Why is climate change a Red Cross and Red Crescent matter?
Leading scientists indicate that the global climate is changing. As a result extreme weather is increasing, average temperature is rising, patterns of dry and wet periods are shifting, and sea levels are rising. These effects impact on the vulnerability of people. Extreme weather Climate change is accompanied by an increase in extreme weather events. The trend can already be witnessed: frequency, intensity and unpredictability of extreme weather is increasing. • Increasing floods as a result of heavy rainfall, leading to also to landslides and contamination of water supplies; • More intense tropical storms, with higher wind speed and more rainfall; • Heat waves multiply, endangering especially the elderly and disabled. Temperatures and weather patterns Climate change is causing higher average temperatures in most places, and affects common patterns of dry and wet periods: • Prolonged droughts threaten food security and water availability; • Spread of diseases: disease-carrying mosquito
