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 5 - GENDER EQUALITY

 

The Arctic’s central role in the global climate system amplifies gender inequalities. In the North American Arctic, Indigenous women and girls comprise 70-90% of trafficking victims and are often left to face challenges securing food, water and fuel. Men face a disproportionally high suicide rate, stemming in part from a loss of identity due to climate change.  Climate-driven disruption of gender roles parallels and increase in gender-based violence and inequitable mortality rates.  

GLOBAL

The climate crisis is not “gender neutral.” Across the world, women depend more on, yet have less access to, natural resources. In many regions, women bear a disproportionate responsibility for securing food, water, and fuel. 

Women and girls experience the greatest impacts of climate change, which amplifies existing gender inequalities and poses unique threats to their livelihoods, health, and safety. Arctic change will amplify current gender impacts because of its central role in the global climate system. 

 Women traditionally also care for family members, most notably elderly relatives and children, which increases their exposure to rapid-onset extreme weather such as floods and tropical cyclones. When women wear traditional clothing, such as saris and burqas, their mobility is further limited, hampering evacuation from disasters like floods. In terms of mortality, elderly women are particularly vulnerable to heatwaves, with mortality rates reaching twice that of elderly males (Steen et al., 2018). This is critical as, by 2100, 99 percent of all weather-related fatalities will be linked to heatwaves (Forzieri et al., 2017).  

 Additionally, displacement and conflict due to extreme weather and heat stress often contribute to spikes in gender-based violence. In the year after Hurricane Katrina (2006), gender-based violence among internally displaced people in the state of Mississippi increased from 4.6 to 16.3 per 100,000 population per day – and remained above-baseline at 10.1 in 2007. Increased mutilation of female genitals occurred during drought in Kenya (Esho et al., 2021).  

ARCTIC

Bold climate action is needed to curb gender inequality and vulnerabilities throughout the Arctic. In the Canadian and US Arctic, 70-90 percent of trafficking victims are Indigenous women and girls (Sweet, 2014). Loss of identity and self-esteem, exacerbated by climate change-induced disruption of traditional roles, are found to contribute to alcoholism and higher suicide rates among men, along with spikes in violence against women and children, human trafficking, and prostitution. 

BACK TO SDG PAGE

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