Watch our panellists talking about this year’s extraordinary climate data and asking what action needs to be taken at the live debate on Thursday, October 19 at 14.00 CEST.
This year looks set to be the world’s hottest on record, according to weather predictions. It comes after a blistering summer with heatwaves sweeping across Europe.
Climate scientists have confirmed that the summer of 2023 broke temperature records by a considerable margin worldwide. Temperatures have been exacerbated in part by the arrival of El Niño; a naturally-occurring warming phenomenon in the Pacific Ocean.
Unless late autumn and early winter this year prove to be extremely cold, 2023 will overtake 2016 as the hottest year on record.
The situation is particularly perilous in Europe, which is warming faster than most parts of the world due to its high level of landmass and proximity to the rapidly heating Arctic. In September the Copernicus Climate Change Service reported that Europe was over 2.5C above the 1991-2020 average.
The continent’s average temperature this summer was 19.63C to 0.83C above average — making it the fifth warmest for the summer season.
Euronews will bring together a panel of experts for a Climate Now live debate, talking about this year’s extraordinary climate data and asking what action needs to be taken.
You can watch the debate live and on replay in this article on Thursday, October 19 at 14:00 CEST.
We’ll delve into the details of how our planet is warming, explore the psychology of climate change adaptation, and hear examples of how to live in extreme temperatures.
What is the human cost of soaring temperatures?
Temperatures in 2023 have been breaking records around the world with disastrous consequences.
Heat-related deaths are on the rise. Germany has seen over 3,000 deaths so far this year due to the high temperatures. France recorded 400 excess deaths during its August heatwave compared to previous years without high temperatures, according to a report by the French public health authority.
The scorching temperatures created prime conditions for wildfires. The Greek island of Rhodes burned for days in July, forcing residents and tourists to flee.
In Greece’s Dadia National Park, a blaze in August became the largest single wildfire recorded in the EU since the European Forest Fire Information System began keeping records in 2000.
Temperatures have not abated with the arrival of autumn. September 2023 was the hottest September globally since records started in 1850.
In early October, schools in the Canary Islands were forced to close after some areas saw temperatures as high as 38C. Most classrooms don’t have air conditioning as weather during the school year is usually milder than in 2023.
Global temperatures for the first eight months of 2023 are just 0.01C below 2016, so scientists predict this year will become the hottest ever.
Why aren’t we doing more to adapt to rising temperatures?
Despite the alarming effects of the soaring temperatures this summer, preparations for a warmer future have been slow.
Last year, Dr Kris De Meyer, a neuroscientist and director of the University College London Climate Action Unit, gave evidence to the British parliament’s House of Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee about why people’s willingness to act hasn’t changed despite greater awareness of the issue.
“Communicating about the urgency of the crisis in itself doesn’t lead to the changes that need to happen,” he said.
ADVERTISEMENT“Threat messaging that is inherent in all the ‘code red for humanity’ messaging doesn’t help people to understand how to act.”
When faced with messages of fear, people can react in a variety of ways: becoming anxious, paralysed, denialist or “frantically activist”.
The outcome of this situation is confusion over what action to take (is it better to buy an electric car or give up the car altogether, for example) and fragmentation of public opinion, according to De Meyer.
How can we encourage people to start acting?
To find a way out of this inertia, people need to abandon the idea that their solution is to the exclusion of all others, said De Meyer.
“We need to get to the point where we understand that we need to do all of these things that we can imagine in parallel,” he added. “We need pluralism.”
ADVERTISEMENTIn terms of messaging, governments and authorities need to avoid provoking strong emotions like fear.
“The only time when fear is a good communication mechanism is when, at the same time, you communicate a solution that feels concrete, doable and effective,” said De Meyer.
This worked during the COVID pandemic, for example, when messages of fear were accompanied by easy-to-follow, effective and practical actions, explained De Meyer.
Other messages, especially in the media, should emphasise telling the stories of people and businesses who are already taking action against climate change.
How can cities prepare for a hotter future?
As well as individual actions, our Climate Now live debate will consider the important ways in which cities and towns should be adapting to weather changes in the future.
ADVERTISEMENTEarly warning systems are vital to managing crisis situations, including evacuation plans and hospital systems for managing an influx of patients during heatwaves or flooding.
Ecosystem restoration, including reforestation and the reintroduction of wildlife, can improve carbon absorption, protect communities from landslides and avalanches, as well as creating storm surge defences.
In cities, urban forests create a cooling effect and reduce the impact of heatwaves.
Future construction needs to adopt materials that are resistant to much higher temperatures and adequate drainage systems to cope with flooding and heavy rainfall.
Alexandre Florentin, a Green Party councillor in Paris will be speaking during the debate, discussing whether Paris can survive at 50C.
ADVERTISEMENTThe Paris at 50C project will develop a new resilience strategy for on-the-ground action.
The proposed actions range from the thermal renovation of buildings and repainting roofs in a lighter colour to foregoing certain summer festivals and promoting swimming.
Watch the conversation and take part in the debate in this article on Thursday, October 19, for further discussions about how to break out of climate inertia, and examples of concrete actions that both individuals and governments can take to adapt to a warmer future.
Meet our panelists:
Dr Lucy Hubble-Rose, Deputy Director of the UCL Climate Action Unit.
Dr Lucy Hubble-Rose is an expert facilitator who helps people and organisations to unpick problems associated with planning and delivering action on climate change. Following a PhD in Climate Change engagement from the University of Exeter and a Masters in Climate Change from the University of East Anglia, Lucy became fascinated by the challenges of making change happen. Her main focus is working as a core member of UCL’s Climate Action Unit (CAU). The CAU works to change how scientists, policymakers, businesses, media, civil society organisations and citizens engage with each other about climate change.
Zachary Labe, Climate scientist at Princeton University
Zachary Labe is a postdoctoral researcher working at NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory and the Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences Program at Princeton University. His research intends to improve our understanding of climate variability and extreme events in a warming world. He is passionate about improving science communication, accessibility, and outreach through engaging data visualisations.
ADVERTISEMENTDr Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service
Dr Samantha Burgess is Deputy Director of C3S, the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, working to improve understanding of climate-related risks. C3S provides open access to climate data globally to inform better decision-making. Sam has previously focused on environmental resilience, sustainable finance & ocean governance in roles including chief scientific advisor & head of policy in government, business, NGOs and academia.
Alexandre Florentin, Green Party MP and President of Paris at 50C
With a double degree and five years of experience, Alexandre Florentin has developed expertise at the interface of private and public issues, between technical and political domains. Florentin is an MP with a French environmental party who is testing out whether Paris can survive at 50 degrees. As president of the Paris at 50C project, he is conducting research and experiments into concrete solutions to implement in the French capital to adapt to a warmer future. He is also co-director of the company Carbone 4 where he works with French and international companies who want to shape their business models and strategies to take climate and energy constraints into account.
Source: Euro News
