At the current rate of carbon emissions, global average temperatures will rise 2°C by 2050 according to research by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Expected consequences include:
The creation of 150 million environmental refugees – overwhelmingly in poor countries.
Acute water shortages for 1-3 billion people.
30 million more people going hungry as agricultural yields go into recession across the globe.
Sea levels edging towards increases of up to 95cm by the end of the century, submerging 18% of Bangladesh.
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Melting glaciers and polar ice combined with the thermal expansion of the oceans means we can expect sea-level rises of 15-95cm this century.
A rise of 1m would displace 10 million people in Vietnam and 8-10 million in Egypt.
The UK’s Department for International Development predicts that the number of Africans at risk of coastal flooding will rise from 1 million in 1990 to 70 million by 2080.
In Bangladesh, flood damage has become more extreme in the last 20 years. By 2100, predicted ocean rises threaten to submerge 18% of the country, creating 35 million environmental refugees.
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