Who Owns Antarctica? More Infographics on Good. Extreme climate conditions: How Africa can adapt - McKinsey Quarterly - Energy, Resources, Materials - Environment. Even before global warming became an issue, many African countries were unusually vulnerable to floods, droughts, and heat waves. Indeed, if there were to be no further change in Africa’s climate, its current state already presents grave risks to the continent’s people and economies. Global warming could trigger more frequent and severe weather disasters, shifts in rainfall patterns and climate zones, and rising sea levels. For African nations, adapting to these possibilities is an urgent necessity. To do so, their leaders must answer some difficult questions. Knowledge about future climate trends—particularly their local impact—is incomplete, so policy and investment choices must be made under uncertainty. Many adaptation measures would strengthen economic growth in developing countries; in Mali, for instance, climate-resilient agricultural development could generate millions of dollars annually in additional revenues.
Mali: Climate zone shift Exhibit 1 Republic of Mali Enlarge Exhibit 2. Penhagen climate change talks must fail, says top scientist | Environment. The following correction was printed in the Guardian's Corrections and clarifications column, Monday 21 December 2009 The climate scientist James Hansen, director of Nasa's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, first testified to a US congressional committee about global warming in 1988, not 1989. The scientist who convinced the world to take notice of the looming danger of global warming says it would be better for the planet and for future generations if next week's Copenhagen climate change summit ended in collapse. In an interview with the Guardian, James Hansen, the world's pre-eminent climate scientist, said any agreement likely to emerge from the negotiations would be so deeply flawed that it would be better to start again from scratch. "I would rather it not happen if people accept that as being the right track because it's a disaster track," said Hansen, who heads the Nasa Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York.
He is scathing of that approach. Mysterious bird deaths hit Sweden. 5 January 2011Last updated at 14:17 Amateur footage of dead birds in Sweden Dozens of dead birds have been found lying in a residential street in Sweden, days after thousands of birds fell to their deaths in the US. Police in the town of Falkoeping have told Swedish media that between 50 and 100 jackdaws had died. Some are said to have been hit by cars but others have no visible injuries. Parallels have been drawn with the mysterious death of about 3,000 red-winged blackbirds in the US state of Arkansas on New Year's Eve.
Veterinary officials told Swedish radio that the case in Falkoeping was rare although they said there could be a number of reasons such as "disease or poisoning". Aftonbladet newspaper quoted one resident, Drilon Hulaj, who said that as he drove home late on Tuesday night the street in front of him was dotted with "hundreds of dead birds". Mr Hulaj said he had been immediately reminded of the events in the town of Beebe, Arkansas. Climate Care.