How El Niño offers a test of whether the world can adapt to a changing climate
UN experts warn that the strengthening El Niño climate pattern is magnifying the risks of drought and food insecurity in a world already affected by climate change. Early tracking allows for potential mitigation strategies.
Why it matters
Proactive climate adaptation is essential for global food security as extreme weather events become more frequent and intense.
El Niño is strengthening in a world that is already hotter, raising the risk of drought, floods and crop losses across some of the world’s most important food-producing regions. But unlike many disasters, this one can be seen coming. UN experts say the months ahead offer countries a chance not only to protect the next harvest and our food security, but to prepare for a more unpredictable climate in the long run.
A chilly, wet Tuesday morning greeted presidents and prime ministers arriving at United Nations Headquarters in New York on Tuesday, as the 81st General Debate got underway.
The weather did little to slow the pace inside. Leaders moved between the General Assembly Hall, bilateral meetings and a crowded programme of events, with climate change a theme threaded throughout the day’s discussions, from drought, floods, extreme heat, rising seas and growing pressure on food and water.
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