The year 2024 broke both land and ocean temperature records, being the warmest in 175 observable years and breaking the 1.5°C barrier set by the Paris Agreement to contain the devastating effects of climate change. All indications are that the trends of heat, pollution and extreme weather events will continue in 2025.
During 2024, the planet, specifically the northern hemisphere, showed worrying temperature anomalies. After record-breaking summer heat, the scientific community is confident that 2024 will be the hottest year on record. Droughts and forest fires remained the most prevalent weather phenomena during the first six months of Year 24, but they are not the only weather events exacerbated by climate change.
Mexico's water crisis has intensified recently, exacerbated by climate change, urbanisation and inefficient water use. The country faces a dilemma because much of the available H2O is destined for the agrifood export sector. This article examines the interrelationship between water consumption, the water footprint of agrifood products and exports to highlight the urgent need to implement sustainable production policies in the context of climate change and crisis.
The summer of 2024 in the northern hemisphere shattered all-time temperature records in numerous regions, marking it as the hottest on record. This unprecedented event, extensively documented by various agencies and sources, is a clear consequence of climate change driven by human activities. In this article, we will delve into the implications of these extreme temperatures in exacerbating meteorological phenomena and their far-reaching consequences in Latin America.
The year 2023 was notable for setting several historic records. Greenhouse gas levels, global temperatures, sea level rise, and Antarctic sea ice melt have all reached unprecedented levels. It was the warmest year since global records began in 1850, with a temperature 1.18°C above the 20th-century average. Drastic changes in weather patterns, enhanced by global warming, have caused significant impacts on the environment, society, and the economy worldwide.
China is the world's second-largest economy, with plans to take first place for the next decade and thus put an end to U.S. hegemony. However, the consequences of climate change seem to threaten the rapid Chinese growth, which had already been slowing down since 2019, with the longest drought in 60 years. A third of the Asian giant's territory suffers from high temperatures and lack of rainfall, affecting China's economic dynamism.
La Niña, which is characterized by cooler than average sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, has repercussions for the Atlantic hurricane season.
The current La Niña began back in the late summer and early fall of 2020, and it has reached an intensity that ranks it "among the strongest springtime La Niñas in the historical record dating back to 1950,".
With each week that La Niña remains, the less likely it becomes that 2022 will set a new global temperature record. However, La Niña has still other consequences and is likely exacerbating the drought in the Southwest.
