Can't Take the Heat

On this episode, Carolina Marghidan Pereira is hosting the show and interviews Nathalie Doswald, Senior Officer for Nature-based Solutions at the IFRC, and Veronica Ruiz,  Nature-based Solutions Program Officer at IUCN. They discuss the benefits and challenges of using nature-based solutions to adapt to climate change. References and supplemental material:Intro to nature-based solutionsIUCN Nature-Based SolutionsThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

 Was that climate change? That's the question that comes up after a devastating storm, flood, or heatwave. Scientists are now able to give us an answer, and relatively quickly! This week Margot Curl, Manager Innovative Engagement and Youth at the Climate Centre,  is hosting the show and she interviews Sjoukje Phillip, KNMI, who works as part of the World Weather Attribution (WWA) group to provide rapid, and scientifically robust answers to the attribution question. Margot also talks to Ignacio Amigo a communications expert who helps WWA get their work out to journalists and the general public. And she interviews Roop Singh, the regular host of the show, about the role of vulnerability and exposure in determining the impact of an extreme event.  References and supplemental material:World Weather AttributionNational Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine report: Attribution of Extreme Weather Events in the Context of Climate ChangeThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

Do you remember a moment when you got a chance to make significant progress or change happen? That is the goal of a new network, created by and for African researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to exchange knowledge and take action on climate and health issues. CHANCE stands for the Climate-Health Africa Network for Collaboration and Engagement, and it's already generating a sense of excitement. Those who attended the network's first meeting heard a first-hand account of how climate is impacting neonatal health and washing away health infrastructure, and the reasons why Africa already has great capacity to take on this challenge. Listen to hear from Didacus Namanya (Uganda Ministry of Health), Jennifer Kuhl (Global Climate and Health Alliance), Antonios Kolimenakis (WHO Africa), and Matthew Chersich (University of the Witwatersrand) on their experience at the CHANCE network meeting and where it should go next.  References and supplemental material:Recordings of the CHANCE conference 2022Learn more about the CHANCEThe CHANCE Network was started as part of the ENBEL projectThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

Promoting hand-washing and providing people with toilets are two interventions for a field of work called "WASH" which stands for Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene.   This month,  I learn about what WASH has to do with the climate and how such basic interventions can be both cost-effective and life-saving.  We were joined by Yusuf Kabir, Programme Specialist: Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene and Climate, DRR and Emergency Focal Point at UNICEF India, who told us about his experience implementing WASH interventions in Maharashtra India. References and supplemental material:The UNICEF India WASH program Yusaf Kabir's blog, WASH GarageThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

It's June! That means temperatures are rising around the northern hemisphere as we enter the summer months. This year we held the first ever, Heat Action Day, on June 14th, 2022, with over 50 heat flashmobs performed in cities and towns around the world to raise awareness of heat risks and simple actions to #BeatTheHeat. In this episode, we hear from IFRC President Rocca, as well as representatives from the Bangladesh Red Crescent, Norwegian Red Cross and even the Chief Heat Officer from Athens, Greece about why we should care about heat risks and how we can address them.  References and supplemental material:The Heat Action Day  The Heat Tool KitCompilation of flashmobs to #BeatTheHeatSome of the latest heat research conducted by the ENBEL projectThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

Water is essential to all human life, and yet it's a challenge to match the needs of people with the availability of water throughout the year. There may be too much, or too little water or the water may be polluted and unusable. On top of this climate change and trends like urbanization are contributing to increasing water scarcity. This month, we were joined by Ruth Matthews, senior manager at SIWI, and Dr. Jean-Christophe Comte, PI of the Connect 4 Water Resilience project to talk about solutions to water stress and scarcity.  References and supplemental material:The Connect4WaterResilience projectThe Science for Humanitarian Emergencies and Resilience (SHEAR) programmeThe Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) The intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

Back in July 2020, we told you about a new frontier in forecasting, Impact-based Forecasts, that tell us "what the weather will do." Now, we are back with season 3 and bringing you the experiences of the people who are trying to build Impact-based Forecasting systems around the world. We'll hear from meteorologists in South America, South Africa, and Indonesia on what they are learning in the process. References and supplemental material:The Asia Regional Resilience to a Changing Climate (ARCCC) programThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

The world of corporations is finally starting to take climate change seriously. What are they doing and what are the motivations of companies taking climate action? How skeptical should you be every time you see company announce a climate pledge?  These are all questions that Edward Cameron, author of the new book, The New Corporate Climate Leadership, deftly answers for us. His experience working with civil society and businesses makes him uniquely qualified to share lessons on how humanitarian organisations can engage the private sector on climate issues.  He also tells us why courage and creativity are the two most important things we need to create a low-carbon and resilient economy. Have a listen!References and supplemental material:The book: The New Corporate Climate Leadership by Edward Cameron and Emilie Prattico - out December 6, 2021The intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

As world leaders gather at COP26, we discuss the report that underpins it all.  The IPCC released part 1 of its Sixth Assessment report on our physical understanding of climate change. I spoke with two IPCC authors, Dr.  Sonia Seneviratne of ETH Zurich, and Dr. Fredi Otto of the Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment, to find out what the headline messages are, and what they mean for the humanitarian community. The findings, in some cases are grim, and we discuss how to go from doom and despair to the inspiring action that is desperately needed on climate change. Shu Liang from Day of Adaptation, joins us to share how her organisation uses games to make the science more accessible and actionable. References and supplemental material:The Sixth IPCC Assessment ReportThe Interactive AtlasRegional Climate FactsheetsThe Day of AdaptationThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

In this episode we talk about what happens when climate and conflict mix to create a whole new set of vulnerabilities.  Catalina Jaime from the Climate Centre tells us that the climate doesn't quite cause conflict, but it can be a factor and shares an example from Nepal. Marcia Wong from the International Committee of the Red Cross shares how the ICRC is taking climate into account in every part of their work.   Listen to find out more.References and supplemental material:The Climate and Environment Charter for Humanitarian OrganisationsND-GAIN IndexWhen Rain Turns to Dust reportIDMC report on Climate and DisplacementThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

In this episode of the Can't Take the Heat podcast, we are zooming into the interface of climate and health. Kristen Aunan tells us why climate and health research needs to inform climate adaptation and policy, while Antonio Gasparrini talks about how climate change is already impacting human health, by playing a role in a third of heat-related deaths globally. Francesca de’Donato shares the most up-to-date evidence on whose most vulnerable to extreme heat and the biggest gaps in our knowledge that still need to be filled. Listen to the full episode to learn more!References and Supplemental Materials:Read the Nature Climate Change paperLearn more about the ENBEL projectLearn more about the Multi-City Multi-Country Collaborative Research NetworkRead the Heat and Health in the WHO European Region: updated evidence for effective prevention. Vicedo-Cabrera, A.M., Scovronick, N., Sera, F. et al. The burden of heat-related mortality attributable to recent human-induced climate change. Nat. Clim. Chang. 11, 492–500 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-021-01058-xThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

In this episode we talk about Missing Maps - the collaboration between the humanitarian and mapping communities to preemptively map parts of the world where disasters and disease epidemics might occur. Andrew Braye from the British Red Cross tells us  how this collaboration started during the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Steve Kenei ,from International Center for Humanitarian Affairs tells us how this collaboration has led to mapping of areas vulnerable to flooding before the rainy season in Kenya. And Irene Amuron of the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, shares her perspective on how Missing Maps has added the missing piece to anticipatory, forecast-based action.   Listen to find out more. References and supplemental material:Missing Maps websiteOpen Street MapMap Kibera projectThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

Two of the biggest trends of this century are urbanisation and climate change. In fact, by 2050 more than two-thirds of the world’s population will be living in urban areas, and 90 percent of this increase will be in Asia and Africa. At the same time, climate change is resulting in bigger storms, hotter temperatures, and higher sea-levels.  These two colliding trends will undoubtably shape the world in the 21st Century. How do city-dwellers take advantage of the incredible opportunities that urbanisation creates, while remaining mindful of and anticipating potentially increased risks?  And how does the Red Cross and Red Crescent support this work? I talked to Eddie Jjemba, Urban Advisor at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, and Aynur Kadihasanoglu, Senior Urban Advisor at the IFRC/Global Disaster Preparedness Centre to learn more! References and Supplemental Materials:Check out the *new* Urban Action Kit a quick start, low-cost, do-it-yourself guide to urban resilience! It comesin 12 languages and contains activities across 6 different areas: Urban AgricultureWater Sanitation and Hygiene - WASHNature-Based SolutionsLiveable CitiesEarly Warning Early actionCreative CommunicationsThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

In the northern hemisphere, as countries were starting to enter the hottest time of the year, the world shut down in lockdowns intended to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus. What happened to people living in informal settlements who had to deal with the dual impacts of COVID-19 lockdowns and the heat season? Elspeth Oppermann, Senior Research Fellow at the Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society, conducted surveys in Cameroon, Pakistan, India, and Indonesia through the Cool Infrastructures project to understand if responses to the pandemic had shaped people's ability to manage extreme heat in off-grid settlements. Poor building materials created "oven-like" conditions for some, and finely-tuned practices to cool down were disrupted in many cases.  Listen to the full episode to learn more! References and Supplemental Materials:Blog explaining the COVID-19 & Heat survey workExplore the raw data from the Cool Infrastructure project's surveysAnwar, N., et al. (2020) Heat and Covid-19 in the Off-Grid City. Somatosphere, July 2, 2020.The intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

The IFRC's Climate:RED summit brought together 10,000 participants from countries around the world to talk about climate issues and humanitarian work. This episode contains snippets from a session in which climate science experts answered audience questions about climate change, La Niña, and forecasts. No question was too big or too small. Listen in to learn more!If you have your own questions, please send them to us at: podcasts@climatecentre.orgWe'll do a follow up episode answering listener questions. The intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

Talking about your personal experience with climate change is one of the most powerful ways to grow the climate movement, according to young people at the forefront of the movement. In this week's episode, I spoke with Abby Kleiman, a Junior at Barnard College and a leader of her school's chapter of the Sunrise Movement. Abby tells me why climate story telling is so important and how she thinks that adults (yes, you!) can support the youth climate movement. We also hear climate stories from two young women based in Costa Rica and the United States. Share your climate story with us! We would love to hear them and feature them on future episodes of the podcast. You can email us a recording or write us a letter and send to podcasts@climatecentre.orgThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

In part-two of our series on what it takes to keep people safe from extreme heat in New York City, I interview Sonal Jessel, Policy and Advocacy Coordinator at WE ACT for Environmental Justice. She talks about how decades old policies and decisions create systemic, environmental racism in New York. Black and brown residents often tend to live in areas with less green space, more air pollution and have less access to public services. This puts them at greater risk of hazards like extreme heat and COVID-19. Listen to the episode to learn more about what can be done to address underlying inequities.This is part two of a two-part series. The first part of this series features Kizzy Charles-Guzman from the NYC Mayors Office of Resiliency. It focuses on how New York City is addressing extreme heat in COVID-19 times, including through their new air conditioning program. References and Supplemental Materials:We Act For Environmental JusticeThe paper mentioned at the beginning of the episode is: Matthews, T., Wilby, R.L. & Murphy, C. An emerging tropical cyclone–deadly heat compound hazard. Nat. Clim. Chang. 9, 602–606 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-019-0525-6The intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

What does it take to keep people in one of the largest cities in the world safe from extreme heat? I interview Kizzy Charles-Guzman, the Deputy Director of the New York City Mayor's Office of Resiliency, about what the City does every time a heat advisory is issued. With COVID-19 some of the advice NYC would typically give on heat ("go outside", "visit senior centers", etc.) is no longer feasible or safe. So, the City is undertaking a massive effort to provide cooling where people live by handing out air conditioners to low-income residents, and helping people pay their electric bills. Kizzy says, "air conditioners are life-saving medical equipment, not a luxury!"  Listen to the episode to learn more. This is part one of a two-part series. The second part of this episode focuses on why heat is an environmental justice issue in NYC and what can be done to address underly  inequities. It is coming up next Tuesday.References and Supplemental Materials:Cool Neighborhoods NYCExtreme Heat Awareness and Protective Behaviors in New York CityLane, K., Wheeler, K., Charles-Guzman, K. et al. Extreme Heat Awareness and Protective Behaviors in New York City. J Urban Health 91, 403–414 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-013-9850-7The intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

How many times have you been to a meeting that could have been an email? Or you are listening to someone give a powerpoint, and you have something interesting to add, or a question to ask, but theres simply no time for interaction? There is a team at the Climate Centre trying to reimagine virtual engagements to make them "Virtually Amazing." Pablo Suarez, Director for Research and Innovation, argues that there is is simply too much to do on climate change and disasters for us to be wasting our time passively listening. Instead, he says, we should be better at (respectfully) calling "bullshit" when processes don't lend themselves to candid conversations and problem solving. According to Margot Curl, Learning Coordinator, if everyone who was holding a meeting thought clearly on two aspects - the objective of the meeting, and the audience - we would be having fewer meetings and the ones that did happen would be much more interactive. A quick tip to make a more interactive meeting is to get every person to say one (short) thing right at the beginning, to creative an atmosphere of sharing. Carina Bachofen, Manager Policy and Partnerships, added that we  need to find new and innovative ways of connecting digitally that don't require everyone to be online simultaneously, with sound and video. Working asynchronously, in a distributed, collective manner could potentially solve connection issues, by designing to the available technology. References and Supplemental Materials:Virtually Amazing ManifestoVirtually Amazing WebsiteThe intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen.

Meteorologists have been forecasting the weather for centuries. Our ability to predict how hot it will be, or how much it will rain has improved a lot over time! Now, scientists are going a step further. They want to predict the impacts of extreme weather events. In other words, not the amount of rain, but what the rain will do. This idea come from the realization that good weather forecasts or warnings are not enough to prevent impacts. People need tailored information about what to do to ensure their safety and protect their livelihoods. For example, this could be a specific warning indicating that an incoming storm will likely result in power outages in certain parts of town, flooded streets in another part of town, and will require evacuation in a particularly exposed and vulnerable area. The podcast features Catalina Jaime, Senior Risk Advisor at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, who is writing guidelines to get all of the stakeholders on the same page on Impact-based Forecasting. We also hear from Maurine Ambani, who is working with Red Cross and Red Crescent national societies around Africa on implementing early warning and early action. This podcast is written, edited and hosted by Roop Singh.The intro music is Welcome to the Show, and the background music is Beauty Flow, both by Kevin MacLeod and is used under a creative commons license. The podcast art is by Melinda.You can listen to the episode by clicking the “play” button in the audio player above or downloading it through your favorite podcast platform. If you are new to podcasts, learn how to listen. References and Supplemental Materials:Impact-based Forecasting and Warning: Weather Ready NationsNew guidelines on impact-based forecasting (watch out for the new guidelines, coming in a few days)