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This article was originally published on Phys.org
“Billions of people in thousands of cities around the world will soon be at risk from climate-related heat waves, droughts, flooding, food shortages and energy blackouts by mid-century, but many cities are already taking action to blunt such effects, says a new report from a consortium of international organizations.
The report, called The Future We Don’t Want, estimates that by 2050,
- 1.6 billion people living in more than 970 cities will be regularly exposed to extreme high temperatures.
- Over 800 million living in 570 cities will be vulnerable to sea-level rise and coastal flooding.
- 650 million, in over 500 cities, will be at risk of water shortages.
- 2.5 billion people will be living in over 1,600 cities where national food supplies will be threatened.
- The power supply to 470 million people, in over 230 cities, will be vulnerable to sea-level rise.
- 215 million poor urban residents living in slum areas in over 490 cities will face disproportionate climate risks.
The report was assembled by C40 Cities, a group of big cities working to face climate change; the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy, which has signatories in thousands of cities representing some 700 million people; the Urban Climate Change Research Network (UCCRN), a global consortium of institutions and experts based at Columbia University’s Earth Institute; and the UK-based consultant group Acclimatise. It was presented this week at the Adaptation Futures conference in Cape Town, South Africa, where representatives of cities around the world are sharing ideas on how to become more resilient to changing climate…”
Read on at: Phys.org
