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Check your answers here later

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https://breakingnewsenglish.com/1809/180901-air-pollution.mp3

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Listen to the audio above and answer the following True/False Qs

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Listen to the audio above and answer the following True/False Qs

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1. Scientists say air pollution leads to big reductions in intelligence.     T / F
2. Scientists said pollution reduced language and arithmetic test scores.     T / F
3. Scientists conducted the research over a four-year period.     T / F
4. Around 20,000 teenagers took a test in the research.     T / F
5. About 91% of people live in areas with very polluted air.     T / F
6.Air pollution is the biggest cause of death worldwide.     T / F
7. Scientists said air pollution caused a loss of 10 years' education.     T / F
8. A researcher said there were plenty of shortcuts to solve this problem.    T / F

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https://breakingnewsenglish.com/1902/190214-polar-bear-invasion_ff.mp3

Listen to the story above and then answer the following True /False Qs

1. No fewer than 52 bears were spotted in a Russian town.     T / F

2. The town is on an island in the Arctic Ocean.     T / F

3. The town has called a "polar bear emergency".     T / F

4. A local said he hadn't since so many bears since 1963.     T / F

5. The bears are going into the town looking for warmth.     T / F

6. Food in bins is attracting the bears into the town.     T / F

7. Polar bears are not yet classed as a vulnerable species.     T / F

8. The World Wildlife Fund did not blame climate change for this situation.   T / F

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1. Find another interesting story on the environment.

The BBC and other news websites have lots of short video stories, for example, the one about Gt Yarmouth below.

You could try Youtube too!

2. Listen/watch and makes notes using the 5Ws and an H to summarise the text.

Who
What
Where
When
Why
How

3. Use these to write up to 5 True/False listening questions for your partner

4.  Swap your stories and try each others' questions when you are ready!

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Gwyn Evans has been unemployed for six months but a free course has helped him get a job earning up to £40,000.

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Create a piece about the environment inspired by something you have seen/heard/read today, or another environmental issue you feel strongly about.

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Create a piece about the environment inspired by something you have seen/heard/read today, or another environmental issue you feel strongly about.

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For your piece, decide

1.  The Topic - what it's about

and

2. T   A   P

Type of text e.g. letter, advert, etc...

Audience who will read it

Purpose why you are writing.  The main four are:

1. Instruct - e.g. how to be eco at home

2. Persuade e.g. convince people to stop littering

3. Describe - e.g. tell the story of your area's litter problem, maybe as a poem or story

4. Inform - e.g. share facts on pollution or environmental disasters

3.  Create a plan

4.  Draft your piece

5.  SPAG your work and help a partner with proofreading theirs.

6.  Write your final pieces and

7. Share!  Add a link or photo on Padlet below.

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Mark your work by reading back the scripts below

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Polar bears on an island in Russia are scaring people in a small town. At least 52 polar bears have been seen wandering around the town of Belushya Guba. The town is on the island of Novaya Zemlya, which is in the Arctic Ocean. The situation has become serious because the bears have chased people and entered homes and offices. Local officials have declared a "polar bear emergency". Local official Alexander Minayev said: "The people are scared. They are frightened to leave homes and their daily routines are broken. Parents are afraid to let their children go to school or kindergarten." A local said: "I have been [here] since 1983, but there have never been so many polar bears in the vicinity."

Officials say the polar bears are roaming into towns looking for food. They say that climate change is one reason for this. More sea ice is melting, which means the bears are moving into new areas to find food. They are attracted by the smell of food in bins outside people's homes. Town officials have asked for permission to kill the animals to reduce the danger to humans. However, Russia's environmental agency has refused this request. Polar bears are classed as a vulnerable species. The World Wildlife Fund says they are in danger because of the "ongoing and potential loss of their sea ice habitat resulting from climate change". It is helping to keep the polar bears away from the people of Belushya Guba.

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Scientists have revealed that air pollution may be responsible for a significant reduction in intelligence. Research conducted for the World Health Organization (WHO) in China showed that air pollution was responsible for notable falls in student test scores for languages and arithmetic. The Chinese study is called, "The impact of exposure to air pollution on cognitive performance". It was published in a journal called, "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences". The study took place over a period of four years. Researchers analyzed verbal and arithmetic tests taken by 20,000 people of all ages. They said: "Polluted air may impede cognitive ability as people become older."

Researchers say their study is a warning to the rest of the world, especially to those who live in cities. The WHO says over 91 per cent of the world population live in areas with toxic air. Air pollution is currently the fourth highest cause of deaths worldwide. The researchers discovered that the longer people were exposed to polluted air, the greater was the damage to their intelligence. They equated the impact of air pollution to losing a year's worth of education. For those aged over 60, this could be the equivalent of several years of lost education. Researcher Dr Xi Chen warned: "There is no shortcut to solve this issue. Governments really need to take concrete measures to reduce air pollution."

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What is the main purpose of each of the texts below?

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What is the main purpose of each of the texts below?

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Ask yourself - why was it written?  What did the writer want it to do?

Stretch - Do any of the texts have more than one prupose?

Text #1

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Some guidance - more texts below

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2019-07-02 07_15_56-The Oven Bird by Robert Frost _ Poetry Foundation

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Dear World Leaders,
Cc: Everyone else

There are moments in history that become turning points. In our view, 2015 will be such a moment. It is the most important year for global decision-making since the start of the new millennium.

We believe it's just possible that we could end 2015 with a new global compact -- an agreed pathway to a better, safer future for people and planet that will inspire all the citizens of the world. We can choose the path of sustainable development. Or we might not -- and regret it for generations to come. Which side of history will you be on?

There are millions of voices you can't afford to ignore -- the voices of the people you represent. They are voices of all ages from every corner of the planet - the voice of a young girl currently deprived an education... of a pregnant mother deprived healthcare... of young people deprived decent work... of a family from a minority group fearful of discrimination from corrupt officials... of farmers forced to migrate to cities as climate refugees... and of billions of other people. Their voices will roar ever louder against the inequality and injustice that keep people poor. They -- and all who stand with them -- are calling on you to come up with a grand new global contract for our one human family -- and then deliver on it together. The great news is that in 2015 you have a historic chance to do just that.

Two critical United Nations summits will take place this year. The first in September, where the world must agree new goals to eradicate extreme poverty, tackle inequality and ensure a more sustainable planet. The second is the climate summit in December where we must ensure the wellbeing of people today doesn't come at the expense of our children's futures.

Together with critical discussions on financing, these opportunities are the biggest of our lifetime. We know from past efforts against AIDS, malaria, preventable diseases and saving the ozone layer that when we come together, so much can be achieved. Yet, with just months to go before these summits, few leaders are playing the leadership roles we need. We see climate progress but not yet of the scale that is needed, and a set of goals that are hugely ambitious but will be meaningless without brave financing and implementation agreements led from the very top.

If this does not change, we fear you and your fellow leaders could be sleep-walking the world towards one of the greatest failures of recent history. It's not too late to rise to the occasion. We're asking you to help lead that change.

Let's be clear: the actions we take in 2015 will decide which way the world turns for decades to come. Please take the right path.

Aamir Khan, Actor & campaigner
Angelique Kidjo, Singer songwriter & activist
Annie Lennox, OBE, musician & activist
Ben Affleck, Actor, Filmmaker & Founder of Eastern Congo Initiative
Bill Gates, Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Bono, Lead singer of U2 & cofounder of ONE and (RED)
Dbanj, Musician & activist
Emeritus Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Gro Harlem Brundtland, Former Prime Minister, Norway
Hugh Jackman, Actor
Kid President - Brad Montague & Robby Novak
Prof. Jeffrey Sachs, Dir., Earth Institute & author of The Age of Sustainable Development
Jimmy Wales, Founder of Wikipedia
Jody Williams, 1997 Nobel Peace Laureate & Chair of Nobel Women's Initiative
José Padilha, Film Director
Leymah Gbowee, 2011 Nobel Peace Laureate
Malala Yousafzai, Co-Founder of the Malala Fund & 2014 Nobel Peace Laureate
Mary Robinson, President, Mary Robinson Foundation - Climate Justice
Matt Damon, Actor & Founder of Water.org
Melinda Gates, Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Mia Farrow, Actor & activist
Mo Ibrahim, Philanthropist & campaigner
Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace Laureate
Queen Rania Al Abdullah
Richard Branson, Founder of the Virgin Group
Ricken Patel, President and Executive Director of Avaaz
Shakira, Singer, songwriter, dancer
Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation
Sting, Musician, singer, songwriter, and activist
Ted Turner, Chairman, United Nations Foundation
Wagner Moura, Actor
Yvonne Chaka Chaka, President of the Princess of Africa Foundation

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Dear World Leaders, Cc: Everyone else There are moments in history that become turning points. In our view, 2015 will be such a moment. It is the most important year for global decision-making since the start of the new millennium.

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Look again - who do you think they were written for?

How can you tell from the language and layout?

# data[].attributes.body
Read the news article and answer the comprehension Qs.

When you think you have finished, share answers with a partner.

Answers are on page 3.

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Take a photo of any litter in your local area.

Write a paragraph for a blogpost describing what you've seen and why it's a problem.

Are there any solutions?  Write a second paragraph about what you think should be done.

Make sure each paragraph has

1. A Topic sentence
2. Details/information/evidence
3. Conclusion/ending

... to make a lovely paragraph sandwhich!

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Make a note of any unfamiliar words from today's activities.

Look them up and add them to your spelling book.

What strategies would best help you remember them?

A mnemonic?
Or working out the root/prefix/suffix?
Or Look Say Cover Write Check?

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Choose one of the targets below or create your own

# data[].attributes.subject
Choose one of the targets below or create your own

# data[].attributes.body
Key - Identify the T.A.P of four different texts

Stretch - Analyse how writers use different features for different purposes

Challenge - Use your understanding of the purpose of texts to read a news article for detail

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Key - Take part in a conversation about the environment and note down three points made by others accurately.

Stretch - Listen to two radio stories for detail and improve accuracy by 25%

Challenge -  Create a set of listening comprehension Qs for a partner based on a video/audio of your choice

# data[].attributes.body
Key

Stretch

Challenge

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Citarum River in Indonesia, considered to be the most polluted river in the world http://t.co/N3JwMBNn90

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Citarum River in Indonesia, considered to be the most polluted river in the world http://t.co/N3JwMBNn90

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Citarum River in Indonesia, considered to be the most polluted river in the world pic.twitter.com/N3JwMBNn90
— Powerful Pictures (@Powerful_Pics) August 9, 2013

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Citarum River in Indonesia, considered to be the most polluted river in the world http://t.co/N3JwMBNn90

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
Citarum River in Indonesia, considered to be the most polluted river in the world http://t.co/N3JwMBNn90

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Citarum River in Indonesia, considered to be the most polluted river in the world http://t.co/N3JwMBNn90

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
It is real and it is already happening. Human-caused climate change has already been proven to increase the risk of floods and extreme rainfall, heatwaves and wildfires with implications for humans, animals and the environment.

And things aren't looking good for the future either. With the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere projected to maintain an average 411 parts per million (ppm) throughout 2019, there is a long way to go before the ambitious goals of the Paris Agreement are met. To put this into context: atmospheric CO2 hovered around 280 ppm before the start of the Industrial Revolution in 1750 - the 46 per cent increase since then is the main cause of global warming. Reliable temperature records began in 1850 and our world is now about one degree Celsius hotter than in the "pre-industrial" period.

The Paris Agreement focuses on keeping the global temperature rise in this century to well below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels - ideally to 1.5 degrees Celsius - to avoid "severe, widespread and irreversible" climate change effects. But, if current trends continue, the world is likely to pass the 1.5 degrees Celsius mark between 2030 and 2052 unless it finds a way to reach net zero emissions.

Here's everything you need to know about where we are with the climate crisis.

1. Our summers and winters keep getting warmer

San Francisco, British Columbia and Delhi all reported all-time record June temperatures this year, suggesting heatwaves are beginning anew in the Northern Hemisphere this summer. In 2018, the UK experienced the hottest summer since 2006 and a scientific study into last year's data showed that such heatwaves are now 30 times more likely due to climate change.

And all of this is set to become much more common. There is a 12 per cent chance of average temperatures being as high as the UK experienced last year; this compares with a less than half a per cent chance that would be expected in a climate without human-caused climate change.

But the country is not only experiencing soaring temperatures in summer. Temperatures of 21.2 degrees Celsius were recorded in London's Kew Gardens on February 26, 2019. It was the warmest winter day the UK has ever experienced. Parts of the country were hotter than Malibu, Barcelona and Crete. Milder winters can have detrimental effects on hibernating mammals, migratory birds and flowering plants.

2. Indonesia will move its capital city as its current one is sinking

Sea levels are rising at the fastest rate in 3,000 years, an average three millimetres per year. The two major causes of sea level rise are thermal expansion - the ocean is warming and warmer water expands - and melting of glaciers and ice sheets that increases the flow of water. Antarctica and Greenland hold enough frozen water to raise global sea levels by about 65 metres if they were to melt completely. Even if this scenario is unlikely, these ice masses are already melting faster. And island nations and coastal regions are feeling the impact.

Earlier this year, Indonesia announced its plans to move the capital city away from Jakarta. Home to over ten million people, some parts of Jakarta are sinking as much as 25cm per year. Jakarta's precarious position is thanks to a combination of two factors - rising global sea levels and land subsidence as underground water supplies have been drained away to meet water needs.

This grim picture is repeated elsewhere too. In the Pacific, at least eight islands were swallowed by the sea in the last century, with Tuvalu, Kiribati and the Marshall Islands feared to be the next low-lying nations to be wiped off the map.

3. Average wildlife populations have dropped by 60 per cent in just over 40 years

The average size of vertebrate (mammals, fish, birds and reptiles) populations declined by 60 per cent between 1970 and 2014, according to the biennial Living Planet Report published by the Zoological Society of London and the WWF. That doesn't mean that total animal populations have declined by 60 per cent, however, as the report compares the relative decline of different animal populations. Imagine a population of ten rhinos where nine of them died; a 90 per cent population drop. Add that to a population of 1,000 sparrows where 100 of them died - a ten per cent per cent decrease. The average population decrease across these two groups would be 50 per cent even though the loss of individuals would be just 10.08 per cent.

Whatever way you stack the numbers, climate change is definitely a factor here. An international panel of scientists, backed by the UN, argues that climate change is playing an increasing role in driving species to extinction. It is thought to be the third biggest driver of biodiversity loss after changes in land and sea use and overexploitation of resources. Even under a two degrees Celsius warming scenario, five per cent of animal and plant species will be at risk from extinction. Coral reefs are particularly vulnerable to extreme warming events, their cover could be reduced to just one per cent of current levels at two degrees Celsius of warming.

4. There's more carbon dioxide in our atmosphere than any time in human history

In May, sensors at the Mauna Loa observatory in Hawaii - which has tracked Earth's atmospheric concentration of CO2 since the late 1950s - detected a CO2 concentration of 415.26 ppm. The last time Earth's atmosphere contained this much CO2 was more than three million years ago, when sea levels were several metres higher and trees grew at the South Pole. Scientists have warned that carbon dioxide levels higher than 450ppm are likely to lock in catastrophic and irreversible changes in the climate. Around half of the CO2 emitted since 1750 has been in the last 40 years.

5. We will consume all of earth's 2019 resources by July 29

Earth Overshoot Day is a symbolic date on which humanity's consumption for the year outstrips Earth's capacity to regenerate those resources that year. The calculated date is getting earlier each year. It is July 29 in 2019; in 1999 it was September 29. The cost of this overspending includes deforestation, soil erosion, overfishing, and CO2 build-up in the atmosphere, which leads to global warming, more severe droughts, wildfires and other extreme weather events.

6. Dengue fever could spread through much of southeastern US by 2050

Dengue is the world's fastest-growing mosquito-borne virus, currently killing some 10,000 people and affecting around 100 million per year. As global temperatures are rising, Aedes aegypti mosquitos that carry the disease could thrive in places that were previously unsuitable for them and benefit from shorter incubation periods. A recent study published in the scientific journal Nature warned that, in a warming world, dengue could spread to the US, higher altitudes in central Mexico, inland Australia and to large coastal cities in eastern China and Japan.

7. Two-thirds of extreme weather events in the last 20 years were influenced by humans

The number of floods and heavy rains has quadrupled since 1980 and doubled since 2004. Extreme temperatures, droughts and wildfires have also more than doubled in the last 40 years. While no extreme weather event is never down to a single cause, climate scientists are increasingly exploring the human fingerprints on floods, heatwaves, droughts and storms. Carbon Brief, a UK-based website covering climate science, gathered data from 230 studies into "extreme event attribution" and found that 68 per cent of all extreme weather events studied in the last 20 years were made more likely or more severe by human-caused climate change. Heatwaves account for 43 per cent of such events, droughts make up 17 per cent and heavy rainfall or floods account for 16 per cent.

8. Carbon emissions from energy use are rising at the fastest rate since 2011

Extreme weather is driving up demand for energy. Carbon emissions from global energy use jumped two per cent in 2018, according to BP's annual world energy study. This was the fastest growth in seven years and is roughly the carbon equivalent to increasing the number of passenger cars worldwide by a third. The unusual number of hot and cold days last year resulted in increased use of cooling and heating systems powered by natural gas and coal. The energy sector accounts for two-thirds of all carbon emissions.

9. 120,000 square kilometres of tropical forest were lost in 2018

The world's tropical forests are shrinking at a staggering rate, the equivalent of 30 football pitches per minute. Whilst some of this loss may be attributed to natural causes such as wildfires, forest areas are primarily cleared to make way for cattle or agricultural production such as palm oil and soybeans. Deforestation contributes to global carbon emissions because trees naturally capture and lock away carbon as they grow.

When forest areas are burnt, carbon that took decades to store is immediately released back into the atmosphere. Tropical deforestation is now responsible for 11 per cent of the world's CO2 emissions - if it were considered a country, tropical deforestation would be the third-largest emitter after China and the US.

10. The UK will likely miss its transport emissions targets

There are about 210,000 electric vehicles in the UK. Although there is a steady growth in demand, only two per cent of households own a hybrid and just one per cent have an all-electric car. The UK has set a net zero target for transport emissions meaning all cars and vans on its roads will have to be all-electric by 2050, but if the country is to stand any chance of achieving these ambitious plans, tens of millions of petrol and diesel cars will have to be replaced.

In a recent letter to the Committee on Climate Change, experts warned that, based on the latest battery technology, the UK will need to import almost as much cobalt as is consumed annually by European industry, three quarters of the world's lithium production, nearly the entire global production of neodymium, and at least half of the world's copper production. There are currently 31.5m cars on UK roads, covering more than 400 billion kilometres per year.

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# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The 10 facts that prove we're in a climate emergency

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It is real and it is already happening. Human-caused climate change has already been proven to increase the risk of floods and extreme rainfall, heatwaves and wildfires with implications for humans, animals and the environment. And things aren't looking good for the future either.

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Around the world, people are experiencing both the subtle and stark effects of climate change. Gradually shifting weather patterns, rising sea levels and more extreme weather events are all clear and devastating evidence of a rapidly changing climate.

The impacts of climate change affect every country on every continent. The increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events like hurricanes, wildfires and droughts threaten food supplies, drive people from their homes, separate families and jeopardise livelihoods. And all of these effects increase the risk of conflict, hunger and poverty.

Visible evidence and climbing numbers demonstrate that climate change is not a distant or imaginary threat, but rather a growing and undeniable reality.

Read on to learn more about how climate change triggers conflict, exacerbates hunger and poverty, and what Mercy Corps is doing to help communities become more resilient in the face of change.

What are the biggest effects of climate change?

Climate change places compounded stress on our environment, as well as our economic, social and political systems. Whether it comes in the form of unbearable heat waves, harsh winters or extreme weather events like Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico or Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe, climate change undermines development gains and leads to shortages in basic necessities.

In March 2019, Cyclone Idai torn through communities in southern Africa, wiping out homes, crops and important infrastructure like roads and bridges. Here, families in Zimbabwe attempt to recover their belongings from the wreckage. PHOTO: Ezra Millstein/Mercy Corps

Climate change threatens the cleanliness of our air, depletes our water sources and limits food supply. It disrupts livelihoods, forces families from their homes and pushes people into poverty.

Research suggests the planet has lost around one-third of its arable land over the past 40 years, in large part due to climate disasters and poor conservation, and every year more trees and soil are lost. More than 1.3 billion people live on deteriorating agricultural land, putting them at risk of depleted harvests that can lead to worsening hunger, poverty and displacement.

And natural disasters are becoming increasingly frequent and destructive. The number of people affected by natural disasters doubled from approximately 102 million in 2015 to 204 million in 2016. Fewer people were affected in 2017, but at a higher price, with the year's events costing a total of £263 billion and driving a 49 percent increase in economic losses over the previous decade. These damages can be nearly impossible for families living in poverty to overcome.

As climate events worsen, people are also threatened by more gradual changes, such as climbing temperatures and declining rainfall.

Droughts alone have affected more than 1 billion people in the last decade, and the damage hits the agriculture industry - the primary source of food and income for many people in developing countries - particularly hard. Between 2006 and 2016, more than 80 percent of drought damage was absorbed by agriculture, and 2017 data from the World Bank reported drought has wiped out enough produce to feed 81 million people every day for a year since 2001.

"We see climate as a magnifier, and in many cases a multiplier, of existing underlying causes of risk."
- Sarah Henly-Shepard, Mercy Corps Senior Advisor for Climate Change and Resilience

Climate change is also one of many root causes of conflict around the world: it leads to food shortages, threatens people's livelihoods, and displaces entire populations. Where institutions and governments are unable to manage the stress or absorb the shocks of a changing climate, threats to the stability of states and societies will only increase.

Who is most affected by climate change?

While everyone around the world feels the effects of climate change, the most vulnerable are people living in the world's poorest countries - like Haiti and Timor-Leste - and the world's 2.5 billion smallholder farmers, herders and fisheries who depend on the climate and natural resources for food and income.

Increasingly unpredictable weather patterns, shifting seasons, and natural disasters disproportionately threaten these populations, increasing their risk and their dependency on humanitarian aid.

Juliana, 24, and her brother Estanislau, 35, work their family's farm in Timor-Leste. The family relies largely on their crops of coffee, greens and vegetables to survive. PHOTO: Ezra Millstein/Mercy Corps

Every year, farmers in Niger must cope with the hunger gap - a period of time when the year's food stores have been depleted but the next harvest is not ready. Climate change has lengthened the dry season, and, with it, the time when families must go without food. Mercy Corps is working with farmers like these to grow hardier crops and help strengthen their families. PHOTO: Sean Sheridan for Mercy Corps

Three out of four people living in poverty rely on agriculture and natural resources to survive. For these people, the effects of climate change - shifting weather, limited water sources and increased competition for resources - are a real matter of life and death. Climate change has turned their lives into a desperate guessing game.

How does climate change increase conflict?

Longstanding tension between farmers and herders in Nigeria's "Middle Belt" region has recently been exacerbated by the effects of climate change. Thousands have been killed and displaced by a surge in violence and reprisal attacks, in large part over diminishing resources like land and water. PHOTO: Ezra Millstein/Mercy Corps

Conflict is the primary cause of poverty and suffering in the world today. And it's exacerbated by climate change.

By amplifying existing environmental, social, political and economic challenges, climate change increases the likelihood of competition and conflict over resources. It can also intensify existing conflicts and tensions.

Climate change contributes to instability that regularly drives people from their homes in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Here, 65-year-old Deodat (centre) waits with other internally-displaced people to receive emergency cash from Mercy Corps. PHOTO: Elizabeth Dalziel for Mercy Corps

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, shifts in the timing and magnitude of rainfall undermine food production and increase competition for remaining arable land, contributing to ethnic tensions and conflict.

And in places like central Nigeria and Karamoja, an area of land that straddles the border of Kenya and Uganda, where resource scarcity has been a long-standing challenge, climate change has further reduced pasture and water resources, increasing competition and resulting in violence, such as cattle raiding.

"Climate change is not a distant threat. It's a driver of fragility and conflict, and it's leading to a hungrier and more vulnerable world."
- Eliot Levine, Mercy Corps Deputy Director of Environment, Energy and Climate

But while climate change can lead to conflict, it can also provide an opportunity for collaboration. These challenges present a unique opportunity for collective action and cooperation in order to mitigate the impacts. For some communities, food, health and lives will depend on cooperation over conflict.

In Uganda, Mercy Corps is helping one South Sudanese refugee form a friendship without borders ▸

What's the relationship between hunger and climate change?

Floods and droughts brought on by climate change threaten food production and supply. As a result, the price of food increases, and access becomes more and more limited, putting many at higher risk of hunger.

Fati, 8, lives in an area of Niger where food insecurity driven by land degradation and unseasonable rainfall has been made worse by nearby conflict that has displaced people and disrupted market activity. "We fight every day to keep having something to eat," says Fati's mother, Hani. PHOTO: Ezra Millstein/Mercy Corps

Undernutrition is the largest health impact of climate change in the 21st century. The number of undernourished people in the world has been increasing since 2014, reaching nearly 821 million - a staggering 11 percent of the entire global population - in 2017. The vast majority live in developing countries - research shows hunger to be particularly on the rise in South America and almost every region in Africa. More than 30 percent of people in eastern Africa faced hunger in 2017.

Much of the increase is linked to the growing number of conflicts, which are often exacerbated by climate-related shocks. According to the 2019 Global Report on Food Crises, more than 113 million people in 53 countries were plunged into crisis levels of hunger in 2018; two-thirds of them were in places affected by conflict or insecurity. And climate and natural disasters alone triggered food crises for an additional 29 million people - mostly in Africa - with shocks such as drought leaving them in need of urgent assistance.

How does climate change create refugees?

Rising sea levels, extreme weather events and prolonged drought force millions of people to lose or move away from their homes every year in search of food, water, shelter or jobs.

More than 60 percent of all new displacements last year were the result of weather-related disasters, with a total of 17.2 million people around the world being driven from their homes by shocks like drought, hurricanes and landslides - almost 50,000 people every day.

Tens of thousands of families left Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria struck in September 2017. Because of climate change, Puerto Rico is at an increased risk for devastating storms like Maria, putting people, livelihoods and homes at risk. PHOTO: Jonathan Drake for Mercy Corps

Meanwhile, gradual changes brought on by deforestation, overgrazing and decreased rainfall slowly transform pastures to dust, destroy crops and kill livestock, effectively challenging the livelihoods of millions of farmers. These families are forced to leave their homes behind in search of basic necessities and new work.

And as sea levels continue to rise, those living near the ocean - about 40 percent of the world's population - will be left with no choice but to move inland.

Almost all of these displacements are occurring in developing countries, where people have fewer resources on hand to cope with progressive shifts or sudden disasters.

What's the forecast for the future and climate change?

The impacts of climate change continue to exceed previous scientific forecasts, worsening and multiplying at dramatic rates that will only be amplified in the years to come.

In Ale, Ethiopia, 40-year-old Manase collects water for her family from a hole she dug in the dry river bed. There is no water in the river during the dry season, so Manase must dig to find it. "The water problem in our village is very serious," she says. PHOTO: Ezra Millstein/Mercy Corps

Access to clean water is likely to become even more limited, and the risk of hunger and famine will become even greater than it is today. By 2050, climate change reportedly has the potential to increase the number of people at risk of hunger by as much as 20 percent. The majority of those at risk live in Africa.

Tens of millions of people are expected to be forced from their homes in the next decade as a result of climate change. This would be the biggest refugee crisis the world has ever seen.

Between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to kill an additional 250,000 people each year, from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhoea and heat stress, while continuing to jeopardise clean air, safe drinking water and sufficient food supply.

How is Mercy Corps helping?

In Mongolia, dry summers lead to harsh winters called the "dzud," where temperatures can plunge below zero degrees and kill vital grasslands. Mercy Corps is helping farmers like Enkh Erdene improve the productivity of their cattle and farming operations. PHOTO: Sean Sheridan for Mercy Corps

Around the world, in places as diverse as Puerto Rico, Ethiopia, Mongolia and Indonesia, Mercy Corps is helping people adapt to climate change.

We do this work by considering the challenges each community is facing, and then developing localised solutions that will make the biggest impact. In order to create real and lasting change, the social, economic and political realities underpinning climate change must be addressed, in addition to mitigating the effects on the ground.

Read more about our approach to climate-resilient development ▸

We focus on increasing the use of climate information in decision-making - improving individual, household and community capacity to cope with change. In some cases this means working with government and private sector technology companies to increase the ability to access the information they need to reduce their risks.

Farmer Mya Nwel, 57, waters her chili plants in Myanmar. Mercy Corps is providing technology to help her save water and fertilizer, as well as higher quality seeds. "Now our income has increased, and our harvests and crop quality has improved," she says. PHOTO: Mercy Corps/Ezra Millstein

We help farmers diversify their crops, learn new technologies, and redesign their farmland to maximise its productivity and protect the soil in the face of increasingly severe and frequent droughts. To support their work, we also help increase their access to banking services such as loans and savings, as well as insurance products to help protect their hard work.

REPORT: How investing in resilience helps fight drought ▸

Kaltuma, 30, looks out over a reclaimed water reservoir near her home, a pastoral community in Kenya, which has recently been hit by a years-long drought. Mercy Corps helped expand the water source to help families in the region survive the dry spell. PHOTO: Ezra Millstein/Mercy Corps

We train herders on how to keep their animals healthy in drier conditions, and boost market systems that can thrive in a changing climate.

How we're helping herders build resilience in rural Ethiopia ▸

We teach communities how to better manage their natural resources, and help them build stronger homes and reinforce river embankments to make them less vulnerable to natural disasters.

Sarita, 54, works in her village's sugarcane field in rural Nepal. Her indigenous community has repeatedly been displaced by flooding from the nearby river, but Mercy Corps helped them plant sugarcane along the river bank, which holds back flood waters and doubles as a source of income. Since the sugarcane was planted, the community has reclaimed 40 hectares of land. PHOTO: Ezra Millstein/Mercy Corps.

We also collaborate with local and national governments to improve their ability to manage and prepare for weather-related risks. We work with government to improve the way water and land is managed, build and manage plans for improving disaster response, and support the development of policies and plans that reduce vulnerability to climate change.

CASE STUDY: A governance approach to building climate resilience in Indonesia ▸

We see the shared experience of climate change as an opportunity for cooperation and collaboration, reducing the risk of conflict. For example, in Karamoja, we are facilitating resource-sharing agreements and promoting cooperation between communities to reduce conflict, providing a space for people living there to pursue new types of work such as cooking, cleaning or construction.

"Climate change increases the risk of conflict. It degrades land and leads to competition over precious natural resources. Over time, conflict can displace entire communities and lead to life-threatening hunger. But we can prevent it, if we proactively focus on these environmental risks and bring communities together to find solutions."
- Jenny Vaughan, Mercy Corps Director of Peace and Conflict

How you can help

Our work to help communities adapt and adjust to climate change challenges is only possible because of people like you. With your support, we are able to reach more families with assistance and help more people build stronger, more resilient and peaceful communities for tomorrow. Here's how you can help:

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Quick facts: How climate change affects people living in poverty

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Climate change is affecting every country on every continent. But for the people living in the world's poorest countries, the effects of climate change - limited water and food sources and increased competition for them - are a matter of life and death.

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