Climate Change

Severe Floods in Nigeria Magnify The Dire Humanitarian Crisis

By Oritro Karim
On Monday, the Alau dam in Maiduguri, Borno State, collapsed, causing flash floods to ravage neighbouring regions in Nigeria. This comes after weeks of torrential rain, which caused severe structural damage to the dam. The floods have changed the lives of thousands and caused high levels of damage to infrastructures. The impacts of the recent floods compound with Nigeria’s pre-existing humanitarian crisis, which includes armed conflict, widespread malnutrition, and a failing economy.

A UN 2.0 Needs Robust People’s Civil Society Participation

By Jesselina Rana and Mandeep Tiwana
A cascade of crises endangers our world. Wars conducted without rules, governance devoid of democratic principles, surge in discrimination against women and excluded groups, accelerating climate change, greed-induced environmental degradation and unconscionable economic deprivation in an age of excess are threatening to roll back decades of human progress made by the international community.

Rising Temperatures Threaten Our Oceans

By Oritro Karim
Human practices, such as unsustainable fishing, pollution, coastal development, and fossil fuel use have pushed the Earth’s oceans to their limits. This has resulted in warmer, more acidic waters. As global temperatures rise yearly due to climate change, oceans continue to see significant losses in biodiversity, rising sea levels, and environmental damage.

Mixed Fortunes for Africa’s Rapid Urbanization—Report

By Ignatius Banda
A new report says African cities will record rapid urbanization in the next decade, creating a mixed bag of socio-economic opportunities and challenges for the continent. This development is projected to result in wealthier consumer markets, better connected and more sophisticated commercial hubs, and larger bases for industrial production.

Small Glacial Lakes’ Mass Destruction in the Himalayan Community

By Tanka Dhakal
Small glacial lakes can cause destruction, which may impact the livelihoods of entire communities. Now this is the harsh reality that the community of Thame village in the Mt. Everest region of Nepal now faces as they rebuild after the August 16 disaster.

El Niño-Induced Water Crisis Drubbing Villagers in Zimbabwe

By Jeffrey Moyo
Side-by-side with fellow male villagers, Enia Tambo uses a white 25-liter plastic bucket to dig out mounds of sand in the Vhombozi River, in Mudzi district located in Zimbabwe’s Mashonaland East Province. The woman, in her late 50s, is digging to reach the water that is lying deep beneath the soil. 

Armed Conflict and Climate Crisis Threatens the Lives of Millions in Yemen

By Oritro Karim
Yemen is currently in the midst of a severe humanitarian crisis that has been exacerbated by a litany of environmental issues. Years of armed conflict, constant windstorms, flooding, mass displacement, cholera outbreaks, and acute food insecurity have all compounded into a severe issue for millions of Yemeni people. Currently, it is estimated by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that approximately 70 percent of Yemen’s population depends on humanitarian aid to survive.

Bangladesh Flash Floods ‘Tragic Reminder’ of Impact of Climate Disasters

By Oritro Karim
Since late August, severe flash floods and monsoons plaguing Bangladesh have affected nearly 6 million people. Bangladeshi officials have declared the floods to be the country’s worst climate disaster in recent memory. These recent floods follow the wake of Cyclone Remal, which devastated Bangladesh and West Bengal earlier this year.

Rural Survival: Guardians of Mother Earth Saving Mau, Revitalizing Native Lands

By Joyce Chimbi
The Great Rift Valley is part of an intra-continental ridge system that runs through Kenya from north to south. A breathtaking, diverse mix of natural beauty that includes dramatic escarpments, highland mountains, cliffs and gorges, lakes and savannas. It is also home to one of Africa’s greatest wildlife reserves—the Maasai Mara National Reserve.

Tackling Climate Change Will Be a Pyrrhic Victory If We Lose Sight of the Poor

By Marco Knowles
Last July, we were confronted with alarming statistics: 733 million people experienced hunger in 2023, equivalent to one in eleven people globally. In Africa it was even higher, with one in five people going hungry. Climate change is a significant driver of this crisis.

In Tonga the UN Secretary-General Declares a Global Climate Emergency

By Catherine Wilson
Three months ahead of the COP29 United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference, the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, has called for an emergency response from the international community as new data from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reveals a critical deterioration in the state of the climate.

Humanitarian Crisis As Floods, Prolonged Heavy Rains Impact Chad

By Oritro Karim
Since June of this year, Chad has been facing an extended period of heavy rainfall. Major flooding has triggered the onset of a significant humanitarian crisis, as all aspects of Chadian life, including health, food production, and community, have been negatively impacted. Additionally, response plans are severely compromised due to high levels of hostility taking place in neighboring nations.

Signs of Progress on Peace-Positive Climate Adaptation

By Ann-Sophie Böhle
The consequences of climate change are disproportionately impacting fragile and conflict-affected settings (FCS). Climate shocks can exacerbate security risks in FCS, conflict and instability compromise a region’s ability to adapt to climate change, leaving its population ever more vulnerable to future climate shocks.

Struggling at Sea: The Plight of Indian Fishworkers Amid Climate Change and Government Policies

By Aishwarya Bajpai
Climate change forces millions of India’s fishworkers to venture beyond the country's exclusive economic zone into the perilous high seas.

UN Efforts for a Resilient Iraq

By Ghulam Isaczai
Climate change and water scarcity pose significant threats to Iraq's stability, prosperity, and the well-being of its people. The environmental challenges facing the nation are complex and interconnected, requiring a comprehensive and coordinated response.

UN Secretary General Warns of ‘Brutal’ Impacts of Climate Change for Pacific Islands

By Naureen Hossain
UN General Secretary General António Guterres warned of the wide-ranging impacts of climate change on a visit to the Pacific islands of Samoa and Tonga. "(Climate change) spells disaster: wide-ranging and brutal impacts, coming far thicker and faster than we can adapt to them—destroying entire coastal communities,” said Guterres, speaking at a meeting of Pacific Island leaders in Tonga.

Climate Activists Target Culture Greenwashing

By Andrew Firmin
Civil society is working on all fronts to tackle the climate crisis. Activists are protesting in numbers to pressure governments and corporations to cut greenhouse gas emissions. They’re using non-violent direct action and high-profile stunts, paying a heavy price as numerous states criminalise climate protest.

Tackling the World’s Planetary Emergency

By Eoin Jackson and Nina Malekyazdi
The world is facing a triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. Climate change continues to pose an existential threat to humanity, with recent science estimating that we have possibly less than six years left to change course and rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions to have a chance of avoiding the worst of the climate crisis.

Conditions In Zimbabwe Worsen From El Niño Drought

By Oritro Karim
Half of Zimbabwe's crops were destroyed and about 7.6 million people are at risk of acute hunger as a result of the El Niño weather phenomenon.

In Samoa, Protecting the Ocean is Our Way of Life

By Cedric Schuster
In Samoa, we use a simple phrase to capture our way of life: Fa’asamoa. At the core of this concept is respect for others, devotion to family and a deep appreciation for the preservation of our natural resources. Importantly, Fa'asamoa has enabled us to sustainably fish our vibrant coral reefs for millennia, in a way that provides good health and prosperity for everyone in our communities.

UK: ‘Many in the Climate Justice Movement Are Finding Creative and Imaginative Ways to Protest’

By CIVICUS

 
CIVICUS speaks with Chris Garrard, co-founder and co-director of Culture Unstained, about the campaign to end fossil fuel sponsorship of cultural institutions, which oil companies use to try to present a positive public image.
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