Environment

This is what climate change looks like

  • Galerie - Der Klimawandel und seine Folgen

    Flaming inferno

    Some 10,500 firefighters were called to tackle forest fires in California in 2015. They were unable to prevent 1,400 homes from destruction. The blaze was fueled by hot and dry weather - as a result of climate change.

  • Galerie - Der Klimawandel und seine Folgen

    Vanishing hunting grounds

    The polar bear has become a symbol of climate change, as its habitat is threatened by global warming. The Arctic predator hunts from ice sheets that are fast disappearing. As the ice retreats, they are unable to stalk their prey, and risk starvation. By 2050, scientists warn that the Arctic could be ice-free in summer.

  • Galerie - Der Klimawandel und seine Folgen

    Needle in a haystack

    Just visible from the air is a little wood hut on the island of Spitzbergen in Norway. It is home to the Arctic research base where French and German scientists are studying climatic and atmospheric changes in the polar region, including the damage done to permafrost and glacier systems.

  • BdW Global Ideas Bild der Woche KW 42/2015 Ziege Gletscher

    No use bleating

    A goat watches a mountain expedition on the Swiss Aletsch Glacier, a UNESCO World Heritage site. It was around a kilometer longer in 1860 than it is today. Due to global warming, the glacier is shrinking by up to 50 meters per year. With the rate of retreat increasing, scientists fear Europe's biggest glacier could disappear altogether.

  • Galerie - Der Klimawandel und seine Folgen

    Viewed from a safe distance …

    … the landscape looks peaceful, bathed in a mystical light. But the actual situation is far more unsettling. This aerial view shows Central Luzon in the Philippines, completely flooded after it was hit by a typhoon and heavy rain. People were drowned or buried under landslides, and half a million were forced to flee their homes. The country is hit by 20 typhoons each year.

  • Weltbank warnt vor Klimawandel

    When everything is lost …

    … escape is all that's left. The World Bank warns that if global warming continues unimpeded, another 100 million people will be under threat. Poor people in parts of Africa and South Asia are at particular risk. Drought and flooding threaten crops - leading to hunger, disease and high food prices.

  • El Nino Symbolbild Dürre Philippinen Kind

    Children carry the burden

    Climate change often hits children the hardest, through no fault of their own. Studies have found that economic problems exacerbated by drought can have profound social impacts, such as in an increase in child marriages, for example. Families may marry off their underage daughters earlier to have fewer mouths they have to feed.

  • Galerie - Der Klimawandel und seine Folgen

    'Renewable' elephants

    Elephants produce huge quantities of manure. At Munich's Hellabrunn Zoo in Germany, one local utility is turning their waste into electric power. Around 2,000 tons of biowaste provides enough power for a hundred homes. Could this be a model for an African school? In any case, climate change is forcing new ways of thinking in the search for green energy.

  • Galerie - Der Klimawandel und seine Folgen

    Shipping out

    The Rhine River is Europe's busiest waterway for shipping - but climate change is affecting business. Ongoing drought means shipping firms would be forced to use shorter vessels that can navigate shallower waters. If ships aren't able to set off, more goods have to be transported by road - which is more expensive.

  • Australien Meeresschutzgebiet Great Barrier Reef Korallenbleiche

    Pale as a ghost

    Healthy coral reefs are like a blooming garden. But global warming is bleaching the life out of them. Corals have a symbiotic relationship with algae, which are vital to their health. But as the water heats up, they expel the algae. If warmer water temperatures persist, a lack of nutrients calcifies the corals, which makes their color fade and causes the organisms to die.

  • Galerie - Der Klimawandel und seine Folgen

    Vineyards heading north

    Global warming also has its benefits. In recent years, wine is being produced on Germany's northernmost island, Sylt. Ever more vineyards are being established at higher altitudes and further north - even Scandinavia now has some. Global warming also means earlier harvests and sweeter grapes.


To prevent disaster, global warming must be limited to a maximum of 2 degrees Celsius, climate experts say. Effects of climate change are plain to see - and they could be a taste of what's to come.

  • Date 24.11.2015
  • Author Karin Jäger / rr, ng