The World Above 1.5°C: Flooding Disasters from Libya to Hong Kong

Global temperatures have slightly decreased after a  summer with 36 consecutive days above any previous record, a phenomenon not seen in at least 125,000 years. However, the two consecutive months above 1.5C provided a... READ MORE

Polar Tipping Points Hub in WEF Global Collaboration Village

This week, the Polar Tipping Points Hub was launched in the Global Collaboration Village, a metaverse built by the World Economic Forum in partnership with Accenture and Microsoft, with scientific support from Arctic... READ MORE

Arctic Basecamp Plays Significant Role in New Polar Metaverse by World Economic Forum

The World Economic Forum (WEF) launched the Polar Tipping Points Hub, a groundbreaking virtual reality experience in collaboration with Accenture and Microsoft, yesterday at UN Climate Week in New York... READ MORE

Mind-blowing alarm bells need to be ringing: Antarctica’s ice remains well-below any previous record

“Almost mind-blowing.” That’s how Walter Meier of the NSIDC describes the records Antarctica has set this year.... READ MORE

A rare northern hurricane continues to make records

Hurricane Lee is preparing to slam into northern New England and the Canadian... READ MORE

COUNTDOWN

CO2 Budget Depletion

FOOD INSECURITY

This map is a representation of country-level food insecurity around the world based on exposure to climate-related risks in the period 1981-2010, the sensitivity of food systems to such risks, and each country’s adaptive capacity. HERE, you can explore how these factors are expected to change under different future climate change scenarios.

“The probability of simultaneous heat extremes in these regions increases by a factor of up to 20 for the most severe heat events when the number of north-south waves around the northern hemisphere is between 5 and 7 (see images below showing waves and areas of extreme heat). Two or more weeks per summer spent in the wave-5 or wave-7 regime are associated with 4% reductions in crop production when averaged across the affected regions, with regional decreases of up to 11%.”

Extreme heat waves linked to tropospheric jet stream disruptions are also cause for concern. Heat can be devastating to crop production on a local scale, but on a global scale, deviations to the jet stream increase the chance that heat waves hit multiple grain-producing regions at once, jeopardising global food supply. This is one example that further highlights the need for better prediction and early warning systems, local and regional disaster risk reduction efforts, sustainable and regenerative agricultural practices, and effective water resources management to ensure food and water security.

Find out more about how the Arctic affects Global Risks.

ARCTIC RISK INDICATORS

The following gauges show up-to-date data regarding key indicators in the Arctic. These indicators clearly point to the crisis at hand.

Greenland rate of ice loss
13 million l/s
on average
13 million tonnes/s
on average
Arctic Sea Ice Extent
2,161,499 km²
below 1981-2010 average on 20-Sep-2023
834,555 mi²
below 1981-2010 average on 20-Sep-2023
Arctic Amplification
4 times
faster than global average
Arctic 66N+ Wildfire emissions
24,864.17 megatonnes CO₂e
CO₂e emissions in 2023 so far
Arctic Air Quality (PM2.5)
4.89 microgram per cubic meter
on 21-Sep-2023
Global mean Sea Level
3.4mm/year
since 1993