A critical decade for climate

It’s official. It was the UK’s hottest summer on record, and now – in October – we are experiencing warmer than average temperatures yet again. 

More frequent extreme heat has crept into the lives of Britons, and we are beginning to see the realities of climate change quite literally in our back gardens. 

We’ve seen before our eyes our natural habitats become increasingly unliveable, with the impact on our already-stressed wildlife severe. 

Fractured

According to Natural England, hedgehogs and birds have been unable to dig for worms in the dry soil; water sources for all kinds of creatures have dried up; peatlands have become parched, and wildfires have destroyed acres of land important for conservation.   

But while the effects of climate change have been particularly acute in the UK this summer, in many parts of the world, shifting weather patterns have been pummelling nature and the people who rely on it for years. 

Over the course of this year, Fauna & Flora and partners have been working with affected communities in three African countries to document what climate impacts look like in their reality — and the results are stark. 

In Kenya, extreme heat and drought have been driving both people and nature to the brink of collapse in recent years. 

Income sources – particularly agriculture — have been wiped out, communities have been fractured, rivers have dried up, and wildlife, including elephants, zebras, and wildebeests, are literally dropping dead in the savannah. 

Vulnerabilities

In Tanzania’s Pemba Island region, where communities rely heavily on marine resources for survival, they’ve seen rising sea levels and sea temperatures disrupt marine life and fishing, while saltwater intrusion damages agriculture. 

Island communities in Cabo Verde have also been increasingly battered by extreme weather patterns; there are years with severe and prolonged droughts, but when rain does occur, it often results in catastrophic events. 

As recently as August, a tropical storm in São Vicente and Santo Antão brought more than a year’s worth of rain in less than five hours; wiping out infrastructure and costing lives, both human and wildlife.  

Our world’s natural ecosystems are struggling to cope, and the consequences for communities are deadly. But while nature is increasingly stressed by human-induced climate change, it can also be one of our greatest allies in building resilience.