The World Ignores Africa at Its Peril
The continent suffers greatly from the world’s changing climate, yet it contributes a mere fraction of the emissions that cause it.
Extreme weather in South Africa has far-reaching implications.
Photographer: Guillem Sartorio/Bloomberg
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Climate change is (believe it or not) an actual, terrifying and accelerating threat to our existence. Any scientist worth their degree will tell you that it is, at this point in our history, primarily driven by human activity — particularly the burning of fossil fuels to produce electricity. Is every nation around the world equally to blame? Obviously not, as economic powerhouses (the US, China, Japan, Germany) and exploding populations (India, Indonesia) maintain some of the world’s largest carbon footprints. But attention is finally turning to Africa, a continent of diverse, extreme weather; vulnerable communities; fragile political states; and economies that are especially at risk thanks to the planet’s warming temperatures. It’s not too late to help a precarious situation, but according to Bloomberg Opinion’s climate writers, the world is quickly running out of time to prevent an irreversible catastrophe.