Extreme Weather Calls for Extreme Action

The first half of 2024 has laid bare the catastrophic extremes that now characterize the rapidly changing climate on every continent.

Let’s remind ourselves of a few examples.

• Jan – March: Large parts of Europe gripped by the coldest winter in decades.
• Jan-May: Acute drought in Southern Africa leads to declaration of national emergencies in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
• Jan – June: Multi-month wildfires in Western Canada trigger air quality hazard alerts far into the US mainland
• March: South Sudan hit by devastating heat wave. The government suspends school.
• April: Floods bring Dubai to a standstill for days.
• April – May: Heavy flooding left more than 500 dead in Eastern Africa
• April – June: A deadly heat wave impacts India and other South East Asia Countries.
• June: Temperature in Aswan Province of Egypt hits 50.9℃.
• June: Florida battered by rainfall so intense near Sarasota that it has odds of occurring just once in 500 – 1,000 years.
• June: Parts of US East Coast, including New York and New Jersey swelter under a relentless “heat dome”.
• May – June: Horrific floods hit Southern Brazil in an event scientists say was made twice as likely by humans burning fossil fuels and trees. At least 170 people died by mid June.

We cannot emphasize enough the fact that the poor are disproportionately affected by extreme weather events. Even so, children in these communities bear the biggest risks. But why is this the case?

1. Events like floods cause more devastation in areas with underdeveloped infrastructure, including roads, bridges and residential houses. People living in informal settlements and slums have houses that may not withstand the impact of heavy flooding, leading to a disproportionate loss of lives and property in these areas. Children in these areas are essentially defenseless to these events.
2. Schools in poor rural and urban areas are the first to shut down during extreme weather events. Unlike schools within more affluent demographics, these schools do not have motorized transportation for children or air conditioning for classes. Indeed, classes may have leaking roofs and broken window panes, making continuation of learning during extreme weather dangerous.
3. Many areas inhabited by underprivileged children and their families may not be easily accessible to rescue services, due to the lack of proper roads and/or the unplanned nature of construction in these areas. Communities often have to find refuge in schools and other communal spaces where though safer than their homes, raises their risk of contracting vector borne and water borne diseases.
4. During extreme weather events, children often become separated from their caregivers and families are temporarily or permanently broken. This raises the vulnerability of those children to adult abuse.
5. In poor communities that depend heavily on farming and livestock rearing, extreme weather events directly impact food security and raise malnutrition risks for their children, along with a myriad of physiological development issues.

Unfortunately, extreme weather is becoming increasingly common across the globe, blurring the margins of what is considered “extreme”. Some are calling it a new normal, betraying a sense of despair in the present state of affairs.

At Involve the Children, we believe there is still hope, but it is diminishing fast. What we need is extreme action!

Part of taking extreme action is ensuring that nobody remains uninvolved in this fight. We must get as many hands as we can on this challenge, as quickly as possible.

We believe that it would be unjust and irresponsible of us not to involve the children given the challenges that lie ahead of us, and more importantly, ahead of them.

Children will suffer the more serious, longer term consequences of this crisis and we cannot continue treating them as bystanders.

Here at Involve the Children, we deliberately seek out children growing up in poverty in rural Kenya, where livelihoods depend almost exclusively on subsistence agriculture and hence the moderateness of weather and a healthy climate. We are enlisting these children to be the champions of environmental stewardship and preparing them to lead resilience and adaptation efforts in their communities. Learn more about how we do this here.