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Global Warming Impacts In Every Corner of the United States
White House report calls for response to wide-reaching effects of climate change
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By Douglas Fischer on June 17, 2009
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Credit: U.S. Global Change Research Program
The Obama Administration on Tuesday released a report showing climate disruption is already leaving
deep imprints on every sector of the environment and that the consequences of these changes will grow
steadily worse in coming decades.
The 196-page report crisscrosses the United States and finds that global warming has touched every
corner: Heavier downpours, strengthened heat waves, altered river flows and extended growing
seasons.
These changes, the report notes, will place increasing stress on water, health, energy and transportation
systems and have, in several instances, already crossed tipping points to irreversible change.
"This report is a game-changer," said Administrator Jane Lubchenco of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration. "Much of the foot-dragging in addressing climate change is in the
perception that climate change is a ways down the road and only occurring in remote parts of the
planet.
"Climate change is happening now. It's happening in our own backyards, and ... it affects you and the
things you care about."
The report, Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States, is issued every decade by the federal
government's Climate Change Science Program. It is an attempt to consolidate and transcribe into
accessible language the latest climate science across a broad spectrum of disciplines and regions.
The latest version, more than a year in the making, reiterates findings that global warming is
unequivocal and primarily caused by humans from the burning of fossil fuels, the clearing of forests, and
the disruption of agricultural activities.
Its focus on such a broad swathe of everyday life and its release at a White House press conference by
President Obama's top science and climate advisors was seen by many on Tuesday as an attempt to rally
the U.S. public to action.
"It's not a document for scientists. It's not even a document for policymakers," said Katharine Hayhoe, a
geosciences professor at Texas Tech University and one of 28 report co-authors.
"It's a document for every individual citizen who wants to know why they should care about climate
change."
The report notes that reducing carbon dioxide emissions could lessen warming this century and beyond.
But it makes equally clear that climate-related changes are already being observed globally and that new
problems and challenges will develop no matter how radically emissions are reduced in the future.
For instance, since 1900 global average temperatures have risen 1.5ºF and are expected to rise another
2ºF given emissions already in the atmosphere but not yet reflected in slow-moving climate systems.
Yet temperatures are rising faster over land than over the ocean and more during the winter than any
other season. The result, according to scientists, is that winter temperatures across the Great Plains and
Midwest are now some 7º warmer than historical norms.
And that means a reduction in Great Lakes ice cover, which leads to more evaporation, lower water
levels, and consequent impacts on shipping, infrastructure, beaches and ecosystems.
Meanwhile the Caribbean and Southeast will see increases in wind, rain and storm surges. California and
the Southwest will see drier summers. All will see impacts to human health, water supply, agriculture
and other aspects of society, the report's authors concluded.
In Chicago, for instance, annual heat-related deaths per six million people could rise from less than 200
that the city saw in the mid-1970s to almost 700 one generation from now.
In the Northwest, the spring snow pack has already declined 25 percent over the past 40 to 70 years. It
will likely shrink another 40 percent by the 2040s, the report said, seriously stressing water supplies,
agricultural production and hydropower.
"It's so comprehensive," said Nancy Grimm, a co-author and professor of life sciences at Arizona State
University. "This is a right-angle turn from where we've been over the past eight years or so."
Green groups and government watchers praised the report and the Obama Administration's elevation of
it on Tuesday. A coalition of 16 science and environmental groups, including the Union of Concerned
Scientists, issued a joint statement praising the assessment, while others said it provided much-needed
context for sticky debates on Capitol Hill and in statehouses across the land.
"I have not seen the administration talking much about climate change impacts. I see them messaging
the climate change legislation in terms of green jobs and green energy and the need to reduce
emissions. But why? Why is it so urgent?" asked Rick Piltz, director of Climate Science Watch, a
nonpartisan, nonprofit policy watchdog. "This makes the case."
It is, in passages, a downright gloomy case, and several authors on Tuesday said the next report in 10
years hence will likely see a shift in emphasis from mitigation - or avoiding the problem - to adaptation,
or learning to live with warming. At least some degree of adaptation will be essential in the future, they
agreed, yet how to respond and how much it will cost remains very much unknown.
"It's clear to us already that no matter what we do today, we are going to see some degree of change in
the future," Hayhoe said. "We need to understand how we can help our economy, our society, our
natural environment .... adjust to coming change."
Still, on Tuesday, there was a sense of optimism. "We can do something about this," said Donald
Wuebbles, a co-author and professor of atmospheric science at the University of Illinois. "What we've
shown in this assessment is that we need to act soon. Sooner rather than later.
"That's an important part of the finding. We want to avoid the worst of the (impacts) we looked at in
these different projections."
Douglas Fischer is editor of The Daily Climate. This article originally appeared at The Daily Climate, the
climate change news source published by Environmental Health Sciences, a nonprofit media company.
Q: What is global warming?
A: Here's a simple definition of global warming. (And yes, it's really happening.) Over the past 50 years,
the average global temperature has increased at the fastest rate in recorded history. And experts see
the trend is accelerating: All but one of the 16 hottest years in NASA’s 134-year record have
occurred since 2000.
Climate change deniers have argued that there has been a “pause” or a “slowdown” in rising global
temperatures, but several recent studies, including a 2015 paper published in the journal Science, have
disproved this claim. And scientists say that unless we curb global-warming emissions, average U.S.
temperatures could increase by up to 10 degrees Fahrenheit over the next century.
Q: What causes global warming?
A: Global warming occurs when carbon dioxide (CO2) and other air pollutants and greenhouse gasses
collect in the atmosphere and absorb sunlight and solar radiation that have bounced off the earth’s
surface. Normally, this radiation would escape into space—but these pollutants, which can last for years
to centuries in the atmosphere, trap the heat and cause the planet to get hotter. That's what's known as
the greenhouse effect.
In the United States, the burning of fossil fuels to make electricity is the largest source of heat-trapping
pollution, producing about two billion tons of CO2 every year. Coal-burning power plants are by far the
biggest polluters. The country’s second-largest source of carbon pollution is the transportation sector,
which generates about 1.7 billion tons of CO2 emissions a year.
Curbing dangerous climate change requires very deep cuts in emissions, as well as the use of
alternatives to fossil fuels worldwide. The good news is that we’ve started a turnaround: CO2 emissions
in the United States actually decreased from 2005 to 2014, thanks in part to new, energy-efficient
technology and the use of cleaner fuels. And scientists continue to develop new ways to modernize
power plants, generate cleaner electricity, and burn less gasoline while we drive. The challenge is to be
sure these solutions are put to use and widely adopted.
NRDC article—global warming 101
Q: How is global warming linked to extreme weather?
A: Scientists agree that the earth’s rising temperatures are fueling longer and hotter heat waves, more
frequent droughts, heavier rainfall, and more powerful hurricanes. In 2015, for example, scientists said
that an ongoing drought in California—the state’s worst water shortage in 1,200 years—had been
intensified by 15 percent to 20 percent by global warming. They also said the odds of similar droughts
happening in the future had roughly doubled over the past century. And in 2016, the National
Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine announced that it’s now possible to confidently
attribute certain weather events, like some heat waves, directly to climate change.
The earth’s ocean temperatures are getting warmer, too—which means that tropical storms can pick up
more energy. So global warming could turn, say, a category 3 storm into a more dangerous category 4
storm. In fact, scientists have found that the frequency of North Atlantic hurricanes has increased since
the early 1980s, as well as the number of storms that reach categories 4 and 5. In 2005, Hurricane
Katrina—the costliest hurricane in U.S. history—struck New Orleans; the second-costliest, Hurricane
Sandy, hit the East Coast in 2012.
The impacts of global warming are being felt across the globe. Extreme heat waves have caused tens of
thousands of deaths around the world in recent years. And in an alarming sign of events to come,
Antarctica has been losing about 134 billion metric tons of ice per year since 2002. This rate could speed
up if we keep burning fossil fuels at our current pace, some experts say, causing sea levels to rise several
meters over the next 50 to 150 years.
Q: What are the other effects of global warming?
A: Each year, scientists learn more about the consequences of global warming, and many agree that
environmental, economic, and health consequences are likely to occur if current trends continue. Here’s
just a smattering of what we can look forward to:
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Melting glaciers, early snowmelt, and severe droughts will cause more dramatic water shortages
and increase the risk of wildfires in the American West.
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Rising sea levels will lead to coastal flooding on the Eastern Seaboard, especially in Florida, and
in other areas such as the Gulf of Mexico.
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Forests, farms, and cities will face troublesome new pests, heat waves, heavy downpours, and
increased flooding. All those factors will damage or destroy agriculture and fisheries.
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Disruption of habitats such as coral reefs and Alpine meadows could drive many plant and
animal species to extinction.
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Allergies, asthma, and infectious disease outbreaks will become more common due to increased
growth of pollen-producing ragweed, higher levels of air pollution, and the spread of conditions
favorable to pathogens and mosquitoes.
Q: Where does the United States stand in terms of global-warming contributors?
A: In recent years, China has taken the lead in global-warming pollution, producing about 28 percent of
all CO2 emissions. The United States comes in second. Despite making up just 4 percent of the world’s
population, we produce a whopping 16 percent of all global CO2 emissions—as much as the European
Union and India (third and fourth place) combined. And America is still number one, by far, in
cumulative emissions over the past 150 years. Our responsibility matters to other countries, and it
should matter to us, too.
Q: Is the United States doing anything to prevent global warming?
A: We’ve started. But in order to avoid the worst effects of climate change, we need to do a lot more—
together with other countries—to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and start using clean energy
instead.
In 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency pledged to reduce carbon pollution from our power
plants by nearly a third by 2030, relative to 2005 levels, through its Clean Power Plan. The U.S.
Department of Transportation has proposed carbon pollution and fuel economy standards that should
cut emissions through the 2020s. Chemicals that contribute to global warming, like hydrofluorocarbons
(used in air conditioners), are being phased out of production nationwide, and so are energy-inefficient
household items like incandescent lightbulbs. Also in 2015, solar and wind power provided more than 5
percent of the United States’ electricity for the first time, and construction started on the country’s first
offshore wind power project.
Globally, at the United Nations Conference on Climate Change in Paris, 195 countries—including the
United States—agreed to pollution-cutting provisions with a goal of preventing the average global
temperature from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial times. (Scientists say we
must stay below a two-degree increase to avoid catastrophic climate impacts.)
To help make the deal happen, the Obama administration pledged $3 billion to the Green Climate Fund,
an international organization dedicated to helping poor countries adopt cleaner energy technologies.
Under the terms of the Paris agreement, participating nations will meet every five years, starting in
2020, to revise their plans for cutting CO2 emissions. Beginning in 2023, they will also have to publicly
report their progress.
Q: Is global warming too big of a problem for me to help tackle?
A: Wondering how to stop global warming? Reduce your own carbon footprint by following a few easy
steps. Make conserving energy a part of your daily routine and your decisions as a consumer. When you
shop for new appliances like refrigerators, washers, and dryers, look for products with the government’s
Energy Star label; they meet a higher standard for energy efficiency than the minimum federal
requirements. When you buy a car, look for one with the highest gas mileage and lowest emissions. You
can also reduce your emissions by taking public transportation or carpooling when possible.
And while new federal and state standards are a step in the right direction, much more needs to be
done. Voice your support of climate-friendly and climate change preparedness policies, and tell your
representatives that transitioning from dirty fossil fuels to clean power should be a top priority—
because it’s vital to building healthy, more secure communities
U.S. climate report says global warming impact already severe
Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that the Koch brothers, Charles and David,
founded the Cato Institute. Charles Koch was a co-founder; his brother was not. This version has been
corrected.
By Darryl Fears May 6, 2014
The government’s newest national assessment of climate change declares that increased global
warming is affecting every part of the United States.
The report released Tuesday cites wide and severe impacts: more sea-level rise, flooding, storm surges,
precipitation and heat waves in the Northeast; frequent water shortages and hurricanes in the
Southeast and the Caribbean; and more drought and wildfires in the Southwest.
“For a long time, we have perceived climate change as an issue that’s distant, affecting just polar bears
or something that matters to our kids,” said Katharine Hayhoe, a Texas Tech University professor and a
co-author of the report. “This shows it’s not just in the future; it matters today. Many people are feeling
the effects.”
The federal climate assessment — the third since 2000 — brought together hundreds of experts in
academia and government to guide U.S. policy based on the best available climate science.
The authors of the more-than-800-page report said it aims to present “actionable science” and a road
map for local leaders and average citizens to mitigate carbon and other gas emissions that warm the
planet.
Climate Change in 15 charts
Read it.
U.S. Climate Report
Read it.
But the report ran immediately afoul of conservative critics who called it a political document, aimed at
giving President Obama a leg up on regulating major polluters such as power plants. In their opinion,
regulation costs jobs. Obama, who is increasingly focusing on climate change, spent part of the day
talking about the report with television meteorologists from across the country.
Echoing the findings of a recent global report by climate scientists at the Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change, U.S. scientists said that the climate is changing in the United States and that the
warming of the past 50 years was primarily caused by emissions of heat-trapping gases released by
humans.
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Burning coal for electricity, using gasoline to fuel vehicles, clear-cutting forests and engaging in certain
agricultural practices that remove carbon-trapping vegetation contribute to the problem, the
assessment said.
Climate gauges
Temperatures at sea, on land and on ice all point to a warming trend over the past century, according to
several indicators in the government's National Climate Assessment.
PLOTTED FROM MULTIPLE DATA SETS
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Sources: NOAA's "State of the Climate in 2012," National Snow and Ice Data Center. Graphic: Bonnie
Berkowitz and Patterson Clark - The Washington Post.
By the end of the century, temperatures could be up to 5 degrees higher, even if the nation acts
aggressively to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It could be up to 10 degrees hotter if emissions are
high.
The higher the temperature, the more dire the impact. Extreme weather in the United States caused by
climate change has increased in recent decades, the report said.
The decade starting in 2000 was the hottest on record, and 2012, the year Hurricane Sandy followed an
epic summer drought, was the hottest ever recorded in the nation’s history, the report said. U.S.
temperatures are 1.3 degrees to 1.9 degrees Fahrenheit higher now than they were in 1895, and most
of that increase — 80 percent — occurred over the past 44 years, the assessment says.
Alaska warmed twice as fast as the rest of the country in the past 60 years, leading to permafrost thaw
that is causing highways and even airport runways to sink.
The authors pointed to major concerns for the mid-Atlantic region, which includes the District, Maryland
and Virginia.
“As sea levels rise, the Chesapeake Bay region is expected to experience an increase in coastal flooding
and drowning of . . . wetlands” that protect against storm surge, the report said. That’s especially bad
because the lower bay region is at higher risk as a result of of sinking land. Water quality would decline
and low-oxygen “dead zones” would increase.
If there are higher greenhouse gas emissions, the majority of Maryland and Delaware, and parts of West
Virginia and New Jersey, are projected to have 60 extra days per year of temperatures topping 90
degrees starting around the middle of the century, the report said.
The effects sound alarming, but there are reasons to be optimistic that they can be mitigated, said David
Wolfe of Cornell University, a lead co-author of the report’s chapter on change in the Northeast.
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Business leaders are looking more toward investments in renewable energy, he said. This report, unlike
the first two, has a Web site with interactive tools that show Americans how to reduce climate impacts.
“It will be a living document, a resource for people,” he said. “It’s a place to start.”
Wolfe’s optimism wasn’t universally shared, even among some co-authors who said the document is a
consensus meant to reflect the diverse views of the more than 300 scientists who compiled it.
“It’s important to understand that this is a very, very, very conservative document, a consensus
document,” said Drew Harvell, a Cornell University professor and a co-author of the marine resources
chapter of the assessment. The truth is more dire, she said.
But Cato Institute researchers Paul C. “Chip” Knappenberger and Patrick J. Michaels issued a statement
calling the assessment “biased toward pessimism.” As a resource, it is meant to justify “federal
regulation aimed towards mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.” The Cato Institute is a libertarian think
tank co-founded by Charles Koch, one of two brothers whose multibillion-dollar fortune is partly derived
from fossil fuels, and who deny the effects of climate change.
Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) joined other conservatives in describing the report as part of a political agenda.
He said it seemed timed to coincide with a Senate debate about the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline from
Canada.
“With this report, the president is attempting to once again distract Americans from his unchecked
regulatory agenda that is costing our nation millions of job opportunities and our ability to be energyindependent,” said Inhofe, a longtime champion of the oil and gas industries.
The climate experts worked for several years, holding 70 workshops nationwide and revising the final
drafts to reflect thousands of public comments. They were guided by a 60-member panel called the
National Climate Assessment and Development Advisory Committee.
Climate change is leading to heat-stress events, forcing people with respiratory illnesses to turn to
devices such as inhalers or to hospitals, the federal assessment said. It is resulting in more severe
allergies and waterborne illnesses as pathogens increase. Minority communities are particularly
vulnerable.
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Extreme heat causes more deaths than other weather events, and that is expected to continue. Such
fatalities have decreased in recent years, but the assessment attributed that to better weather
forecasting.
Cato’s researchers took issue with that. Knappenberger and Michaels pointed to “peer-reviewed”
research in the journal Nature Climate Change showing that extreme heat effects “are often overplayed
while the impacts of adaptation to heat are underplayed.”
The risk of dying from extreme heat has declined for decades and by now “this should be rather
unsurprising as it has been demonstrated over and over again,” they said.
Increased heat doesn’t just affect humans. In warmer and more acidic oceans, particularly the Pacific,
the effects of climate change are deadly, Harvell said.
Marine scientists in the Pacific have traced the mass die-off of the sunflower star, a type of sea star, to
higher temperatures. In a laboratory, 10 sunflower stars were placed in water with a normal
temperature and another 10 in water only 1 degree warmer.
Within two days, half the sunflower stars in the warmer water were dead. “It’s going to get worse with
warming,” Harvell said.
Thirty percent of carbon released into the atmosphere ends up in the ocean, leading to acidification
that’s killing coral and shell life. Coral protects young fish from predators, and tiny shellfish, at the
bottom of the food chain, help feed entire ecosystems.
“A third of all coral is at the risk of extinction,” said Harvell, who has studied marine life for two decades
and holds a more negative view of the future than Wolfe and the Cato researchers.
“The Pacific Ocean is the place with the most extreme problem with acidification and salmon, mussels,
things heavily affected,” she said. “I’m not sure there are many mitigations to these impacts. There’s
hope, but there’s got to be some pretty radical changes to practices and policies.”
Is Global Warming Real?
Global warming is a hot topic these days. Debate over global warming has been going all around the
world. While few consider as it biggest challenge of all times, others consider it as a climate shift that
occurred in early 90’s and have fallen flat since then. Those who believe it have their own scientific
reasons to back their claims, others have their own reasons to disregard their theory. Understanding
global warming and its impact is important to meet the challenges pose by it.
If you want to start a lively conversation going the next time you are out among friends, ask if people
think global warming is real. It is a hot button issue for many and the arguments for and against global
warming can be confusing as they may appear to use the same data to prove different results. Here are
the top 5 arguments for and against global warming.
More from global warming:
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Various global warming facts
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Global warming effects
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35 easy ways to stop global warming
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Causes of global warming
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Steps to reduce global warming
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30 Myths vs. Facts on Global Warming

How global warming works?
Global Warming is Real
Scientists who argue for global warming being real base most of their evidence on the interpretation of
the change in the levels of gases in the atmosphere and the ocean. The actual warming of temperature
is something they say they can document, but the primary evidence is drawn from detecting what
precedes a temperature rise – the change, and effect of atmospheric gases on the Earth’s environment.

Argument 1 – Rise in Sea Level – Sea level is rising in many areas of the world. This is partially
attributed to the melting of ice caps and glaciers, but more to the changes in the gases
contained within the sea. In the past decade, the global mean sea levels have doubled
compared to the 20th century trend of 1.6 mm per year. The global sea levels rose about 6.7
inches in the last century.
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Argument 2 – Rise in Earth’s Average Temperature – Global temperature riseduring past
century and half continues. Tracking global atmospheric temperatures since the 1800s,
scientists point to a steady rise with a stronger period in the 70s, lull in the 90s and a return to
the rising pattern in the 2000s.

Argument 3 – Rise in Ocean Temperature – The rise in the number of vehicles and industries
has resulted in greenhouse gases getting trapped in the atmosphere. The increased heat in the
atmosphere have been absorbed by the oceans. There is over 50 years of documented
temperature records for the oceans that have recorded a steady rise in its temperature since
1969.

Argument 4 – Shrinking Glaciers – The glaciers on several mountain ranges, particularly in
Greenland and Antarctica, are decreasing in size due to reduction in gases that help to maintain
temperatures, and changes in the regions climate. Studies conducted by NASA’s Gravity
Recovery and Climate Experiment show Greenland lost 36 to 60 cubic miles of ice every year
between 2000 and 2006.

Argument 5 – Ocean Acidification – Acid level in ocean is increasing which is making the oceans
of the world more acidic. This is due to emission of more harmful gases in the atmosphere by
humans which is getting absorbed by the oceans. This is resulting in an increase of algae blooms
and mass fish deaths, as well as a change to the chemical composition of the water.
Global Warming isn’t Real
Many scientists make a strong case against global warming being real. They often look towards the same
evidence as those in favor of proving its existence, but draw different conclusions. They also look at
some evidence not considered in other arguments. These scientists hold to a strict definition of global
warming as being defined as a rise in atmospheric temperature, they do not consider the atmospheric
precursors as valid evidence.

Argument 1 – No Significant and Prolonged Temperature Changes Since 1997 –Scientists who
argue against global warming say global warming isn’t real because since the 90s there hasn’t
been a significant temperature change. The upswing in the temperature started from 1975,
continued till 1997 and the temperature has been flat since then which clearly states that there
isn’t any significant change in temperature in last 17 years.

Argument 2 – Not Enough Historical Data Available – There is no consensus about global
warming being real among scientists. Advocates also point towards the fact that a recent
gathering of 31,000 scientists in the field of environmental science couldn’t reach a consensus
on whether or not global warming is real. They believe that they don’t have long term historical
climate data or the data they have isn’t clear.

Argument 3 – Arctic Ice Increased by 50% Since 2012 – Arctic Ice increased in volume 50% in
2012 alone. Core measures of the Arctic Ice show that it has increased in volume since 2012,
which argues against global warming causing ice caps to melt. Few people have even predicted
that global warming would cause whole Arctic ice to melt which contradicts their version.

Argument 4 – Climate Models used are Proven to be Unreliable – The climate model
calculations used to predict the effect of global warming have been proven to be flawed which
means that the long term predictions that they have been making are meaningless. Some
scientists even argue that any increase in global temperatures could be a natural climate shift.

Argument 5 – Early Predictions About the Effects of Warming Have Been Proven Wrong –
Advocates who promote arguments against global warming being real, point towards all the
dates having come and gone where predictions were made about effects that never happened.
For example:- Al Gore predicted that all Arctic ice would be gone by 2013. But, on contrary
Arctic ice is up by 50% since 2012.
Which Argument to Believe?
The main part of the problem lies in the two groups using different definitions of how global warming
appears in the climate. This is one of the reasons that those advocating that global warming is real now
use the term “climate change,” since it is more reflective of the real issue. The other problem lies in
proof, and in studies that try to prove whether or not global warming is real. Contrary to public belief,
the results of all scientific studies aren’t conclusive.
To be considered proof of a hypothesis, the studies have to be able to be replicated by others and
produce the same results. With the global warming studies, analysis of decades of weather data is often
used. The first problem is that weather data from 100 years ago wasn’t kept to modern standards of
evidence. The second problem is that analysis is interpretation; you can really put any spin on it. This is
why some of the arguments for and against whether global warming is real can use the same data and
come to different conclusions.
The problem with Donald Trump's stance on global warming
President-elect Donald Trump walks past a crowd as he leaves the New York Times building following a
meeting, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016, in New York.
MARK LENNIHAN, AP
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Is there reason to doubt climate change because some of the nation’s hottest days happened in 1898, as
President-elect Donald Trump told the New York Times in an interview Tuesday?
In an exchange with Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. and staff about climate change on Tuesday
(Nov. 22), Trump said, “I have an open mind to it,” but later added, “You know the hottest day ever was
in 1890-something, 98. You know, you can make lots of cases for different views.”
Play VIDEO
President-elect Trump softens positions at New York Times meeting
However, it’s misleading to single out a weather event — such as a particularly hot day in 1898 — as
evidence for or against climate change, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration’s National Ocean Service (NOS). [The Reality of Climate Change: 10 Myths Busted]
“Weather is what you see outside on any particular day,” the NOS reports. “So, for example, it may be
75 degrees and sunny or it could be 20 degrees with heavy snow.”
In contrast, climate is an average of weather over time. “For example, you can expect snow in the
Northeast in January, or for it to be hot and humid in the Southeast in July,” the NOS said.
Extreme photos of pollution
Extreme values, such as record rainfall or record high and low temperatures, are known as climate
records because they stand out in a long period of time, the agency added.
In 1898, both Oregon and Maryland reached their highest temperatures on record: 119 degrees
Fahrenheit (66 degrees Celsius) in Oregon and 109 F (60.5 C) in Maryland, according to The Weather
Channel. But these record-hot temperatures are simply climate records in two states, not evidence for
widespread climate change, according to experts.
Rather, looking at the climate for an extended period of time gives researchers a better idea about the
direction the climate is heading. For instance, 2016 is expected to be the hottest year on record by a
significant margin, with world temperatures an average of 2.2 F (1.2 C) above preindustrial levels, the
World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said, as reported by Climate Central.
Moreover, 2011 to 2015 is the hottest five-year period on record, according to a separate WMO report
released this month, according to Climate Central. When 2016 officially becomes the hottest year on
record, 16 of the 17 hottest years will have happened since 2000, with the El Niño year of 1998 being
the only exception, Climate Central reported.
Ninety-seven percent of climate scientists agree that this rapid warming is not due to natural causes, but
due primarily to the result of human activity, according to NASA.
These increasing temperatures are “consistent with our expectations for the response of the climate
system to increases in greenhouse gases,” Jennifer Francis, a research professor in the Department of
Marine and Coastal Sciences at Rutgers University in New Jersey, told Live Science last week.
Stunning photos of climate change
During the interview with Trump, Sulzberger also conflated a single weather event — Hurricane Sandy,
which slammed the Caribbean and the East Coast of the United States in 2012 — with climate change,
saying, “Well, since we’re living on an island, sir, I want to thank you for having an open mind. We saw
what these storms are now doing, right? We’ve seen it personally. Straight up.”
However, there is debate about whether Hurricane Sandy was a consequence of climate change. In
general, scientists are hesitant to say that climate change caused the 2012 hurricane, but some say that
climate change contributed to it, Live Science reported in 2012.
For instance, warm oceans and moist air give strength to existing hurricanes, Kevin Trenberth, a
distinguished senior scientist in the Climate Analysis Section at the National Center for Atmospheric
Research, told Live Science.
Moreover, it’s possible that future flood-causing surges from hurricanes and other storms will be more
severe as climate change causes sea levels to rise, according to study published in October in the journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Original article on Live Science.
ASIA
Global warming to hit Asia hardest, warns new report on climate change
Flooding, famine and rising sea levels will put hundreds of millions at risk in one of the world's most
vulnerable regions
Asia will face new challenges over food security because of climate change. Photograph: Jiang
Kehong/AP
Robin McKie, science editor
Saturday 22 March 2014 17.21 EDTLast modified on Wednesday 26 March 2014 12.44 EDT
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People in coastal regions of Asia, particularly those living in cities, could face some of the worst effects
of global warming, climate experts will warn this week. Hundreds of millions of people are likely to lose
their homes as flooding, famine and rising sea levels sweep the region, one of the most vulnerable on
Earth to the impact of global warming, the UN states.
The report – Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability – makes it clear that for the
first half of this century countries such as the UK will avoid the worst impacts of climate change,
triggered by rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. By contrast, people living in developing
countries in low altitudes, particularly those along the coast of Asia, will suffer the most, especially those
living in crowded cities.
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A final draft of the report, seen by the Observer, will be debated by a panel of scientists set up by the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) this week at a meeting in Yokohama, Japan, and will
form a key part of the IPCC's fifth assessment report on global warming, whose other sections will be
published later this year.
According to the scientists who have written the draft report, hundreds of millions of people will be
affected by coastal flooding and land loss as global temperatures rise, ice caps melt and sea levels rise.
"The majority of it will be in east, south-east and south Asia. Some small island states are expected to
face very high impacts."
In addition, the report warns that cities also face particular problems. "Heat stress, extreme
precipitation, inland and coastal flooding, as well as drought and water scarcity, pose risks in urban
areas with risks amplified for those lacking essential infrastructure and services or living in exposed
areas." The report adds that this latter forecast is made with very high confidence.
In addition, climate change will slow down economic growth, further erode food security and trigger
new poverty traps, particularly "in urban areas and emerging hot spots of hunger," it is argued.
This combination of a high-risk region and the special vulnerability of cities make coastal Asian urban
centres likely flashpoints for future conflict and hardship as the planet warms up this century. Acrid
plumes of smoke – produced by forest fires triggered by drought and other factors –are already choking
cities across south-east Asia. In future, this problem is likely to get worse, say scientists.
The authors warn that some other climate change effects will be global. "Climate change throughout the
21st century will lead to increases in ill-health in many regions, as compared to a baseline without
climate change," the report states. "Examples include greater likelihood of injury, disease, and death
due to more intense heatwaves and fires; increased likelihood of under-nutrition resulting from
diminished food production in poor regions; and increased risks from food-borne and water-borne
disease."
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Other potential crises highlighted by the report include the likelihood that yields of major crops such as
wheat, rice and maize are likely to decline at rates of up to 2% a decade, at a time when demands for
these crops – triggered by world population increases – are likely to rise by 14%. At the same time, coral
reefs face devastating destruction triggered by increasing amounts of carbon dioxide dissolving in sea
water and acidifying Earth's oceans.
The report makes grim reading. "This comprehensive scientific assessment makes clear that climate
change is having a growing impact in the UK and around the world, and that the risks of catastrophic
consequences increase every day as more greenhouse gas pollution is pumped into the atmosphere. I
hope David Cameron will read this report and understand the huge dangers of delaying the bigger cuts
in emissions that are required to protect our children, grandchildren and future generations against this
devastating threat," said Bob Ward, policy and communications director at the Grantham Research
Institute on Climate Change
T The economic impact of climate change in Southeast Asia
0 0 17 1
by Laura Southgate , November 30, 2015
Southeast Asia is expected to face the worst effects of global warming in the next 30 to 50 years. This will
have a significant impact on regional economies and livelihoods.
According to recent predictions, increased global warming is expected to significantly impact labour
capacity and productivity in Southeast Asia by 2045. Rising temperatures will increase the number of
unsafe ‘heat stress’ days per year, which will significantly impact vulnerable workers, and have a
negative impact on regional economies.
Worst hit will be Singapore and Malaysia, which could experience decreases in productivity by up to 25
percent. Expected decreases in productivity will vary across the region, with Indonesia predicted at 21
percent, Cambodia and the Philippines at 16 percent, and Thailand and Vietnam at 12 percent.
Impact on Agriculture and Natural Resources
Furthermore, in 2009, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) released an
assessment report predicting that agriculture and natural resource management in Southeast Asia will
be seriously affected by the adverse impacts of climate change.
According to IFAD, climate extremes, such as floods, droughts and cyclones, can impact irrigation
systems, crop yields, soil degradation, loss of ecosystems, and water resources.
This will have an adverse impact on those economies relying on agriculture and natural resources. These
climate impacts will also severely threaten local livelihoods tied extensively to agricultural production.
In the same year, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) released a report on the economics of climate
change in Southeast Asia.
According to the ADB, Southeast Asia is particularly vulnerable to climate change, due to its heavily
populated coastlines, large agricultural sectors and large number of the population living under $2 a
day.
Within the region, the agriculture sector accounted for 43 percent of total employment in 2004, and
contributed to 11 percent of GDP in 2006. The region is also highly dependent on natural resources and
forestry, and these exports are likely to be adversely affected by extreme weather events.
The report predicted that rice yields were likely to decline by up to 50 percent on average by 2100
compared to 1990. Countries such as Vietnam and Thailand are expected to be the most affected by this
decline.
In addition, rising sea levels could result in the loss of about 12 percent of rice production.
Impact on Coastal Communities
In 2013, the World Bank issued a press release, warning that warmer weather could threaten livelihoods
in Southeast Asia. The release predicted the degradation of coral reefs, which is likely to diminish
tourism, reduce fish stocks and leave coastal communities more vulnerable to storms.
This press release was followed by a 2014 report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC), which warned that people living in coastal regions of Asia could face some of the worst
effects of global warming.
It is expected that millions of vulnerable people are likely to lose their homes due to flooding and
famine.
Enhanced Sustainable Development Practices
If Southeast Asia fails to engage in sustainable development practices and disaster risk management,
regional growth and poverty eradication will be severely impacted.
While many Southeast Asian countries have taken steps to tackle the impact of climate change, more
needs to be done to protect livelihoods and economies.
The region needs to employ a number of adaptation measures, encouraging low-carbon growth, raising
public awareness, funding additional climate change research, and enhancing policy planning.
In the long-term, this might help to mitigate the effects of climate change, and in return, help safeguard
regional economies and livelihoods.
Climate Change in Asia
Mrs Quach Thi Nhan is a subsistence farmer living in An Phu Commune, about
100km from Hanoi , the capital of Vietnam . National economic growth of
about 8% per year has contributed to many improvements in the life of her
family during the last 5 to 10 years. But she says the environment around her
is getting worse, and the weather is changing. She believes the cause of the
deteriorating environmental conditions and the changing weather to be the
local brick kilns, which have multiplied all around An Phu Commune in recent
years, to supply the booming suburban construction industry. These
hundreds of small kilns burn coal and rice husks, and produce (in addition to
bricks) smoke, dust, and ash. Mrs Nhan says that in recent years there are
more droughts, and more floods in An Phu. And the winters are colder, and
the summers are hotter. This last winter, several buffalo died in her village
because villagers didn't know how to care for them in the cold. Apart from
the family house, a buffalo can be a family's most valuable physical asset. This
spring farmers in An Phu had to plant their spring rice crop late, because of
the long cold winter.
The poor in the developing world – those who have contributed the least to
causing Climate Change – are the people who experience its effects most
severely. There are three broad reasons for this. First, the livelihoods of the
poor in the developing world are most directly dependent on agriculture,
which is dependent on climate. Second, a large proportion of developing
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countries already have warmer climates than developed countries, therefore
the effects of further warming are more extreme. Finally, the poor are the
least able to afford to pay for any inputs or resources which could help them
adapt their livelihoods to Climate Change.
>> go to top
The projected impacts of Climate Change are depicted below, (adapted from Stern, N. 2006):
>> go to top
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNFCCC, 2007 ) provides the following
analysis of Climate Change in Asia :
Asia has the highest population of any continent in the world, and partly as a consequence it faces some
of the most difficult environmental and socio-economic challenges. Land and ecosystems are already
being degraded, threatening to undermine food security. Water and air quality are deteriorating while
continued increases in consumption and associated waste have contributed to the exponential growth
in the region's existing environmental problems. The region is also highly subject to natural hazards,
such as the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, the 2005 Pakistan Earthquake, and the 2006 landslides in the
Philippines . There is evidence of prominent increases in the intensity and/or frequency of many
extreme weather events such as heat waves, tropical cyclones, prolonged dry spells, intense rainfall,
tornadoes, snow avalanches, thunderstorms, and severe dust storms in the region (Cruz et al . 2007).
Impacts of such disasters range from hunger and susceptibility to disease, to loss of income and
livelihoods, affecting human survival and well-being. For example the extreme weather events in China
during 2006 included major storms and flooding in the east and south, as well as heat and drought in
central, western and north-eastern regions, killing more that 2700 people and causing USD 20 billion in
damages.
Climate change will affect many sectors, including water resources, agriculture and food security,
ecosystems and biodiversity, human health and coastal zones (see Table below). Many environmental
and developmental problems in Asia will be exacerbated by climate change. Under climate change,
predicted rainfall increases over most of Asia, particularly during the summer monsoon, could increase
flood-prone areas in East Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia . In Central and South Asia , crop yields are
predicted to fall by up to 30 per cent, creating a very high risk of hunger in several countries. Global
warming is causing the melting of glaciers in the Himalayas. In the short term, this means increased risk
of flooding, erosion, mudslides and GLOF in Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and north India during the wet
season. Because the melting of snow coincides with the summer monsoon season, any intensification of
the monsoon and/or increase in melting is likely to contribute to flood disasters in Himalayan
catchments. In the longer term, global warming could lead to a rise in the snowline and disappearance
of many glaciers causing serious impacts on the populations relying on the 7 main rivers in Asia fed by
melt water from the Himalayas . Throughout Asia one billion people could face water shortage leading
to drought and land degradation by the 2050s (Christensen et al . 2007, Cruz et al . 2007).
In Asia, the principal impacts of climate change on health will be on epidemics of malaria, dengue, and
other vector-borne diseases (Martens et al . 1999). The global burden of climate change-attributable
diarrhoea and malnutrition are already the largest in the world in Southeast Asian countries including
Bangladesh , Bhutan, India, Maldives, Myanmar and Nepal in 2000. Illness and death are expected to
increase from diarrhoeal diseases due to drought and flooding, and are also expected from increased
amounts of cholera bacteria in coastal waters. An increase in the frequency and duration of severe heat
waves and humid conditions during the summer is likely to increase the risk of mortality and morbidity,
principally in the old and urban poor populations of temperate and tropical Asia (Epstein et al . 1995)
and high temperatures and poor urban air quality, such as in Chongqing, China and in Jakarta, Indonesia,
could contribute to widespread heat stress and smog induced illnesses in urban populations (Cruz et al .
2007).
>> go to top
Table. Impacts and Vulnerabilities to Climate Change in Asia
(Christensen et al . 2007 and Cruz et al . 2007).
Impacts
Sectoral Vulnerabilities
Adaptive Capacity
Temperature
– Warming above the global
mean in central Asia,
– the Tibetan Plateau, northern,
eastern and
– southern Asia. Warming similar
to the global
– mean in Southeast Asia.
Water
– Increasing water stress to over
a hundred million
– people due to decrease of
freshwater availability
– in Central, South, East and
Southeast Asia ,
– particularly in large river basins
such as
– Changjiang.
Adaptive capacity varies
between countries depending on
social structure, culture,
economic capacity, geography
and level of environmental
degradation.
– Fewer very cold days in East
Asia and South
–Asia.
Precipitation, snow and ice
– Increase in precipitation in
most of Asia.
– Decrease in precipitation in
central Asia in
– summer.
– Increase in the frequency of
intense precipitation
– events in parts of South Asia,
and in East Asia.
– Increase in the number and
severity of glacial
– melt-related floods, slope
destabilization
– followed by decrease in river
flows as glaciers
– disappear.
Agriculture and food security
– Decreases in crop yield for
many parts of Asia
– putting many millions of
people at risk from
– hunger.
– Increasing reduction in snow
and ice in
– Reduced soil moisture and
– Himalayan and Tibetan Plateau evapotranspiration
glaciers.
– may increase land degradation
and
Extreme Events
Increasing frequency and
Capacity is increasing in some
parts of Asia , for example the
success of early warning systems
for extreme weather events in
Bangladesh and the Philippines .
However, capacity is still
constrained due to poor
resource bases, inequalities in
income, weak institutions and
limited technology.
intensity of extreme events
particularly:
– droughts during the summer
months and El
– Niño events;'
– increase in extreme rainfall
and winds
– associated with tropical
cyclones in East Asia,
– Southeast Asia and South Asia;
– intense rainfall events causing
landslides and
– severe floods;
– heat waves/hot spells in
summer of longer
– duration, more intense and
more frequent,
– particularly in East Asia.
– desertification.
– Agriculture may expand in
productivity in northern
– areas.
Health
– Heat stress and changing
patterns in the
– occurrence of disease vectors
affecting health.
– Increases in endemic morbidity
and mortality due
– to diarrhoeal disease in south
and Southeast
– Asia.
– Increase in the abundance
and/or toxicity of
– cholera in south Asia.
Terrestrial Ecosystems
– Increased risk of extinction for
many species due
– to the synergistic effects of
climate change and
– habitat fragmentation.
– Northward shift in the extent
of boreal forest in
– north Asia , although likely
increase in frequency
– and extent of forest fires could
limit forest
– expansion.
Coastal Zones
– Tens of millions of people in
low-lying coastal
– areas of south and Southeast
Asia affected by
– sea level rise and an increase
in the intensity of
– tropical cyclones.
– Coastal inundation is likely to
seriously affect the
– aquaculture industry and
infrastructure
– particularly in heavilypopulated megadeltas.
– Stability of wetlands,
mangroves, and coral reefs
– increasingly threatened.
>> go to top
In recent years, enormous pressures have been put on Asia 's ecosystems to support the ever growing
demand for natural resources. The most affected areas are coastal and marine ecosystems, forests and
mountainous regions and the flora and fauna within them. Climate change will have a profound effect
on the future distribution, productivity, and health of forests throughout Asia, for example northeast
China may become deprived of conifer forest.17 Grassland productivity is expected to decline by as
much as 40 – 90 per cent for an increase in temperature of 2 – 3° C, combined with reduced
precipitation, in the semi-arid and arid regions of Asia.
Fisheries in both fresh water and sea water could be affected. Fisheries at higher elevations are likely to
be adversely affected by lower availability of oxygen due to a rise in surface air temperatures. In the
plains, the timing and amount of precipitation could also affect the migration of fish species from the
river to the floodplains for spawning, dispersal, and growth (FAO 2003). Sea level rise and changes in sea
water temperature, salinity, wind speed and direction, strength of upwelling, mixing layer thickness and
predator response to climate change have the potential to substantially alter fish breeding habitats and
food supply for fish and ultimately the abundance of fish populations in Asian waters with associated
effects on coastal economies (Cruz et al . 2007).
Projected sea level rise could flood the residence of millions of people living in the low lying areas of
South, Southeast and East Asia such as in Viet Nam, Bangladesh, India and China (Wassmann et al .
2004, Stern 2006, Cruz et al . 2007) and 30 percent of coral reefs could be lost in the next 10 years (Cruz
et al . 2007). The loss may be as high as 88 per cent (59 per cent of global) in the next 30 years
(Sheppard 2003; Wilkinson 2004).
>> go to top
>> go to top
Among Asian countries, Vietnam will be one of the most severely impacted by Climate Change, because
of its long coast which is vulnerable to storms and seas, and because of its large low-lying areas in the
southern Mekong Delta, which is the country's largest rice-producing area.
The International Centre for Environmental Management (ICEM, 2007) provides the following maps and
tables showing the impact of a one metre sea-level rise (SLR) in the Mekong Delta area.
>> go to top
>> go to top
ICEM also predicts:
• By 2100, 14,520 sq km or 4.4% of Vietnam 's land area will be permanently inundated
• More than 60% or 39 of the 64 provinces and six of Vietnam 's eight economic regions will be affected
• Close to 20% or 2,057 of 10,511 communes throughout the country will be inundated in part or in
whole
• 85% of total national SLR inundation will affect 12 provinces and cover 12,376 sq km in the Mekong
river delta
>> go to top
References
Christensen J H, Hewitson B, Busuioc A, Chen A, Gao X, Held I, Jones R, Kolli R K, Kwon W-T, Laprise R,
Magaña Rueda V, Mearns L, Menéndez C G, Räisänen J, Rinke A, Sarr A and Whetton P. 2007. Regional
Climate Projections. In: Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group
I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Solomon S, Qin
D, Manning M, Chen Z, Marquis M, Averyt K B, Tignor M and Miller H L (eds)]. Cambridge University
Press. Cambridge , United Kingdom and New York , NY , USA .
Cruz R V, Harasawa H, Lal M, Wu S, Anokhin Y, Punsalmaa B, Honda Y, Jafari M, Li C and Huu Ninh N.
2007. Asia . Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group
II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Parry M L,
Canziani O F, Palutikof J P, van der Linden P J and Hanson C E (eds). Cambridge University Press.
Cambridge , UK . pp. 469 – 506.
Epstein Y, Sohar E and Shapiro Y. 1995. Exceptional heatstroke: a preventable condition. Israel Journal of
Medical Science . 31: pp. 454 – 462.
FAO. 2003. World agriculture: towards 2015/2030 – An FAO Perspective, Bruinsma (ed.). FAO, Rome and
Earthscan. London
ICEM, 2007. Rapid Assessment of the Extent and Impact of Sea Level Rise in Vietnam , by Jeremy CarewReid
Martens P, Kovats R S, Nijhof S, de Vries P, Livermore M T J, Bradley D J, Cox J and McMichael A J. 1999.
Climate change and future populations at risk of malaria. Global Environmental Change . 9: pp. S89 –
S107.
Sheppard C R C. 2003. Predicted recurrences of mass coral mortality in the Indian Ocean . Nature . 425:
pp. 294 – 297.
Stern N. 2006. The Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change. HM Treasury , UK . Cambridge
University Press.
http://www.hmtreasury.gov.uk/independent_reviews/stern_review_economics_climate_change/sternreview_index.cf
m
UNFCCC, 2007. Climate Change: Impacts, Vulnerabilities, and Adaptation in Developing Countries.
Wassmann R, Nguyen Xuan Hien, Chu Thai Hoanh and To Phuc Tuong. 2004. Sea Level Rise Affecting the
Viet Namese Mekong Delta:
Water Elevation in the Flood Season and Implications for Rice Production, Climatic Change . 66(1-2): pp.
89 –107.
Wilkinson C. 2004. Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2004, V. 1. Australian Institute of Marine 5
Science. Townsville , Australia . 302pp.
AFRICA
Climate Change In Africa: African Global Warming Role Small But Crucial To Crisis Solution, Experts Say
BY MORGAN WINSOR @MORGANWINSOR ON 07/16/15 AT 8:18 AM
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Hundreds Of Protesters Show Solidarity In LA, Chicago Against Dakota Access Pipeline Construction
While Africa’s lack of modern energy and minimum carbon footprint have made it the slightest
contributor to the growing global warming crisis, the massive continent bears the brunt of the world’s
rising temperatures with damaging effects such as massive droughts, flooding, unreliable crop yield and
waning ecosystems. And yet, analysts have indicated that Africans represent just a small fraction of the
global voices partaking in the crucial conversation about climate change.
As more than 2,000 researchers from across the world met at Unesco headquarters in Paris last week
for the largest international scientific conference on global warming, only 10 percent of those
participants came from Africa, one of the world's worst-affected regions. And while Africa was
increasingly more involved in the worldwide discourse on the topic, many agreed that it’s still not
enough because scientific research and innovative solutions from African pioneers at the conference
would not translate into concrete action if they were not heard loud and clear by policy makers at the
much-awaited, upcoming global climate summit in December, experts said.
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“The African voice is there,” Edith Ofwona-Adera, a senior program specialist at Canada’s International
Development Research Center, who manages climate change projects in Africa and attended the
conference, said during a telephone interview. “But the voice of Africans needs to be at the table of the
higher-level global talks in terms of scientific evidence that’s being produced. Developing country
researchers, including those from Africa, need to be at the forefront.”
People protest in the halls of the venue of UN Climate Talks to demand that nations not sign a “death
sentence” for African nations by delaying climate action until 2020 during the UN Framework
Convention on Climate Change in Durban, South Africa, Dec. 9, 2011. Environmental scientists said
Africa was the lightest polluter and yet would suffer the worst effects of global warming. Photo:
Stephane De Sakutin/AFP/Getty Images
Pupils navigated a swamp on reed-rafts to get to school at Katuit primary in Chesesoi village on the
shores of the Kenyan rift valley's Lake Baringo, March 14, 2014. A few dozen students at the school were
cut-off by the swelling lake that rose to reclaim plains from which it had receded more than a decade
ago, according to residents, and were forced to travel through swamps rife with submerged vegetation,
hippo and crocodile to get to their weather-prone classrooms. Photo: TONY KARUMBA/AFP/Getty
Images
At nearly 12 million square miles, Africa covers 6 percent of Earth’s surface area and more than 20
percent of its total land space. The continent’s sheer enormity coupled with its vast natural resources
and unique weather patterns make it particularly vulnerable to the severe consequences of global
warming, which permeate every aspect of African life.
Rising sea levels and coastal storms have destroyed parts of Kenya, where some streets have turned to
virtual rivers. The coastal city of Mombasa is no stranger to flash floods, but this year the torrents were
stronger than usual, which environmental scientists have attributed to climate change. The floods
have contaminated drinking water storage, leading to shortages and disease. Severe droughts in sub-
Saharan Africa -- like the one that gripped East Africa in 2011, slashing crop yields and triggering food
shortages and a refugee crisis -- also have been linked to global warming.
The impacts of global warming vary for different regions around the world, underscoring the dire need
for Africa to play a larger role in framing policies on climate change -- especially when the continent is
the second-largest and second-most populous in the world, Ofwona-Adera said. “Africa is the mostaffected continent and the least capacity in global climate change. If we are to find common solutions,
then you need the voices of those who are affected and those who are highly affected.”
This photo taken on August 17, 2011, shows a Djiboutian woman with her donkeys looking for pastures
in the village of Garabtisan, which was hit by extreme drought. Photo: BDOURAZAK ALI/AFP/Getty
Images
In order for a global approach on climate change to work, experts said there must be local scientists on
the ground researching the effects across the African continent, developing innovative solutions and
presenting them to policy makers. A financial contribution from various sponsors, including the
International Development Research Center, was dedicated to recruiting and funding about 150
scientists from developing counties to attend last week’s meeting in Paris, which was the largest
international science conference ahead of December's, according to Benoit Martimort-Asso, an
organizer of the event. But that number of scientists was small compared to its international
community, and Africa needs financing to foster more homegrown scientific minds.
"We are facing a global issue and we need the mobilization of every scientist," Martimort-Asso said in an
email last week. "To have a better global model to understand climate change at the global level, Africa
is a key place and the international science community needs local data to upgrade that model."
African nations often lack the infrastructure, equipment, material and teachers necessary to improve on
higher education. Enrollment rates for higher education in sub-Saharan Africa were by far the lowest in
the world, and individuals who study abroad often never return, a Harvard University studyfound. An
estimated 30 percent of the region’s university-trained professionals live outside Africa, according to the
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
“We’ve got this enormous brain drain just at the time we need their expertise on the ground,” said Tom
Smith, founding director of the Center for Tropical Research at the University of California, Los Angeles.
“We build centers of excellence that focus on the developing world but we base them in New York City
or Paris. That’s just a poor business model. What we need are centers of excellence that can build
capacity in these countries.”
Students sit during lecture at Government Secondary School, Ikoyi in Lagos, Nigeria's commercial capital
on November 1, 2012. Nigeria is one of several African nations that has suffered from brain drain, also
known as human capital flight. Photo: PIUS UTOMI EKPEI/AFP/Getty Images
However, some oversight across the continent does exist at a regional level when it comes
to international policy framework on global warming. An alliance called the African Group of Negotiators
was charged with representing each of Africa’s 54 independent nations – which all have varying needs
and characteristics -- with a common and unified front during the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change. An African national government gets elected to chair the group every
two years and receives some technical support from numerous organizations.
“African governments have one voice in negotiations at the [Climate Change Conference of Parties],”
said Shem Wandiga, the director of the Institute for Climate Change and Adaptation at the University of
Nairobi in Kenya. “African voices have been very loud since [the 19th Conference of Parties]. But there is
room for improvement.”
African leaders have hoped that by speaking with one voice during the 194-nation process on climate
change, their position would be loud and clear. The region has collectively asked for compensation for
Africa because of the damaging effects it suffers due to global warming primarily caused by richer
nations, such as the United States. Although African countries are among the world's lightest polluters,
some experts agreed the region still has its responsibilities and cannot follow in the carbon-heavy
footsteps of developed countries.
“If African cities develop in the same carbon-intensive way that developed cities have, the climate
change outlook of our planet could be devastating,” said Kobie Brand, regional director of Local
Governments of Sustainability – Africa.
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