You may have noticed increasingly unusual climate patterns and seen news reports of extreme weather events. In just a few seconds, one could lose everything during a sudden natural calamity.
The poor are disproportionately affected as they are more vulnerable to natural disasters such as floods, typhoons, and earthquakes. Poor countries will be hit first and worst.
Today there are an estimated 26 million climate refugees, and by 2050, 200 million people a year could be on the move due to hunger, environmental degradation, and loss of land due to climate change.
Taiwan experiences an averaged 2% of land degradation every year and is one of the top ten countries with the most vulnerable geological settings. Taiwan, only next to Philippines, is the second most typhoon-prone country in Asia.
Children are especially vulnerable to climate change effects as:
- When natural disasters strike, children are more vulnerable to hunger, malnutrition, injuries, or diseases than adults.
- In the next 10 years, an estimated 175 million children will be affected by weather-related disasters every year, which is an increase of 50 million children compared to the 10 years of 1995-2005.
- The transmission of Malaria, a disease that kills 800,000 children every year, is closely related to temperatures and precipitations. If climate patterns continue to change, malaria can be spread faster and more widely.
- Around 3.5 million children die of malnutrition every year. The problem will be aggravated by worsening food security resulting from climate change effects.
The 30 Hour Famine in Taiwan has brought relief to those affected by natural disasters for over 20 years and has supported building back communities stronger than before. World Vision is committed to helping communities prepare themselves for climate change and adapt to the impacts. World Vision is also implementing environment enhancing development activities such as reforestation, agro-forestry, and organic and conservation farming.
As members of the global village, we cannot ignore the impacts of climate changes.
Be aware of your day-to-day behaviors and find ways to reduce your consumption of energy and material resources. Support the 30 Hour Famine through financial contributions to keep progress moving forward in the developing world, as more attention is now being focused on disaster prevention and disaster risk reduction.