
Though the world’s attention is on the response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, we cannot afford to take our eyes off of the unfolding climate crisis. Just like the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change is a destabilizer and a threat multiplier. Current estimates predict, between 2030 and 2050, an additional 250,000 people will be killed each year by climate-driven malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea, and heat stress. At the same time, clean air, safe drinking water, and sufficient food supply will become further jeopardized, amplifying existing vulnerabilities to peoples’ livelihoods and lives.
While we are all affected by climate change, people in the poorest countries are under the biggest threat: disproportionately exposed to extreme weather events, more reliant on natural resources, and least able to cope with negative environmental impacts. Right now, nearly half the world’s population is estimated to be highly vulnerable to climate disasters, but not yet equipped to adapt. Left unaddressed, nearly 200 million people could require international humanitarian assistance for climate-related disasters by 2050, roughly double the number of those in need due to climate shocks today.
We’re working together with Congress and the Biden-Harris Administration to take bold, urgent action to combat the threat of climate change and prioritize support for countries at risk on the frontlines of the climate crisis.
Strong U.S. commitments to help vulnerable countries adapt sends a message about the importance of addressing the changing climate and its impacts. Through innovative programs like climate resilient agriculture and diversifying economic opportunities that reduce communities’ climate and disaster risks, we can reduce the climate drivers of conflict and violence and reshape humanity’s ability to adapt for a more resilient future.
Take action: Ask your representative to fund climate adaptation and technical assistance, working together to ensure those most at risk are better equipped to face the destructive effects of climate change.
Here is the letter we’ll send to Congress on your behalf: