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Laurie Goering
Climate editor
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Cutting climate-changing emissions - quickly, and in a way that's fair and just - is the surest way to reduce risks from a heating planet, scientists say.

But what about the threats that are already here, from the warming that's happened so far? We need to find ways to adapt to those, using things like better early warning systems, more flood-resistant homes and climate-smart crops.

A pair of global climate adaptation summits this week and last are digging into those solutions and looking for scarce money to get them in place, with more than 3,000 scientists warning that unless we prepare we'll face "an enormous toll" in lives and economic damage.

Residents of the Praia Nova neighbourhood seek shelter from Tropical Cyclone Eloise, in Beira, Mozambique, January 23, 2021. UNICEF/Franco/Handout via REUTER

"In many parts of the world, the best we can hope for is containment by building resilience, using resources more carefully and by ensuring we do not make the problems worse," former U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned.

The good news? In a world where failed crops or disappearing jobs in one place can lead to hardship in many others, improving climate adaptation almost anywhere can have benefits around the world - one reason we should spend more on it, said Richard Klein of the Stockholm Environment Institute.

In Pakistan, for instance, government spending on small dams to catch rainwater and store it to use for irrigation is helping ensure farmers earn an income, food security holds up and threats of hunger, migration and unrest fall.

Alemão, a wildcat miner in Brazil’s Amazon, sifts through excavated rock for gold in a protected reserve in Para state, August 20, 2020. Thomson Reuters Foundation/Lucas Landau

Solving big problems like climate change - and the coronavirus pandemic - is in many ways getting harder, however, as political divides, loss of social cohesion and a rise of nationalist leaders make cooperation harder, experts say.

"The global order is really frayed - it's disintegrating in front of our eyes. That's a real threat to any attempt to sort things out," said Mo Ibrahim, a businessman and philanthropist who has worked to improve governance in Africa.

Still, there are signs of progress. Coal-reliant but wildfire-hit Australia is now feeling the pressure to set its own net-zero emissions goal for 2050, analysts say, and young Friday for Future activists intend to hold new U.S. President Joe Biden to his campaign promises of ambitious climate action.

Looking for an unusual bit of insight this week? Don't miss our piece that takes you to an illegal gold mining camp in Brazil's Amazon.

See you next week!

THE WEEK'S TOP PICKS

Step up adaptation to climate change now or risk 'enormous toll', scientists warn
Governments and businesses must invest far more to protect people and nature from worsening impacts of global warming, say over 3,000 scientists from around the world

Family men or forest destroyers? Meet the miners living off the Amazon's gold
Illegal wildcat gold miners argue - without evidence - that opening up Brazil's Amazon reserves to regulated development would slow deforestation

Insurance firm offers mental health support as UK flood risk surges
'A mental health crisis is looming' as depression and anxiety over flood losses increases, Zurich UK official says

With free buses and WhatsApp, southern Africa steps up storm preparedness
After cyclones brought devastation in 2019, authorities and aid agencies in Zimbabwe and Mozambique are evacuating people, sending phone alerts and strengthening homes

From climate change to coronavirus, 'frayed' global order blocks problem-solving
Addressing big global challenges may require rethinking institutions, combining expertise - and looking for more answers from the grassroots, governance experts say

Storm damage worsens in a warming world, hiking pressure to adapt
A climate risk index warns that vulnerable countries are being hit harder by powerful storms, as leaders gather at a summit to push greater adaptation efforts

Pakistan pins big hopes on small dams to help farmers beat drought
A project, led by Sindh's provincial government, is helping farmers in drought-hit areas harvest rainwater using small dams, enabling them to earn more from their land

Australia feels global, national heat for 2050 zero-emissions goal
As the government softens its support for fossil fuels and invests in green tech, it could join a growing club of nations vowing to become carbon-neutral by mid-century

Biden's return to Paris pact just a first step for U.S. climate action
Hopes are high that Joe Biden will kickstart U.S. involvement in global climate diplomacy and set an ambitious 2030 target to cut his country's planet-heating emissions

Better local climate adaptation means 'we all benefit' in connected world
Global supply chains, remittances and migration mean global warming risks in one place can hit others - but improving efforts to adapt can bring shared benefits, researchers say

READ ALL OF OUR COVERAGE HERE
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