Extreme heatwave in Siberia

A current extreme heatwave in Siberia is bringing new record temperatures daily. Heat records are being broken... READ MORE

UPDATE Greenland Heatwave

The early warning we issued on May 25th for the first heatwave in #Greenland has occurred on May 31st to June 1st with a temperature anomaly event and high ice melt... READ MORE

NEW – Near Real-time Pan-Arctic Alerts (ARP-PAAS)

The Arctic Risk Platform has a new Pan-Arctic Alert System (PAAS) using operational weather forecasting, satellite and ground observations to deliver updates of a real-time view of unfolding climate extremes. This is... READ MORE

GREENLAND HEATWAVE FORTHCOMING

The first moderate heatwave is forecast for Greenland around June 1,... READ MORE

One of Greenland’s largest glaciers is actively melting from beneath

Below the surface, the Petermann Glacier, one of Greenland's largest, is actively melting--from... READ MORE

COUNTDOWN

CO2 Budget Depletion

UN SUSTAINABILITY DEVELOPMENT GOALS

SDG 2 - ZERO HUNGER

 

Hunger has increased for the first time in over a decade. For example, in the African Sahel, where over 30 million people are currently suffering from hunger, and where climate fluctuations are blamed for roughly 80% of the unreliable crop harvest. Arctic warming alters the jet stream and changes weather patterns, which risk simultaneous crop failure around the world leading to global food shortages and widespread food insecurity.  

GLOBAL

We will not achieve global food security without protecting the Arctic.  

Climate change undermines efforts and progress made toward achieving zero hunger, and climate variability raises the risk of disruptions to food supplies and distribution. According to FAO’s State of Food Security and Nutrition (2017), hunger has increased for the first time in over a decade, mainly due to conflicts and climate change. Arctic warming brings more extreme weather events, land degradation and desertification, water volatility, rising sea levels, and shifting climates – all of which hamper efforts to feed the planet and increase the risk of simultaneous harvest failures across the breadbasket regions of the world (Kornhuber et al., 2020). These facets of climate change weigh heavily on small-scale and subsistence farmers, for whom heat stress reduces working hours and agricultural outputs. Together, these affect food security for the most vulnerable people.  

Over the past 30 years, disasters induced by extreme weather have tripled. In countries such as Bangladesh and Vietnam, extreme weather can contaminate farmland with saltwater, leading to failed crops. In the Sahel, where over 30 million people are currently suffering from hunger, climate variability is blamed for roughly 80 percent of the unreliable crop harvest. In 2017, food insecurity was the second most common reason for emigration from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras for a new life in North America (IOM, 2017).  

ARCTIC

Food insecurity is a widespread issue across Arctic populations. In the Canadian Arctic, Inuit households are plagued with food insecurity rates five to six times higher than the average Canadian household, exceeding 80 percent in certain communities in Nunavut and Ontario (Lubofsky, 2020). In part, this is because the annual cost of an average four-person Inuit family’s healthy diet reaches up to $23,400, far exceeding the annual median income of $17,000.  

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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
4.5 hundred thousands l/s
on average in 1986-2015
4.5 tons per second
on average in 1986-2015
Worldwide number of disasters
265 disasters
more events in 2022 in comparison to 1970s
183 disasters
more events in 2022 in comparison to 1980s
100 disasters
more events in 2022 in comparison to 1990s
Arctic Sea Ice Extent
605,499 km²
below 1981-2010 average on 04-Jun-2023
233,783 mi²
below 1981-2010 average on 04-Jun-2023
Arctic Amplification
2.82 times
faster than global average in last 30 years
2.57 times
faster than global average in last 50 years
2.54 times
faster than global average in last 70 years
Arctic Wildfire emissions
0.60 megatonnes CO₂e
CO₂e emissions in 2023 so far
Arctic Air Quality (PM2.5)
5.50 microgram per cubic meter
on 05-Jun-2023