Blog

Amid growing recognition that climate change is not just an environmental issue, but a concern in all sectors, USAID’s adaptation investments are helping the Agency and its partners more effectively assess, plan for, and manage climate risks.

• 12/19/2019
• Erin Martin

Since 1991, USAID has been investing in actions that help the Agency in understanding climate change risks and opportunities to reduce vulnerabilities.

• 12/05/2019
• Stephan Hardeman

The Climatelinks photo contest received an impressive total of 170 submissions from the Climatelinks community, representing more than 40 countries.

• 12/03/2019
• Steve Hardeman

As residents of an island nation, Jamaicans are all too aware of the risks, and realities, of climate change. More than half of the population lives within a mile of the coast; most of the those who live inland are dependent on agriculture for their livelihoods.

• 12/02/2019
• Christine Chumbler

Countries, like people, rely on stories of the past to guide them in the present and help them prepare for the unknown. The genocide against Tutsi in Rwanda ripped out many pages of stories, climate among them.

• 11/26/2019
• James Hansen, Francesco Fiondella, Gloriose Nsengiyumva, Jacquelyn Turner, Desire Kagabo

The Rwanda Climate Services for Agriculture project, funded by USAID, has been supporting farmers to use weather and climate information through participatory group processes and innovative radio programming.

• 11/19/2019
• James Hansen, Jacquelyn Turner, Gloriose Nsengiyumva, Desire Kagabo

In arid regions with already unreliable water and sanitation services, climate change is a threat multiplier for those who rely on functional infrastructure for basic water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) needs.

• 11/12/2019
• Brittany Ajroud, Patrick Nease

To mitigate the food security and economic risks of South Asia’s frequent and intense droughts, scientists and policymakers from the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) recently joined forces to launch an innovative decision support and agricultural planning system.

• 09/20/2019
• Agrilinks Team

Children, along with women and the elderly, are especially vulnerable during natural disasters, according to the Indonesia National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), which estimates that 60 to 70 percent of disaster victims fall in those demographic categories

• 09/18/2019
• Nyoman Prayoga

Increasingly, cities are taking control of assessing local risks associated with climate change and implementing adaptation activities to build the resilience of their residents, economy, and infrastructure.

• 08/29/2019
• Owen Scott

Illness due to dengue virus is estimated to cost the Caribbean over US$ 300 million per year. Layered on top of these costs are increasing concerns around heat stress resulting from the dramatic rise in the number of heatwaves occurring since 1995 in the Eastern Caribbean

• 08/19/2019
• Adrian Trotman, Roché Mahon, Cédric J. Van Meerbeeck

Climate change impacts, such as sea level rise, flooding, and drought, threaten renewable energy generation, particularly hydropower due to the necessary proximity of power stations to water sources. As a result, energy security and the ability of countries to meet their greenhouse gas reduction targets may be compromised.

• 08/14/2019
• Molly Hellmuth

Changes in the frequency, location, and severity of climate impacts are placing more people at risk from health-related hazards such as reduced air quality, extreme heat, exposure to extreme weather events, and shifts in vector borne diseases. The World Health Organization predicts that between 2030-2050, climate change will cause an additional 250,000 deaths annually worldwide due to malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea, and heat stress.

• 07/31/2019
• Fernanda Zermoglio

The Dominican Republic is one of the world’s ten most climate-vulnerable countries and experiences significant gender inequality in the Latin America and Caribbean region. The combination of these issues can threaten the health, safety, and livelihood of women and girls, who are often directly on the frontlines of impacts.

• 07/10/2019
• Jamie Wen-Besson

Climate change and variability have impacts on human health, especially in developing countries. Extreme weather events, increased temperatures, as well as changes in precipitation and sea level rise can all combine in a variety of ways to undermine development gains and impede progress.

• 07/03/2019
• Stephan Hardeman