Effects of Climate Change Stories

  • A climate high, a climate low, and our climate future

    September 25, 2023

    In these strange days of summer, we witnessed an extreme climate high and an extreme climate low. Both have significant implications for the planet’s health and for confronting the climate crisis moving forward.

    sun breaks through clouds over grasslands in Montana
  • What record-high ocean temperatures could mean for marine life and people

    August 29, 2023

    Our oceans are hotter than ever—literally. So how are record-warm seas affecting wildlife and the people who depend on them?

    Olive ridley turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) hatchlings walking towards sea at sunrise.
  • How the climate crisis could impact our future

    June 06, 2023

    A new report by an international body of scientists exposes the sheer gravity of the climate crisis and the increasingly severe climate impacts facing people and nature. To drive home the impacts on nature, WWF created a new version that incorporates plants and animals to highlight how climate change affects generations across all species on the planet.

    graphic showing global warming trends after 2020
  • How ocean warming is impacting sea stars

    WWF Magazine: Summer 2023
    They slide across the ocean floor using thousands of tiny tubelike projections attached to their arms.
    A red sea star on green vegetation
  • 5 ways WWF helped fight the climate crisis in 2022

    December 28, 2022

    Here are five ways that WWF helped to fight the climate crisis in 2022.

    Young person at New York climate march 2019
  • How wildlife help combat the climate crisis

    November 29, 2022

    Combatting climate change helps save wildlife populations around the globe, but the reverse is also true: Wildlife conservation plays an essential role in regulating our climate. By saving wildlife, we help save the planet, including ourselves.

    Sea otter closeup of face
  • COP27 wrap up: funding the end of the world and other thoughts

    November 23, 2022

    All international climate talks begin with high hopes, and this meeting of the United Nations Climate Change Conference—known as COP27—in particular was being held up as the moment for implementation and climate justice. Instead, it appears that COP27 will be remembered as the COP of unmet expectations.

    World flags in a tight row
  • What's happening at this year’s international climate talks

    November 07, 2022

    Ambitions and promises need to translate into action. At this COP, we must set the stage to begin the real work and challenges around decarbonization.

    A white flag against a blue sky displays the logo for COP27
  • Why we need the Inflation Reduction Act

    August 05, 2022

    More than $350 billion in historic investments would set the United States on a solid path towards reaching its climate goals.

    Solar panels stretch across a field as the sun sets
  • The newest climate report looks grim. Here’s why we still have hope.

    April 04, 2022

    Countries have a long way to go in reducing carbon emissions to curb the worst impacts of global warming. Fortunately, climate action works, and evidence of it can be seen in the elimination of several gigatons of emissions per year.

    Flooded area near the Port of Manaus, capital of the Amazonas state, during Negro river's record water level
  • New UN climate report predicts a dangerous future unless we act now

    February 28, 2022

    Increases in extreme weather events are surpassing the resilience of some human and natural systems. Here’s a look at some of the takeaways from the report—and what we can do to address the climate emergency.

    A small bit of water reflects the blue sky and clouds in a mostly dried up fishing pan
  • Cultivating resilience through nature

    January 25, 2022

    Laila Sanjida of Bangladesh, Pragya Motiwal of India, and Ruwanthi Jayasekara of Sri Lanka all experienced devastating floods in their home countries that inspired them to enter the field of flood management.

    Bamboo bundling sits on a green riverbank in Bangladesh
  • Protecting my Arctic home

    September 16, 2021

    Alexandria Abuzanuq Ivanoff, who is from Unalakleet, Alaska, a small hunting and fishing community on the northwest coast, discusses how warming waters and increased shipping could impact Indigenous peoples and wildlife. 

     

    Allie Ivanoff looks straight at the camera in a large parka in the snow
  • The climate crisis is here, but we can still turn the tide

    August 16, 2021

    My hope for the future is we look back and see the summer of 2021 as the turning point in the climate crisis—the moment when humanity took account of what we are doing and changed course.

    Two wind turbines on a mountain in Alaska with a setting sun and mountains in the background
  • UN report shows human activity has changed the planet forever

    August 09, 2021

    A new comprehensive report by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessing the latest state of global climate science reveals that global temperatures now hover around 1.1°C above preindustrial levels and our actions have already irreversibly altered the Earth.

    Firefighters fight a large fire burning in the hills.
  • How artificial watering holes help wildlife survive Mexico's changing climate

    July 21, 2021

    WWF is launching a new project to make wildlife like tapirs less vulnerable to drought during the dry season by installing and monitoring artificial water sources in Mexico’s Calakmul Biosphere Reserve through the Wildlife Adaptation Innovation Fund.

    A tapir walks on dead leaves through the forest
  • Fortune 500 companies are acting on the climate crisis—but is it enough?

    June 02, 2021

    Sixty percent of Fortune 500 companies have set goals to act on the climate crisis and address energy use, yet those ambitions vary dramatically—and are not happening at the speed or scale needed to stave off the worst impacts of a warming planet, according to a new WWF report.

    A man working at solar power station
  • Advocating for climate-conscious air travel

    WWF Magazine: Summer 2021
    As more and more people take to the skies, scientists project that without advances in airplane efficiency and industry-wide regulations, commercial aviation emissions could triple by 2050.
    Large airplane silhouette
  • How will climate change affect marine megafauna?

    WWF Magazine: Summer 2021
    In other words: As ocean temperatures rise and habitats change, will whales, sharks, rays, dolphins, turtles, and other sea creatures adapt or go extinct?
    Humpback whale below surface
  • Sprinkler system gives hope to flying foxes in Australia

    April 13, 2021

    With climate change driving more extreme heat events in Australia, species across the country are at heightened risk. Flying foxes, in particular, can suffer fatal heat stress when temperatures climb to over 108 degrees, an occurrence growing more and more common across the country. But a successful trial of a system of atmospheric cooling sprinklers has given hope to researchers working to protect this vulnerable species.

    Grey headed flying fox takes flight from a large leafy tree
  • 3 ways President Biden should act on the climate crisis

    April 13, 2021

    On Earth Day 2021, President Biden will host an international Leaders Climate Summit to rally world leaders around climate change. The goal is for countries to commit to strong measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while also strengthening their climate resilience plans. 

    The White House in Washington, DC
  • What are thermal emissions and how are they driving the climate crisis?

    February 09, 2021

    Thermal emissions are the greenhouse gases released from the processes of heating and cooling. Here are four things you need to know about them and what WWF is doing to tackle this challenge.

    Internal structure of a larger thermal power plant with metal pieces and a bright sky
  • Tatyana Minenko, polar bear patrol team leader

    January 15, 2021

    Every fall, the Ryrkaipiy polar bear patrol, with the support of WWF Russia, works to protect the community and prevent human-wildlife conflict. Tatyana Minenko has been leading the patrol team since 2006. That’s when the climate crisis increased conflict in her village.

    Closeup of a woman looking through binnoculars, wearing yellow gloves and a white hat, blurry background
  • Thinking Beyond:

    January 14, 2021

    If humans are unable to limit carbon pollution, Cincinnati’s average temperature could climb by as much as seven degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information. From a local grassroots movement to engagement at the national level, this city is taking the fight against the climate crisis into its own hands.

    Sunny Cincinnati skyline