Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability

Due to climate change the world is not only warming, it is also experiencing more extreme events such as heatwaves, droughts, intense precipitation, flooding, rising sea levels, and wildfires, which affect humans and nature in many different ways.

The IPCC Working Group II examines the impacts of climate change on nature and people around the globe. Furthermore, it explores which impacts to expect into the future and the resulting risks but also, what can and should to be done to adapt to a changing climate, alleviate its impacts and reduce risks for humans and nature.

In WGII, more than 250 scientists from around the world analyze scientific literature from various fields such as natural sciences, social sciences, and economics to develop options for action that will help the world to become resilient to the ongoing change and counteract the consequences of future warming.

The scientific topics covered by Working Group II include:

• How does a warming climate affect life on land and in the oceans
• Will plants or animals go extinct due to climate change?
• How does climate change increase the risks of diseases jumping from wildlife to people and what actions can we take?
• Focus on regions: Which climate change impacts can already be observed in Africa, Europe, Asia, Northern, Central and Southern America as well as on the Small Islands, in Australia and New Zealand? And which future impacts and changes do we expect?
• Where in the world are humans suffering the most from climate change?
• How is climate change affecting our abilities to grow enough food?
• How is climate change affecting life in cities now and in the future?
• Will we have enough water to drink and irrigate our fields in the future?
• What solutions do already exist to respond to climate change?
• How are people adapting to the effects of climate change today?
• Are current adaptation activities to reduce risks and alleviate climate change impacts enough to ensure well-being for all humans and will adaptation efforts be successful in the years to come?
• What will have to change to make us as individual humans and societies more climate-resilient going forward?

The Sixth Assessment Report

How can we live a sustainable and climate-resilient life without leaving anyone behind?

For its upcoming Sixth Assessment Report, Working Group II is examining climate change impacts, the resulting risks for people and nature, and our options to act. Decision makers all over the world need to know which risks nature and human communities are facing now and in the years to come and what can be done to strengthen our and nature’s resilience to climate change, to fight hunger, poverty, and inequality and keep Earth a place worth living in – for current as well as for future generation

Furthermore, Working Group II will introduce several new components in its upcoming report: One is a special section on climate change impacts, risks and options to act for cities and settlements by the sea, tropical forests, mountains, and polar regions among others. Another is an Atlas that will present data and findings on observed and projected climate change impacts and risks from global to regional scales, thus offering even more insights for decision makers and other interested people.