of flooding during high tides. in 2019, that number jumped up one. however, by 2050, boston may see 95 days of high tide flooding. “i think the biggest one we need to think about is sea level rise. if you look at the boston harbor walk, that area often floods during king tide,” pan said. “so the fact when you get a big storm and the aquarium t stop is flooded and can’t function is an issue.” art created by dall e, an ai art service. luckily, the time is ripe to advance solutions to the climate crisis. especially now, as cop28, the largest climate conference, opened thursday in dubai. world leaders and diplomats must use this convention as an impetus toward a climate resilient future. u.s. secretary of state atony blinken discusses the transformation of food systems at cop28 in dubai. photo courtesy of the department of state and wikimedia commons. u.s. secretary of state atony blinken discusses the transformation of food systems at cop28 in dubai. photo courtesy of the department of state and wikimedia commons. at conferences like cop28, leaders need to stress global cooperation and honest conversations that embrace innovation and youth, not outcast them. both groups are valuable in the fight to save our planet. and while it may seem doom and gloom, fear and grief should be an agent of change, not a deterrent. but most of all, we need hope in the indomitable human spirit. since cop28 started, we have already witnessed progress. despite choosing to skip cop28, president joe biden revealed a regulation today in hopes to axe methane emissions by 80 percent through 2038 from the oil and gas sector. 11th hour racing skipper charlie enright and united nations secretary general's special envoy to the ocean peter thomson participate in the relay4nature organized by the ocean race at the ocean summit in september at the united nations headquarters. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. 11th hour racing skipper charlie enright and united nations secretary general's special envoy to the ocean peter thomson participate in the relay4nature organized by the ocean race at the ocean summit in september at the united nations headquarters. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. in september during the united nations general assembly, the ocean race unveiled the universal declaration of ocean rights, a comprehensive document with its goal of preserving the ocean. articles of the treaty call for respect for our oceans and practice transparency in decisions regarding the ocean. at the summit, several countries pledged support for the treaty, including panama, sweden, and cabo verde. before the unveiling, more than 32,000 people globally petitioned for ocean rights. youth activists sued the state of montana for the violations of the state's constitution promising citizens a clean environment. photo courtesy of our children's trust and wikimedia commons. youth activists sued the state of montana for the violations of the state's constitution promising citizens a clean environment. photo courtesy of our children's trust and wikimedia commons. in a monumental victory for climate activists, a montana judge ruled in favor of youth environmentalists who sued the state for its climate policy. district court judge kathy seeley decided the state's procedure for pipeline requests was unconstitutional per the montana state constitution. montana's constitution explicitly ensures citizens a right to a clean environment. the ruling paves the way for activists, especially youth, to challenge unjust policies ruining our privilege to a safe environment. many activists have since proceeded the litigation route, including in hawaii for the maui fire incident. an adidas store in san francisco. adidas announced they are selling a new shoe, the ultraboost dna loop. the shoe is hailed to be one that no one owns, as adidas will always remake the shoe. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. an adidas store in san francisco. adidas announced they are selling a new shoe, the ultraboost dna loop. the shoe is hailed to be one that no one owns, as adidas will always remake the shoe. photo courtesy of wikimedia commons. in 2020, adidas released the ultraboost dna loop footwear no one owns. adidas says that once the shoes complete a lifecycle, the customer will return the shoes back to adidas, who will transform them into a new pair of shoes. this approach ushers in a new direction in sustainable fashion and economics, and one that resembles a circle. a circular economy emphasizes recycling and reusing materials and uses landfills as a last resort. a before and after showing boston's big dig project from the 1990s to the rose kennedy greenway in 2020. the shift brought more green space to the city of boston. photo on the left courtesy of carol m. highsmith and wikimedia commons. photo on the right courtesy of evan michaeli. graphic created on canva. a before and after showing boston's big dig project from the 1990s to the rose kennedy greenway in 2020. the shift brought more green space to the city of boston. photo on the left courtesy of carol m. highsmith and wikimedia commons. photo on the right courtesy of evan michaeli. graphic created on canva. bosco verticale, a modern building in milan, is a literal green giant. offering three hectares of forest upright, the building soaks in 30 tons of carbon dioxide a year. moreover, the plants regulate pollution both noise and air and create habitats for animals. following the green trend, boston stopped the devastating highway project, the big dig in 2007 and replaced the land with a series of parks, the rose kennedy greenway. moreover, navier, co founded by sampriti bhattacharyya, provides a seamless travel experience across cities with waterways. rather than waiting in traffic to cross zakim bridge, the invention allows people to automatically call for an electric powered boat. the company says that passengers can get from redwood city to downtown san francisco in 20 minutes, greatly improving the time due to traffic. while policy and innovation are needed to combat carbon emissions and other environmental issues, we can take small actions to help the fight for a better future. your browser does not support this video hand holding a plant that is growing. purchased on bigstock. hand holding a plant that is growing. purchased on bigstock. take it from pan. i agree with pan. even though each of these actions is small, they add up especially if all of us on earth follow suit. president of the 78th general assembly dennis francis speaks to the crowd at the sdg action weekend ahead of the sdg summit. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. president of the 78th general assembly dennis francis speaks to the crowd at the sdg action weekend ahead of the sdg summit. photo courtesy of evan michaeli. reflecting back on my experience at the sdg action weekend, i have a glimmer of hope. it is possible to win the race against defeat. it is possible to flip the script. it is possible to make the change. as nelson mandela once said, “it always seems impossible until it's done.”

which language would you like to use this site in? climate change is increasingly driving violations of the right to life and the right to health. in fact, climate change has been called “the greatest global health threat facing the world in the 21st century”. extreme weather events, including heatwaves, flooding, droughts, wildfires and tropical cyclones, which are increasingly made much more likely and more severe by human induced climate change, pose a serious threat to people’s right to mental and physical health. not only are people injured and killed in these events, but public health facilities may be damaged or destroyed, and illnesses can spread among people who are displaced. an increase in extreme heat in all regions has resulted in more people dying and becoming ill, more occurrence of disease, and more people migrating. the number of deaths from climate change is expected to be significant, and an even larger number of people will develop disabilities and health conditions. the world economic forum estimates that, by 2050, climate change will result in 14.5 million deaths worldwide. the burning of fossil fuels   coal, oil and gas   is the primary driver of climate change. moreover, the extraction, processing, transport and burning of fossil fuels is bad for the health of communities that live close to these operations. burning fossil fuels is also one the main causes of air pollution   a significant driver of ill health. air pollution has been linked to heart disease, strokes, lung cancer, asthma and other chronic diseases. one study estimates that more than 5 million people die each year from air pollution caused by fossil fuel use. for these reasons, amnesty has endorsed a proposal for a fossil fuel non proliferation treaty which aims to accelerate the transition to renewable energy. scientists are becoming faster and more accurate at assessing the extent to which climate change has influenced a particular weather event. networks of scientists such as world weather attribution and climate central carry out rapid attribution studies to understand the role of climate change in individual floods, droughts, hurricanes, wildfires and other extreme weather events. for example, in april and may 2024, countries across the asian continent including israel, palestine, lebanon, syria, myanmar, thailand, viet nam and the philippines saw temperatures well above 40°c for many days, exacerbating risks to health for people living in refugee camps and conflict zones, including 1.7 million displaced people in gaza. world weather attribution found that these heatwaves were being made more frequent and more extreme by climate change. the impacts of climate change on the right to health are felt everywhere, on every continent. however, communities on the frontline of climate change are among those worst affected. a wide range of socio economic factors affect whether people can lead healthy lives. they include people’s access to food, housing and water, access to healthcare, the extent to which they face marginalization because of racism, xenophobia, homophobia and sexism, and whether they live in a healthy environment. this means that the following people are among those at higher risk from climate related health harms: if steps to address climate change do not prioritize those who are made most vulnerable to it, climate change stands to deepen global inequality and put people who are already at risk of poor health in greater danger of becoming unwell. most states across the world have agreed to be bound by international human rights instruments that require them to respect, protect and fulfil human rights, including the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. climate change needs to be seen as an issue of injustice, similar to how we think about other human rights violations. all of amnesty’s climate justice work highlights the impacts of climate change on human rights and proposes steps to prevent and recover from these harms. this includes campaigning for an end to fossil fuel use, and campaigning for increased climate financing from the countries that are most responsible for climate change, to promote climate justice in the countries least responsible. amnesty has already published research on climate related health harms in numerous countries, including: amnesty’s research has also exposed how governments have failed to protect the procedural rights of communities who live close to fossil fuel operations, including their rights to access to information, public participation, justice, effective remedies and, in the case of indigenous peoples, the right to free, prior and informed consent. two examples are the wet’suwet’en nation’s struggle against the coastal gas link pipeline in canada, and the ogoni people harmed by shell’s operations in nigeria. amnesty international is not the only global human rights organization to have begun highlighting how climate change undermines health. human rights watch, for example, has published studies into the health harms of climate change on first nations people in canada, people with disabilities and older people in british columbia, low income black and brown pregnant people in the usa, and people with disabilities in spain. other organizations have conducted similar studies, including on the health impacts of heatwaves, the threat of wildfire smoke and the disproportionate impacts of climate change on lgbti people. with your help, we’ll continue to advocate for better human rights protections in the face of the climate crisis. every year, our global community comes together to fight injustice and support people whose human rights are under threat. join the write for rights campaign and demand justice by calling on decision makers to do the right thing. if you are talented and passionate about human rights then amnesty international wants to hear from you. © 2024 amnesty international

it is halfway through august and this year’s danger season, the period between may and october when climate change makes summers extremely hot and brings more intense hurricanes, heat waves, flooding, and wildfires. just this past week, the us was hit with record heat, wildfires, and a hurricane, with 2024 already ranking second for the number of billion dollar disasters recorded. in our danger season tracker, we are keeping tabs on how many people in the us, puerto rico, and the us virgin islands have been under heat, storm, flooding, or fire weather alerts issued by the national weather service. danger season got a quick jump start early this year. by may 7, nearly one third of the population had been under at least one alert, a number that jumped to half the population (nearly 170 million persons) by may 20. extreme weather alerts continued to spread quickly throughout the us. on june 2, 75% (three quarters) of all people in the country had faced at least one alert, and by june 22 that number reached 95%. as of august 13, nearly everyone in the us has faced an extreme weather alert, and we still have most of august, as well as september and october to go. only 79 counties and municipios (the county equivalent in puerto rico) throughout the country representing about 1% of the country’s population and located mostly in michigan, minnesota, alaska, and wisconsin have not faced an alert as of august 13. in 2022, we reported that counties with at least 21 heat alerts (amounting to nearly three weeks’ worth of heat alerts though not necessarily in a row) were mostly in a handful of states in the midwest and south. in these communities, poverty levels tend to be higher than the national average, and many communities lack the economic means to protect themselves during extremely hot weather and any other type of extreme weather. to determine which populations may be more vulnerable to the extreme climate impacts that occur during danger season, i relied on the white house’s climate justice and economic screening tool (cejst). cejst does not include race or ethnicity, instead classifying communities as “disadvantaged” if they meet at least one of multiple categories of climate and economic burdens such as expected losses from flooding, as well as disparities related to energy, health, housing, and transportation. though it omits race and ethnicity, the tool’s results confirm what environmental justice advocates have said for a long time that race is the strongest predictor of climate and pollution burdens. in 2024, many counties that have at least 25% or more of their communities deemed disadvantaged also had at least 21 days of extreme heat alerts so far this danger season. and many of these counties have large metro areas where lots of latinos, african americans, and other people of color live. and on august 2, climate central’s climate shift index reminded us how much climate change is responsible for the brutal heat, as nearly half of the us population was under heat alerts that were three times as likely to exist due to climate change. not just heat, but atmospheric conditions that lead to wildfires prevailed in the southwest and pacific northwest. fire weather alerts are issued by the national weather service when the atmospheric conditions that make wildfires more likely are ripe, such as low humidity, temperatures above 75⁰f, and wind speed in excess of 15 miles per hour. and similar to heat alerts, most places with a high total number of fire weather alerts (i picked 14 in this case, or two weeks’ worth of alerts again, not necessarily consecutive) are also home to many disadvantaged communities. indeed, in july, large wildfires broke out across these regions and forced thousands to evacuate. these fires destroy people’s homes and other property, and their risks and costs keep climbing. as i write this, rain has been pouring almost uninterruptedly in washington, dc and the surrounding suburbs where i live, as tropical storm debby makes its way northeast. it’s much worse in south carolina, where people faced record rainfall, extensive flooding, and tornadoes. unfortunately, it’s not the first time this year that a storm has pummeled communities. in late april and the first days of may, eastern and southeastern texas was flooded with heavy rains. then hurricane beryl, after a long tour that began early in the southeast part of the atlantic, ran roughshod across houston and other nearby parts of texas, knocking out power for 2.7 million folks across the state and costing upwards of one billion dollars in grid repairs. the map below captures areas that have had at least 7 flood alerts so far this danger season. during danger season, many of these impacts occur simultaneously. just on august 9 alone, millions of people were under heat flood alerts from most of texas through the south and southeast and under flood alerts in most of the eastern seaboard. and some counties such as florida were under both types of alerts on the same day. august through september are peak hurricane season in the atlantic ocean and the caribbean sea. noaa just revised down their may hurricane season forecast slightly, but it still expects an above normal season with 8 to 13 hurricanes (and 4 to 7 of these predicted to be category 3 or higher), a worrisome number of potentially catastrophic events. at the moment, tropical storm ernesto has prompted a tropical storm watch for puerto rico and a hurricane watch for the us virgin islands and the islands vieques and culebra, two inhabited islands that are part of the puerto rican archipelago. in terms of wildfires, the national interagency fire center’s outlook for august through october a time that is often the height of the wildfire season shows significant potential for wildfires in the pacific northwest and parts of the southwest. and we are not out of the hot season yet the national weather service’s heat risk tool is forecasting moderate or worse heat related impacts mostly in some parts of the southern united states for this week, and it’s too early to tell with certainty what temperatures will look like before the end of danger season in october. climate change is fueling this new dangerous regime of extreme weather. our government and industries need a sustained and steep downward path to reduce heat trapping emissions, and we also need continuous resources and additional measures such as investments to protect people from the danger season impacts that are happening now. in addition, our own ucs experts have recommendations across these climate impacts from how to redress injustices brought on by hurricanes and heat in coastal regions, to protecting people and property from climate fueled wildfires, as well as the critical infrastructure on which we rely to conduct our daily lives. posted in: climate change tags: climate change, danger season, extreme heat, flooding, killer heat, wildfires about the author dr. declet barreto earned a ph.d. in environmental social sciences, m.a. and b.s. degrees in geography, and an associate’s degree in geographic information systems, from arizona state university. at ucs, his research maps, analyzes, and finds solutions to the unequal human health and livelihood impacts of environmental hazards, particularly those exacerbated by climate change. shana udvardy senior climate resilience policy analyst zoe middleton associate director of just climate resilience melissa l. finucane vice president of science & innovation get email updates get text alerts text "science" to 67369 or sign up online. sign up or text "science" to 67369. receive urgent alerts about opportunities to defend science. recurring messages. reply stop to cancel. msg & data rates may apply. terms, conditions, and privacy policy. © union of concerned scientists we are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. 2 brattle square, cambridge ma 02138, usa (617) 547 5552 we use cookies to improve your experience. by 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daily briefing | today's climate and energy headlines expert analysis direct to your inbox. there is continuing widespread global media coverage of the wildfires that are still alight and burning through parts of los angeles. the los angeles times highlights that officials say the “fires that have devastated portions of the los angeles region in recent days stand among the worst natural disasters in american history and will have a long legacy”. the newspaper quotes craig fugate, who led the federal emergency management agency (fema) during the obama administration: “this is your hurricane katrina [which devastated new orleans in 2005 killing thousands of residents]. it will forever change the community. it will be a touch point that everybody will remember, before and after. and for los angeles, this will become one of the defining moments of the community, the city and the county’s history.” the newspaper adds: “there are the immediate questions, like where people who have lost their homes will stay tonight, tomorrow and the rest of this week, and the longer term ones, such as whether la should rebuild in areas that remain vulnerable to the increasing cruelty of climate change. another question that has loomed large: as the region tries to move forward, will politics get in the way? scenes of sheer devastation in la   from altadena to the palisades to pacific coast highway   have been met with finger pointing and barbs traded at the highest levels of government.” separately, the los angeles times   which has extensive coverage and has lowered its paywall during the disaster   has a live blog which reports: “there have been at least 24 deaths and more than 12,000 structures damaged or destroyed in the la area fires. after a day of progress in containing the eaton and palisades fires, crews are bracing for several days of winds that could hamper efforts to contain the firestorms…gusts of 50 to 65mph are expected monday, with the strongest winds arriving before dawn tuesday and peaking through wednesday.” reuters reports: “private forecaster accuweather has estimated the damage and economic loss at $135bn to $150bn. to help expedite the monumental rebuilding effort ahead, [california governor gavin] newsom signed an executive order on sunday temporarily suspending environmental regulations for destroyed homes and businesses.” meanwhile, politico carries comments made by newsom, the state’s democrat governor who says the wildfires will be the “worst natural disaster” in us history, “in terms of just the costs associated with it, in terms of the scale and scope”. responding to political attacks and criticisms from republicans such as donald trump and jd vance, newsom is quoted saying: “that mis  and disinformation i don’t think advantages or aids any of us. responding to donald trump’s insults, we would spend another month. i’m very familiar with them. every elected official that he disagrees with is very familiar with them.” the hill notes that dave min, an incoming democrat congressman from california who has “spent the last two years chairing the california state senate’s natural resources and water committee”, has “pointed to climate change as a significant contributor to the rapid spread of wildfires”. the new york times says that trump “offered fresh criticism early sunday of the officials in charge of fighting the los angeles wildfires, calling them ‘incompetent’ and asking why the blazes were not yet extinguished”. the times reports that la’s mayor has defended the city’s response to the fires amid calls for her resignation: “a petition for karen bass to step down has been signed by nearly 100,000 californians while her fire chief has attacked her over underfunding.” some outlets have attempted to counter and fact check the wave of misinformation, disinformation and climate denial being spread on social media and beyond by highly partisan sources such as elon musk and alex jones. the guardian says: “as los angeles firefighters battle ongoing blazes, prominent rightwing figures are spreading bigoted criticism of the response and lies about who is to blame, including that the fire is raging because of diversity within the fire department. the misinformation echoes the claims that plagued the north carolina hurricane response. both disasters led to outrage, which partisan actors seized upon to advance their political goals, muddying the already confusing information ecosystem that accompanies a fast moving news event. in what has become a common theme, rightwing media and commentary have said that diversity within the los angeles fire department is to blame for the devastation.” the los angeles times has an article headlined: “la firestorms bring waves of fire myths, disinformation. here’s how to debunk it and not get fooled.” bbc news focuses on “fact checking criticism of california democrats over fires”. the times has an analysis article which asks: “is donald trump right to blame gavin newsom for the la fires?” it then answers its own open question: “the president elect has accused the governor of california of being ‘incompetent’ and caring more about fish, but experts say his claims don’t stack up.” a wide range of outlets focus on the role climate change has played in exacerbating the conditions that allowed the wildfires to ignite and spread. axios says: “climate change   particularly whiplash between two wet winters followed by a bone dry, unusually hot spring, summer and fall   set the stage for los angeles’ deadly and devastating fires, scientists say. the firestorm was the product of what climate researchers refer to as ‘hydroclimate whiplash’. other factors include one of the worst santa ana wind events of the past two decades; land use patterns; and sparks set off by power lines, car engines, suspected arsonists and other potential ignition sources. whatever the source, it’s clear a changing climate made the fires more ferocious, long lasting and destructive, as has been the trend across the west in recent decades.” the associated press says: “welcome to one wild week of the climate crisis, scientists say. there will be more…climate change laid the groundwork for california’s megafires. atmospheric rivers dumped huge amounts of water on the region that caused plenty of plant growth. then, a fast onset of drought dried them out, providing plenty of fodder for the flames.” al jazeera has an explainer titled: “is climate change to blame for the california wildfires?” it then answers its own question: “as wildfires become more frequent each year around the world, concern from climate scientists that climate change is making them worse is mounting…the changing climate coupled with poor urban planning and management has exacerbated natural disasters globally, including cyclones, hurricanes and floods. scientists at the us national oceanic and atmospheric administration (noaa) believe that if planet temperatures exceed the pre industrial average by 2c, hurricane wind speeds could rise by 10%. they also say that climate change might be slowing the pace   rather than the velocity   at which hurricanes move. this means that storms can dump more water on the places they pass through.” channel 4 news interviews climate scientist prof michael mann who says: “wildfires will get worse as the planet gets warmer.” there is continuing coverage of the confirmation by a range of global datasets that 2024 was the hottest year on record and the first to breach the 1.5c threshold across a single year. bloomberg says: “earth’s warming exceeded 1.5c on an annual basis for the first time in 2024, according to three major climate science agencies. it’s the most potent evidence yet that countries are failing to meet a paris agreement goal of limiting global heating to that level as a decades long average. the paris target of staying below 1.5c ‘is unobtainable’, scientist robert rohde said in a statement issued by berkeley earth, one of the record keeping groups. the world may surpass the largely symbolic mark within five or 10 years, rohde said. nevertheless, ‘urgent action is still needed to limit man made climate change’, he added. two datasets show annual warming of 1.6c or more: berkeley earth (1.62c) and the eu copernicus climate change service (1.60c). the uk met office found warming of 1.53c. two us agencies came out slightly below 1.5c   nasa (1.47c) and noaa (1.46c). the science groups are all saying the same thing, despite having separate methodologies and modest variations in results, according to russell vose, chief of noaa’s environmental monitoring office. ‘i wouldn’t get wrapped around the axle about those differences,’ he said.” the guardian quotes dr gavin schmidt, a senior climate scientist at nasa: “all the groups agree, regardless of how they put the data together, there’s no question. the long term trends are very clear.” it quotes schmidt saying the levels of global warming are pushing humanity beyond its historical experience of the earth’s climate: “to put that in perspective, temperatures during the warm periods on earth three million years ago   when sea levels were dozens of feet higher than today   were only around 3c warmer than pre industrial levels. we are halfway to pliocene level warmth in just 150 years.” the new york times has a news feature under the headline: “‘we’re in a new era’: how climate change is supercharging disasters. extreme weather events   deadly heat waves, floods, fires and hurricanes   are the consequences of a warming planet, scientists say.” (see carbon brief’s latest quarterly “state of the climate” analysis for all the details and a range of charts.) separately, bbc news says an “iconic depiction of global temperatures has been updated to represent the average global temperature for 2024”. it continues: “prof ed hawkins from the university of reading, who created the climate stripes diagram, said the figure was a ‘stark reminder’ there was more work to be done to tackle climate change.” hawkins has written an article for the conversation titled: “my new dark red climate stripe for 2024 shows it’s the hottest year yet.” china has officially declared that it emitted 13bn metric tonnes of “climate warming greenhouse gases” in 2021   a 4.3% increase from a year earlier, according to the country’s latest report to the un, reuters reports. emissions from cement production fell by 3.2% in 2021 as a result of “declining clinker production”, with emissions from steel smelting also falling 2.3% to 65.5m tonnes, the newswire adds. it also says the country is “struggling to meet a 2025 interim target to cut the amount of co2 produced per unit of economic growth by 18% between 2021 and 2025”. state news agency xinhua also covers the story, saying that the “implementation of various targets is well on track, with goals for forest stock and total installed capacity of wind and solar power having been achieved ahead of schedule”, according to the document. business news outlet jiemian, citing the same document, says it will cost at least 26.8tn yuan ($3.66tn) from 2024 to achieve “carbon neutrality” by 2060. an article by the state run china daily says that china can play a “critical role” in decarbonising the global shipping industry. separately, a total of 590 wind power projects with a combined capacity of 103.4 gigawatts (gw) were approved in 2024, international energy net reports. elsewhere, reuters reports that “china’s coal imports rose 14.4% in 2024 to a record high, official data showed on monday, as lower international coal prices spurred buyers to substitute imports for domestic supply”. the hong kong based south china morning post (scmp) reports that beijing has “concluded that the eu’s recent investigations into chinese enterprises…were ‘unfair and non transparent’”. china will ask the eu to “rectify its trade barrier practices” and create an “open, fair, just, nondiscriminatory and predictable environment for chinese companies to invest and operate in europe”, says china daily. bloomberg publishes an article under the headline: “eu set to back draghi warnings on lagging behind us and china.” state supporting newspaper global times publishes an editorial under the headline: “eu green growth needs market expansion, not protectionism.” the financial times’s lex column has an article headlined: “china’s solar sector could be on course for a glow up. after a plague of overcapacity and falling prices, there are signs the sector may be approaching a bottom.” meanwhile, the press association says uk chancellor rachel reeves has signed a “formal agreement to co operate with china on fighting climate change despite tensions in other areas” during a visit to china. (the uk government has published a document saying that a “china uk energy dialogue” will convene this year.) in other news, a new round of “price war” in china’s auto market could “begin earlier than usual” with the arrival of the lunar new year, business news outlet yicai reports, adding that “several electric vehicle (ev) brands have set ambitious targets”. china news reports that the china passenger car association predicts that domestic sales of evs will reach 13.3m units in 2025, a year on year growth of 20%, with a “retail penetration rate of 57%”. finally, the communist party affiliated newspaper people’s daily carries an article in its print edition by zheng shanjie, head of the national development and reform commission (ndrc), china’s top economic planner, saying that the country will actively promote its “dual carbon” goals in 2025 through efforts including “energy conservation and carbon reduction” and the transition to “dual control of emissions”. uk household bills will remain high “unless the government overhauls the energy system, the head of the country’s biggest supplier has warned”, reports the sunday times. it continues: “greg jackson, the chief executive of octopus energy, said [prime minister] keir starmer risked repeating the same mistakes as the outgoing us president joe biden, who was ‘punished because he didn’t bring down the cost of living’. jackson, 53, is a prominent advocate of green power whose renewables focused company has grown rapidly in recent years. it is now valued at £7.4bn. he warned, however, that the energy secretary ed miliband’s route to decarbonised electricity will not drive prices down unless a radically different route is taken. he suggests localised pricing that would mean those living near abundant renewables could be offered cheaper power. jackson warned ministers they would be making the same mistake as companies rendered obsolete by the march of progress if they did not address urgently the economic and technical system underpinning green energy.” the article adds: “last year, £1bn was spent on this process, known as ‘curtailment’. the rapid increase in renewables, jackson said, meant curtailment costs would continue to soar and could reach £6bn annually by 2030. ‘we’ve had days when turning off windfarms on winter days has cost us as a nation £20m in a day,’ he added. ‘i think there was one day recently when we curtailed three times the amount of electricity that london uses.’” (see carbon brief’s in depth interview with greg jackson published last may.) in other uk news, the daily telegraph joins other outlets in reporting: “britain’s gas reserves have dwindled to a ‘concerning’ low with just a week of supply left as freezing temperatures and low winds grip the country this weekend. the uk’s storage sites are about half full, said british gas owner centrica   26% lower than this time last year. it comes amid a battle over the future of centrica’s rough undersea storage facility with centrica seeking subsidies to fund a £2bn expansion plan.” the financial times reports: “uk ‘well placed’ to obtain enough gas this winter, says biggest network operator.” the daily telegraph also has a news feature headlined: “why britain is running out of gas. low temperatures have exposed the uk’s overreliance on a single energy source.” the same newspaper, which relentlessly campaigns against the transition away from a reliance on fossil fuels, has another article titled: “why the ‘eye watering’ cost of heat pumps doesn’t add up.” (see comment below.) meanwhile, the financial times and times report on comments made by ineos boss jim ratcliffe who argues that the uk’s chemicals industry is heading for “extinction” due to “high energy prices and carbon taxes” which are “forcing the closure of ineos’s synthetic ethanol plant at grangemouth”. the sunday times reports that a “cross party group of peers has called for the energy secretary ed miliband to introduce safeguards that prevent uk renewable energy companies from importing chinese components made by slave labour”. many outlets carry commentary reacting to the wildfires in los angeles. writing in the washington post, columnist jennifer rubin says: “the hellish fires tearing through the los angeles area are a preview of what’s to come if politicians, ideologues and big oil continue to ignore climate change…these sorts of horror shows will become routine if climate change deniers, led by the maga anti science crowd, get their way. put differently, the cost of refusing to listen to al gore   who has been sounding the climate change alarm for decades   and the scientific community is proving astronomically high.” she concludes: “in short, maga climate deniers and their fossil fuel backers cannot deal with the deadly and destructive effects of climate change, the massive costs it inflicts, and the untold human suffering in red and blue states alike. confronted with the very outcomes gore and others predicted, they resort to untruths and insults. enough. democrats, independents, sensible republicans, state and local officials, homeowners and the rest need to be blunt and consistent: climate denial destroys lives; dishonest narratives and a lack of empathy for victims are repellent. if ordinary americans harmed by republicans’ irrational policy positions are to both hold those responsible to account and change the political landscape to produce lifesaving policy changes, they need to make the connection between gop ideology and climate disasters.” in the guardian, tzeporah berman, chair of the fossil fuel non proliferation treaty, argues that “los angeles is on fire and big oil are the arsonists”. freelance writer alf young in the sunday times writes: “hotheads fuel the fires that are destroying our world. the los angeles inferno should help the world find consensus in fighting climate change. but the conduct of donald trump and elon musk suggests otherwise.” in the new york times, columnist david wallace wells says that “you don’t get disasters like the palisades fire without human failure”, adding: “global warming has already remodeled the risk landscape in california and indeed well beyond, making gigafire burns and urban firestorms like this one so much more likely. but so has housing policy, which has directed much more development into the path of fire across the vast tinderbox of the american west.” also in the new york times, climate scientist peter kalmus writes: “as a climate scientist, i knew it was time to leave los angeles.” in the los angeles times, carla hall, a member of the editorial board, says: “what happened this past week has upended all our assumptions about our truce with the wildness of los angeles. we were wrong when we figured that our infrastructure was sufficient to save us from this inferno.” an editorial in the independent begins: “with uncontrolled blazes still raging around los angeles, on the day it was confirmed that last year was the hottest in human history, it would be a good time for global leaders to finally take climate change seriously.” an editorial in the daily mirror concludes: “in the last two decades the number of wildfires in california has risen by more than 70%. the rise in temperatures and lack of rain experienced in the state has created the perfect environment for conflagrations. as american people survey the damage caused, they should also consider why they have elected donald trump, who has pledged to roll back measures aimed at limiting climate change, as their next president.” an editorial in the guardian says: “events in california reveal how political obstruction is deepening a climate crisis that needs urgent action to prevent it becoming an irreversible disaster…trump’s return to power won’t halt america’s path to decarbonisation, but it will slow it disastrously. an analysis by carbon brief estimated last march that his return could add 4bn tonnes of us carbon emissions by 2030 compared to democrat plans   inflicting $900bn in global climate damage…climate denialism ought to be confronted with bold policies; business must be held accountable for its role in this crisis; and voters need to see through the rightwing populist parties who prioritise profit over the planet. the next catastrophe isn’t a distant threat, it’s already in motion. only immediate and determined action can stop global heating from becoming humanity’s undoing.” an editorial in the observer also cites the same carbon brief analysis, adding: “with hollywood ablaze, ditching carbon targets would be an act of recklessness.” in the new yorker, columnist elizabeth kolbert examines the “insurance crisis” that will follow the la fires: “with damages from these still mostly uncontrolled blazes now estimated at up to $150bn, the future of california’s insurance market is looking a lot more rocky than resilient. as one la based insurance agent put it to the wall street journal, ‘we are in uncharted territory.’ what is often referred to as california’s ‘insurance crisis’ has been years in the making.” an editorial in the wall street journal also focuses on “california’s wildfire insurance catastrophe”, while bloomberg writer liam denning argues that “california’s wildfires are a $9bn threat to power companies”. elsewhere, the guardian quotes john vaillant, the author of fire weather, saying: “we have tweaked nature and pissed it off.” meanwhile, an editorial in the climate sceptic comment pages of the wall street journal sits under the heading: “california’s climate time for choosing. sacramento tilts at reducing temperatures while its cities burn from failure to adapt to a variable climate.” (another editorial in the wall street journal argues: “trump speaks truth to wind power. he says windfarms only work because of subsidies. he’s right.”) and, finally, the climate sceptic political editor of the sunday telegraph camilla tominey claims in a comment piece: “the left is no longer getting away with blaming climate change for wildfire disasters. possibly cutting the fire department might have had something to do with it.” an editorial in the financial times begins: “climate change is happening even faster than expected. in determining what happens next, china will play a pivotal role. it is now by far the largest greenhouse gas emitter. but it is far ahead, too, in the race for supremacy in green technology.” the editorial argues: “for western democracies, beijing’s green ascendance sparks two big concerns. one is that its price advantage   achieved with hefty state support   will drive western rivals out of business and leave governments dependent on a strategic competitor for key technology. the other is that ‘smart’ tech embedded in everything from evs to turbines could pose security risks. the debate around uk chancellor rachel reeves’ visit to beijing this weekend, over green energy and broader business links, highlights the dilemmas for europe and the us…given the risks of over dependency, it makes sense for the us and europe to continue developing and diversifying their own green supply chains. but trying to usurp china from behind protectionist walls is expensive and at odds with the urgency of climate change. china has a surplus of green tech, so urging beijing to share more intellectual property in exchange for market access is one approach. rather than blocking beijing’s green imports outright, national security concerns could be addressed by more robust tech inspections, ensuring local control over plants using chinese products, and assessing whether vulnerable ‘smart’ components can be isolated or removed.” relatedly   and in contrast   the times provides a platform for the views of richard dearlove, the former mi6 chief, who claims that the uk government’s “ideologically driven” push to reach net zero “hands power to beijing”. meanwhile, the uk’s right leaning newspapers continue their on going campaign   see carbon brief’s new analysis on newspaper editorials in 2024   against net zero and, in particular, energy secretary ed miliband. an editorial in the sun says: “the chancellor must…take an axe to the whole of whitehall. she could start by telling ed miliband his net zero plans will bankrupt the country.” the sun also clears space for the climate sceptic commentator ross clark to claim: “ed miliband’s net zero obsession is a threat not just to our economy but the survival of labour’s government.” the daily telegraph also platforms a net zero sceptic called tony lodge under the headline: “the uk faces a fate worse than blackout. to keep the lights on, industry and consumers will continue to pay ever higher prices for energy.” an article in the sunday telegraph, citing figures from the anti renewables lobby group the renewable energy foundation, claims: “miliband’s ‘reckless obsession’ with renewables leaves consumers with record bills.” it points to costs of £13 per household per year. the daily telegraph has also published a comment piece by conservative mp nick timothy who uses it to maintain his attacks on “an energy policy that puts security and economic competitiveness ahead of decarbonisation”. finally, the financial times weekend magazine sees henry mance interview the climate scientist stefan rahmstorf under the headline: “the utterly plausible case that climate change makes london much colder. for some climate scientists, global warming threatens britain with a more unexpected scenario.” converting forests into cropland “may be an ineffective climate adaptation strategy for improving nutrition” in nigeria, a new study suggests. the authors combine data on forest cover and climate variables with models and household survey data to examine the relationships between climate anomalies, forest loss from cropland expansion, and dietary outcomes in nigeria. they find that 25 31% of annual forest loss in nigeria is linked to climate variability. changes in forest cover “have a significant positive association with changes in child diet diversity”, while cropland expansion does not, they add. expert analysis direct to your inbox. get a round up of all the important articles and papers selected by carbon brief by email. find out more about our newsletters here. get a round up of all the important articles and papers selected by carbon brief by email. find out more about our newsletters here. published under a cc license. you are welcome to reproduce unadapted material in full for non commercial use, credited ‘carbon brief’ with a link to the article. please contact us for commercial use.

supported by the bulletin of the atomic scientists shifted the hands of the symbolic clock to 89 seconds to midnight, citing the threat of climate change, nuclear war and the misuse of artificial intelligence. by michael levenson hollywood’s silence reveals the contours of our escalating conflict with china; we’re digesting the war on tiktok, instead. by david wallace wells el cambio climático está provocando condiciones de sequía que están haciendo que el canal de panamá sea más difícil de operar y más caro de atravesar. by dennis m. hogan climate change is causing drought conditions that are making the panama canal harder to operate and more expensive to pass through. by dennis m. hogan plus, what you might be eating in 2025. by tracy mumford, robert jimison, ian stewart, jessica metzger and julie turkewitz wholesale coffee prices are trading near a 50 year high because of shortages related to extreme weather and increased global demand. by santul nerkar treaties ratified by the senate in 1978 established permanent neutrality, but some republicans regret that decision. by lisa friedman america must compete with china, but there’s also a complicated reality that both countries have to face. by thomas l. friedman china’s push to develop alternative proteins is not a threat to america. it’s good for the planet. by jacob dreyer martha schwartz partners works around the globe to take on pollution and warming of the planet. by shivani vora the financing plan, which calls for $300 billion per year in support for developing nations, was immediately assailed as inadequate by a string of delegates. by max bearak “esta es mi última cumbre del g20”, dijo el mandatario el lunes en la cumbre del grupo de los 20 en brasil. los líderes mundiales parecían estar dispuestos a seguir adelante sin él. by zolan kanno youngs as he made his final appearance at global gatherings, including at the group of 20 summit in brazil, president biden lobbied for his foreign policy goals even as leaders shifted attention away from him. by zolan kanno youngs china has now passed europe in its historical contribution to global warming. rich nations say the country should contribute more climate aid. by brad plumer and mira rojanasakul days ahead of the u.n.’s global negotiations on climate change, china and other developing countries said trade restrictions should be part of the talks. by max bearak times foreign correspondents describe what’s at stake for the world, including china, israel, ukraine, global trade and climate. food production is concentrated in too few countries, many of which face water shortages, the researchers said. by somini sengupta a surge in power use worldwide could make it harder for nations to slash emissions and keep global warming in check. by brad plumer the cutting edge of american battery technology is rusty. by peter coy much of the good news about green energy is coming out of one country. by david wallace wells if donald trump wins a second term, america would be at risk of falling even further behind china. by robinson meyer experts believe the outcome of the race for the white house could determine how ambitious china’s climate efforts will be. by lisa friedman john podesta is expected to push for china to set more ambitious greenhouse gas targets. by lisa friedman some vegetables cost more than they have in five years. top chinese officials have made a point of showing that they’re doing something about it. by tiffany may and claire fu analysts are seeing promising signs from the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases. by max bearak president biden’s landmark climate law could be repealed in a trump administration. economists said that would jeopardize $488 billion in american investments. by lisa friedman people all over the world are facing severe heat, floods and fire, aggravated by the use of fossil fuels. the year isn’t halfway done. by somini sengupta the struggle of the world’s largest source of renewable last year could have important implications for the fight against climate change. by manuela andreoni beijing’s dominance raises economic and security concerns, and tensions will be high as top climate diplomats meet this week. by somini sengupta responses to john mcwhorter’s lament that their ubiquity has rendered them meaningless. also: china and climate; kids’ reactions to news; debate conditions. he wants china to win the race to provide climate solutions and assume the global leadership that would come with it. by jacob dreyer development and groundwater pumping are causing land subsidence and heightening the risks of sea level rise. by delger erdenesanaa the term, which emerged in response to calls for "deglobalization," has been popping up more in trade and policy circles. by ephrat livni un arquitecto paisajista de china tiene una sorpresiva estrategia para ayudar a gestionar las crecidas de agua provocadas por tormentas potenciadas por el cambio climático. by richard schiffman a landscape architect in china has a surprising strategy to help manage surges of water from storms supercharged by climate change. by richard schiffman the social media movement is the latest sign that some of china’s young people are resisting the compulsion to strive. by claire fu and daisuke wakabayashi la economía china se beneficia del aumento de las ventas de productos manufacturados al exterior, que crea empleos. pero el impacto podría sentirse en las fuerzas laborales de europa y asia. by keith bradsher the departing climate envoy on what the world has and hasn’t achieved. by david wallace wells new data shed light on how difficult choices stemming from the war in ukraine changed energy policy. by peter coy a new economic report predicted a year of weak growth and said the world faced a decade of “wasted opportunity.” by alan rappeport el fondo monetario internacional y el banco mundial necesitan actualizarse para responder a las necesidades actuales de las naciones, según los expertos. by patricia cohen economists offer alternatives to financial safeguards created when the u.s. was the pre eminent superpower and climate change wasn’t on the agenda. by patricia cohen two  and three wheeled vehicles, used by billions of people, are moving away from fossil fuels to batteries faster than cars in countries that have made the energy transition a priority. by somini sengupta, abdi latif dahir, alex travelli and clifford krauss plus how new zealand’s maori wardens keep the peace. by justin porter thanks to the president’s signature legislation, solar energy manufacturing is booming in georgia, a key state in the 2024 election. but the industry now worries that it could be too much and too fast. by jonathan weisman and christian monterrosa it could deliver a jolt of ambition ahead of the global talks. by david gelles america and china are talking again. for the sake of our planet, let’s keep it that way. by jacob dreyer the climate agreement between the two countries is seen as a bright spot as president biden prepares to meet president xi jinping. by lisa friedman low lying tuvalu has reached a deal with its large pacific neighbor to address the challenge of rising oceans, but it is not planning to pack up and go. by natasha frost president biden’s 2022 climate act spurred big investments in u.s. battery factories, but it has not similarly boosted e.v. sales. by jim tankersley, ana swanson, jack ewing and coral davenport china is building as much clean energy capacity over four years as it had promised to build in 10 years, but continues to add coal fired power plants. by keith bradsher and lisa friedman the california governor is on a weeklong visit to china aimed at negotiating climate partnerships. by tiffany may and shawn hubler if you buy squid at a supermarket or what’s advertised as locally caught calamari in a restaurant, that food is part of a complicated story. by ian urbina un conflicto bélico en medio oriente podría complicar los esfuerzos por contener la inflación en un momento en que la producción mundial “cojea”. by alan rappeport and patricia cohen instead of receiving funds to address the climate crisis, african nations are borrowing money to rebuild at a cost up to eight times that of the rich world. by william ruto, moussa faki mahamat, akinwumi adesina and patrick verkooijen the world’s two biggest polluters were not invited to speak at a united nations meeting designed to highlight effective action against warming. by max bearak jason bordoff and meghan o’sullivan map out how decarbonization will transform the world economy and geopolitics. by ‘the ezra klein show’ while pledging to reduce carbon emissions, the country is greatly increasing its use of the fossil fuel to generate electricity. by keith bradsher from gas emissions to electric vehicles, here is how the world’s two biggest economies   and polluters   compare on taking steps to confront climate change. by lisa friedman john kerry, president biden’s climate envoy, emerges from talks in beijing without a new agreement. but just talking is progress, he said. by lisa friedman, chris buckley and keith bradsher across north america, europe and asia, hundreds of millions of people endured blistering conditions. the u.s. special envoy for climate change called it “a threat to all of humankind.” by alan yuhas the extreme heat wave choking china has become a talking point for john kerry, president biden’s climate envoy, in his meetings with officials in beijing. by vivian wang and lisa friedman john kerry, president biden’s climate envoy, is in beijing for three days of talks between the world’s largest emitters of greenhouse gas pollution. by lisa friedman john kerry travels to beijing for three days of talks, as the world’s two biggest economies, and two biggest polluters, try to cooperate on climate action. by lisa friedman john kerry, president biden’s climate envoy, was criticized by republicans as being too soft on china, the world’s biggest polluter. by lisa friedman janet l. yellen, the secretary of the treasury, said that the united states and china had a joint responsibility to back international climate finance funds to combat climate change. by the new york times janet yellen, the treasury secretary, said china, the largest emitter of greenhouse gases, can have “greater impact” tackling climate change by working with other nations. by alan rappeport, lisa friedman and keith bradsher a yearlong freeze in climate talks appears to be ending as the united states and china, the world’s biggest polluters, resume discussions. by lisa friedman plus, belarus’s president says wagner’s leader is in russia. by justin porter heavy rains and heat waves have affected parts of china and the asia pacific region this week. more of the same was in the forecast. by mike ives and olivia wang
supported by people all over the world are facing severe heat, floods and fire, aggravated by the use of fossil fuels. the year isn’t halfway done. by somini sengupta somini sengupta has covered the human toll of extreme heat from nearly every continent. poll workers. pilgrims. tourists on a hike. all have died in blistering heat in recent weeks around the world, a harrowing reminder of the global dangers of extreme weather as a heat wave bears down on nearly 100 million americans this week. dozens of cities in mexico broke heat records in may and june, killing more than 100 people. india has been under an extraordinarily long heat wave that killed several election workers, and this week, in the capital, delhi, even overnight temperatures remained in the mid 90s fahrenheit, or in the mid 30s celsius. greece is bracing for wildfires this week, right after back to back heat waves killed several tourists. in bamako, the capital of mali, hospitals reported more than 100 excess deaths on the first four days of april, the associated press reported. between may 2023 and may 2024, an estimated 6.3 billion people, or roughly 4 out of 5 people in the world, lived through at least a month of what in their areas were considered abnormally high temperatures, according to a recent analysis by climate central, a scientific nonprofit. the damage to human health, agriculture and the global economy is just beginning to be understood. extreme heat killed an estimated 489,000 people annually between 2000 and 2019, according to the world meteorological organization, making heat the deadliest of all extreme weather events. swiss re, the insurance industry giant, said in a report this week that the accumulating hazards of climate change could further drive the growing market for insurance against strikes and riots. “climate change may also drive food and water shortages and in turn civil unrest, and mass migration,” the report said. as for the world’s two rival economic powers, china and the united states, both face a common peril this summer. as one fifth of all americans were under an extreme heat alert this week, several areas in china’s north broke maximum temperature records. and earlier in the week the capital, beijing, was under a heat alert as temperatures reached 99 degrees fahrenheit (37 degrees celsius). the two countries are also the two biggest producers of greenhouse gases warming the planet. china’s current emissions are by far the highest in the world, and the united states’ cumulative emissions over the past 150 years of industrialization are the highest in the world.

growing a bigger, cleaner energy grid.