NB: Brazil flood warnings were available for a week in advance:
“but the warning may not have reached all of those at risk, and the public may not have understood the severity of the impacts or known what actions to take in response to the forecasts.”
We are generally woefully unprepared for a world close to a permanent +1.5°C of heating.
Summer has not officially started yet and the world's largest economy, home of a large base of #ClimateBreakdown deniers is about to experience dangerously hot temperatures.
The United States is one of the largest per capita polluters in the world.
Their own citizens are suffering for the sake of #FossilFuel greed.
Few countries in the world have the kind of power to do something about #ClimateCrisis the way the US does. They must act NOW
EVs & hybrids are good for #climate. Ford's EV & hybrid sales are up, which is a good sign that many Americans care about mitigating the #climatecrisis.
May was the 28th month in a row to be the hottest on record.
Spring was also one of the 4 wettest on record, with ~50% more rain than an average spring.
Massive melon-sized hail could be a Texas record - The brick-sized chunks of ice surpass the DVD-sized hail that fell last week, By Matthew Cappucci
June 3, 2024
"...How is such large hail created?
The production of giant hail requires exceptional thunderstorm updrafts that can suspend a large hailstone as more layers of ice accrete on it. Once a stone grows too heavy for an updraft to keep in midair, it plummets to Earth at speeds often topping 100 mph.
In the case of Sunday’s hail, copious instability, or storm fuel, lead to explosive thunderstorm development. Warm, moist air probably ascended at speeds in excess of 110 mph for a time, lofting stones that weighed between one-half and three-quarters of a pound..."
At some point homeowners insurance is going to stop paying for this stuff crashing through your roof at 100mps, class.
Till climate change related issues move from the periphery to electoral interest
Climate change is all about saving humanity and our ecosystem. The significant human cost due to failure to address the climate change related challenges is understood very well without any ambiguity.
For every 0.1 degrees of warming above present levels, about 140 million more people will be exposed to dangerous heat.
The high impact of climate change that causes rising global temperatures and heatwaves, fires, storms and floods hurting people today have been extensively documented by climate scientists. We are reading it everyday. So the awareness is there though it may not be enough.
Unfortunately, our climate scientists feel hopeless when they see that the responses from the politicians and the big corporations are not in the best interest of the common man. And yet, our climate scientists still passionately continue to do their job with a conviction that policymakers cannot say that they were not made aware.
The root cause that this impending catastrophe does not motivate politicians (policymakers) is that it is not an election issue. If policymakers are motivated enough, the big corporations will also act more responsibly. Elections are typically held every four to five years across the world, but the planning and execution cycles to contain climate change impacts are more than that. According to Stephen Humphreys, the politicians and the well healed won't be affected, even if there is a cataclysmic 3C rise, till there is civil disobedience.
Now India is no exception. During the ongoing 2024 parliamentary elections, no political party explicitly talked about the devastating effects of climate crisis. Except the educated middle class and above, many of us do not fully understand the scientific phenomenon of climate change and its implications on our daily lives. This lack of awareness leads to climate change not influencing our voting decisions. But the issues related to its consequences, such as water scarcity, agriculture challenges, and economic impacts are being discussed aggressively.> Between 2016- 2021, climate extreme events caused damage to crops in over 36 million hectares, and a $3.75 billion loss for farmers in the country. If estimates from the report on ‘Loss and Damage Today’ by economist James Rising were to be believed, India lost 8% of its GDP in 2022.
Both the major political political parties, in India, have elaborately mentioned climate agenda in their election manifestos which are statement of intentions and not policy documents. However, Indian political parties tend to focus on immediate, emotive issues rather than long-term environmental concerns, which are not always seen as directly affecting voter in the short term. Environmental challenges and political priorities are consciously kept disconnected during election campaigns. No political party want to stir the hornet's best. Since meeting daily needs and economic growth are pressing concerns, the common people are prioritizing survival issues like employment, education, and healthcare over environmental policies.
The fate of climate change and politics is deeply intertwined. If climate issue fails to strike a strong resonance in the election campaigns across the globe, there is not much way forward.
I see very impressive, very complicated #graphs with curves in my TL these days. And again and again the outcry: Why don't people want to understand that!?
Quite simply: because even highly educated non-specialists can't interpret these graphs. Because you show no #context. Tip: Tell the #story behind it! Tell it so that EVERYONE understands it. (That's why I love news for children: they do it!) A survey showed: people want more #explications.1/2
"On a tiny island off Panama’s Caribbean coast, about 300 families are packing their belongings in preparation for a dramatic change. Generations of Gunas who have grown up on Gardi Sugdub in a life dedicated to the sea and tourism will trade that next week for the mainland’s solid ground."
One of the photos that grabbed my attention: The rows of identical concrete houses they'll be moving to.