Climate Change poses a much larger threat than coronavirus, warned Red Cross recently calling out nations to act with urgency on the issue of global warming. Even as the pandemic rages, climate change is not taking a break from wreaking havoc, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said in a new report.
In its report on global catastrophes since the 1960s, the Geneva-based organisation pointed out that the world had been hit by more than 100 disasters – many of them climate-related – since the World Health Organization declared the pandemic in March. More than 50 million people had been affected, it said.
Secretary-General Jagan Chapagain stressed that while the world will get a COVID-19 vaccine sooner or later, unfortunately, there wasn’t any vaccine for climate change. Talking about global warming, he warned that it would require a “much more sustained action and investment to protect human life on this Earth. Faced with this threat, which “literally threatens our long-term survival”, IFRC called on the international community to act with the urgency required.
In 2019 alone, the world was hit by 308 natural disasters — 77 per cent of the climate or weather-related — killing some 24,400 people. The number of climate and weather-related disasters has been steadily climbing since the 1960s, and has surged by nearly 35 per cent since the 1990s, IFRC said. This is a deadly development. When it comes to global warming, he warned, “it will require a much more sustained action and investment to protect human life on this Earth.” The frequency and intensity of extreme weather and climate-related events had already increased considerably in recent decades, said the IFRC.
Rising sea-levels due to climate change has been a cause of concern for scientists and researches over the last few decades. Multiple reports have raised concerns over the slow-yet-gradual rise in the Mean Sea Levels which have now become much more than just a ‘hoax.’ Climate researchers have highlighted the drastic effects of this change, mapping through intelligence how devastating its consequences could be, far scarier than conspiracy theories.
Weather and climate-related disasters have killed more than 410,000 people over the past decade, most of them in poorer countries, with heatwaves and storms proving the most deadly, the report said. “With challenges like these, international solidarity is not only a moral responsibility but also the smart thing to do.
“Investing in resilience in the most vulnerable places is more cost-effective than to accept continued increases in the cost of humanitarian response, and contributes to a safer, more prosperous and sustainable world for everyone,” it added. The IFRC estimated that around $50bn would be needed annually over the next decade to help 50 developing countries adapt to the changing climate.
