Effects of Climate Change Stories

  • A year after the Tubbs fire ravaged California, activist Devyn Friedfel raises the alarm on climate change

    September 12, 2019

    Devyn Friedfel is working to help communities in California prepare for a future that will see more fires and droughts. He knows that stopping climate change isn’t an option, so it’s important that mitigate and adapt to its effects.

    A year after the Tubbs fire ravaged California, activist Devyn Friedfel raises the alarm on climate change
  • From the front lines of climate change, Arctic Youth Ambassador Gabriel Stenek shares one village’s story

    September 03, 2019

    Located on a tiny island in the Chukchi Sea, just north of the Bering Strait and 20 miles below the Arctic Circle, Shishmaref has struggled for decades with coastal erosion and flooding attributed to climate change. Arctic Youth Ambassador, Gabriel Stenek share's its story.

    Portrait of WWF Arctic Youth Ambassador.
  • Miami Rising Up


    Miami is often dubbed the "ground zero" for climate change. But as sea levels rise, so, too, does a generation of leaders showing the world what climate action looks like and fighting for the only home we know.

    Miami skyline from the water
  • Four threats to manatees and mangroves in Florida – and how we can save them

    Manatees love mangroves; they use them for food and a quiet place to rest and raise their young. But these two key features of the Florida coasts are in trouble.

    Manatee beneath a river surface
  • Hot spot

    WWF Magazine: Fall 2019
    As global temperatures shoot up, the vast storehouse of ice in Antarctica is at risk. A team tags whales, shares data, and works together to protect a changing ecosystem at the bottom of the world.
    Humpback breaching
  • What’s the difference between climate change mitigation and adaptation?

    Climate change adaptation and mitigation are both equally important and time-sensitive in today's climate crisis. We must do both.

    flooded stairs WW2124571 Sean Rayford/Stringer
  • Edge of the World

    WWF Magazine: Summer 2019
    Ice is a defining factor in Ittoqqortoormiit, a village of 350 on the coast of Greenland. But the ice is changing and the community now works to protect itself from the impacts of climate change.
    James Morgan / WWF-US
  • How climate change could impact a beloved spice

    WWF Magazine: Spring 2019
    Vanilla has been cultivated for hundreds of years. But with most of the crop grown in places prone to extreme weather events, the market may become increasingly unpredictable as the climate changes.
    Vanilla farmers, Ambosihasina, Madagascar
  • WWF and WCS share a new tool for studying—and saving—coral reefs

    January 08, 2019

    Coral reefs are as vulnerable as they are beautiful; climate change is warming ocean waters and devastating reefs globally. Monitoring the health and resilience of coral reefs is a lengthy and slow process. That’s why WWF is turning to an innovative tool that speeds up the collection of valuable coral reef data and allows scientists to share new information sooner.

    Staghorn Coral Antonio Busiello WW1105624
  • Why global leaders must address climate change now

    December 04, 2018

    The United Nations climate talks are the most important round of negotiations since the Paris Agreement was reached three years ago. There is still time for us to prevent the worst impacts of climate change and create a safer future, but that window is closing fast.

    Climate change leads to the loss of sea ice in the Arctic, which leads to an increase in sea level rise.
  • WWF's Elisabeth Kruger on polar bears, climate change, and indigenous communities

    WWF Magazine: Winter 2018
    Kruger leads WWF’s efforts to help polar bears and other Arctic marine mammals coexist alongside people in an increasingly warmer and ice-free Arctic.
    Portrait of Elisabeth Kruger
  • New survey finds stable snow leopard population in Russia

    October 04, 2018

    Last winter, a WWF census found a total of 61 snow leopards in Russia’s Altai-Sayan Ecoregion, a remote landscape where high, snowy mountain ranges offer a last refuge for this rare feline. Snow leopard numbers have been relatively steady in Russia since WWF and partners first began monitoring them three years ago. But with fewer than 7,000 estimated to live in the wild, they remain endangered.

    snow leopard camera trap
  • Seven unsung ecosystems we need to survive

    They may not be household names, but these ecosystems are vital to the health of our planet. They support an incredible range of plants and animals, as well as millions of people and their communities, and play a critical role in fighting climate change.

    zebra mirror Greg Armfield WW1113071
  • 7 ways you can help save the ocean

    June 06, 2018

    Covering more than 70% of our planet’s surface, the ocean contains the largest diversity of life on Earth and affects everything from global weather patterns to food systems. Learn what steps you can take help protect the ocean. 

    ecuador ocean WW288186 Antonio Busiello
  • Red pandas, climate change, and the fight to save forests

    April 10, 2018

    While residents of Sikkim honor the endangered red panda, they also understand the species is under a growing threat. Climate change is impacting species across the globe and red pandas—with less than 10,000 left in the wild—are not immune.

    red panda in tree, Sikkim, India
  • 9 reasons for hope in the face of climate change

    March 20, 2018

    At WWF, we’re engaging with millions of Americans, leading businesses, and government leaders to tackle climate change. Here are nine reasons why we’re hopeful in the face of this threat.

    solar panels in Washington state
  • Climate change could imperil half of plant and animal species in the world’s most naturally rich areas

    March 13, 2018

    Up to half of plant and animal species in the world’s most naturally rich areas—including the Amazon and the Galápagos—could face extinction by the turn of the century due to climate change if carbon emissions continue to rise unchecked.

    Panda at top of a tree
  • 3 things you should know about January’s record-low Arctic sea ice

    February 22, 2018

    January 2018 brought record-low sea ice cover to the Arctic, according to new data released by the US government. That’s bad news for the ocean, wildlife, and local communities that rely on both for survival.

    Ice melting in Bering Strait
  • Artificial nests bring new hope for vulnerable shy albatross

    February 15, 2018

    Dozens of fluffy shy albatross chicks sitting on artificial nests are a promising sign for scientists behind an innovative plan to give the vulnerable species a boost to help counteract the negative impacts of climate change.

    A pair of shy albatross in a nest
  • The Green Climate Fund and WWF: Standing together against climate change

    WWF Magazine: Spring 2018
    The Green Climate Fund, a multilateral fund dedicated to helping developing countries respond to climate change, continues this tradition of cooperation for the common good.
    Waterfall in Eastern Bhutan
  • Fast Forward: Protecting snow leopards and adapting to climate change in Asia's High Mountains

    WWF Magazine: Spring 2018
    Our “At the Top of the World” feature introduced a rural herding community in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan as they worked to protect snow leopards and adapt to climate change. Here's where we are now.
    Mountains in Kyrgyzstan
  • How climate change is turning green turtle populations female in the northern Great Barrier Reef

    January 09, 2018

    Because incubation temperature of turtle eggs determines the animal’s sex, a warmer nest results in more females. Increasing temperatures in Queensland’s north, linked to climate change, have led to virtually no male northern green sea turtles being born.

    green turtle Great Barrier Reef
  • Madagascar’s ‘solar grandmothers’ lead a renewable revolution

    Remeza, Kingeline, Yollande and Hanitra are all part of WWF’s access to sustainable energy program managed in collaboration with India’s Barefoot College. The four women joined women from several other countries for a six-month training in India in applied solar technology. Most women joining the program leave their country, sometimes their native regions or villages, for the first time in their lives.

    Women at training at India's Barefoot College
  • Taking up the mantle of climate leadership

    WWF Magazine: Winter 2017
    The We Are Still In declaration demonstrated to world leaders that America’s cities, states, tribes, businesses, colleges, and universities will work to meet the commitments of the Paris Agreement.
    wearestillin crowd winter2017