In the 12/16/2025 edition:
Climate Change News for December 16, 2025 highlights the most important global developments in disaster risk reduction, climate resilience, extreme weather events, floods, wildfires, and early warning systems.
News: COP30 and the cost of governing climate risks in silos
By Medium on Dec 15, 2025 05:12 pm
Ten years ago, the world celebrated a remarkable diplomatic achievement: the Paris Agreement. Yet this same year — 2025 — also marks another anniversary, one that receives far less fanfare but reveals a troubling truth about how we govern climate risk
News: Building capacities for the next generation of tsunami and coastal-hazard warning systems
By Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (UNESCO) on Dec 15, 2025 05:11 pm
In 2025, the IOC Tsunami Ready Programme marked significant progress in strengthening coastal-hazard preparedness worldwide.
News: The rise of sinkholes: How to spot the risks before disaster strikes
By Conversation Media Group, the on Dec 15, 2025 04:14 pm
You trust the road beneath your tires. But what if that trust is misplaced? Sinkholes are increasingly turning ordinary streets into danger zones. And the cost of ignoring them is skyrocketing.
News: How traditional Himalayan burning could help prevent mega wildfires
By Conversation Media Group, the on Dec 15, 2025 04:13 pm
Every year during December and January, in the Indian Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, rural communities carry out traditional burning on steep hill slopes to regenerate grass.
News: Wildfires can turn harmless minerals in soils into contaminants, research shows
By PhysOrg, Omicron Technology Ltd on Dec 15, 2025 04:13 pm
In the wake of a wildfire, a vital micronutrient can become a toxic heavy metal—and could eventually make its way into groundwater.
News: Infographic deep dive: 5 windows into Thailand’s economics of climate adaptation
By United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) on Dec 15, 2025 02:19 pm
This risk assessment approach for Thailand shows a potential future climate picture and pinpoints the adaptation measures to deliver real impact.
News: Flood warnings and technical language
By The Warn Room on Dec 15, 2025 02:15 pm
When immediate action is necessary, searching for definitions to help make sense of the emergency alert will slow reactions, something that can prove costly.
News: Why disability screening matters for early action?
By People in Need on Dec 15, 2025 01:32 pm
When we talk about early action, we often think of forecasts, warning systems, and advanced technology. But the truth is simpler and more urgent: early action fails if it does not reach the most vulnerable.
News: Disasters cause long-term health harms, research finds
By Yale Climate Connections on Dec 15, 2025 01:24 pm
A study of Superstorm Sandy survivors found higher rates of heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiovascular diseases in ZIP codes that experienced flooding.
News: Droughts lasting longer across Australia, study shows
By University of New South Wales on Dec 15, 2025 01:14 pm
Droughts are lasting longer in Australia, particularly in some of our most populated regions, UNSW scientists have shown.
News: Overcoming four big challenges to investigating the water crisis
By Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) on Dec 15, 2025 12:44 pm
Journalists and editors covering water scarcity issues from around the world discussed their methods and strategies at the 14th Global Investigative Journalism Conference (GIJC25) in the session “Investigating the Water Crisis Through a Local Lens.”
News: How a species of bamboo could help protect the South from future floods
By Grist Magazine on Dec 12, 2025 06:02 pm
In the face of mounting climate disasters, tribes, scientists, and Southern communities are rallying around a nearly forgotten native plant.
News: The town on the banks of the Nile that turned floods into fortune
By Guardian, the (UK) on Dec 12, 2025 06:02 pm
Bor was entirely submerged when the White Nile broke its banks in late 2020. Although used to its seasonal overflow – bor means flood in the Dinka language – it was flooding people here had not seen for 60 years.
News: New project turns internet lines into an earthquake monitoring system
By California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt on Dec 12, 2025 05:57 pm
The tests take place above buried fiber optic cables in the most seismically active part of the continental U.S. These cables, which will provide high-speed internet to more than 20,000 residents in the region, can also be used to detect earthquakes.
News: 4 ways the private sector can empower utility resilience amid severe climate risks
By World Economic Forum (WEF) on Dec 12, 2025 05:57 pm
To navigate this landscape and secure both operational stability and competitive advantage, the private sector must move from being reactive to an investment mindset. Four core pillars can surround this transition.
News: USA: California schools are feeling the heat
By American Geophysical Union on Dec 12, 2025 12:34 pm
Even though trees help keep children safe from the Sun, some school districts have lost 25% of their tree canopy in just 4 years.
News: ESG Watch: How climate change is putting sport on a sticky wicket
By Thomson Reuters on Dec 12, 2025 10:24 am
Sport is both a victim of and a contributor to climate change, with professional sports involving a huge amount of flying by athletes and supporters.
News: Japan’s 1st ‘subsequent earthquake advisory’ a reminder to prepare for disasters
By Mainichi Newspapers Co., Ltd., the – Mainichi Daily news, the on Dec 12, 2025 10:23 am
A University of Tokyo survey found that less than 10% of people checked evacuation routes or communication methods with family, and only 20% checked their water and food supply stockpile.
News: Bridging the gap between green stormwater infrastructure research and implementation
By Texas A&M University System on Dec 12, 2025 10:22 am
Green stormwater infrastructure offers many benefits, including improved habitats, decreased stormwater runoff and greener public spaces. The advantages are widely recognized within the field of water management, and public awareness is growing as well.
News: Building financial resilience in fragile contexts: The journey of Somalia’s Disaster Risk Financing Strategy
By Financial Protection Forum (World Bank) on Dec 12, 2025 10:18 am
When we first began working with Somalia on its Disaster Risk Financing (DRF) agenda, we knew we were stepping into one of the world’s most complex environments.
DRR Community Voices: From silence to strength: reclaiming Bhopal’s legacy
By Shiree Khan on Dec 11, 2025 04:36 pm
For the world, Bhopal is linked to the 1984 industrial gas leak, when toxic methyl isocyanate spread silently. Forty years later, the author believes we must expand the narrative not to forget, but to reclaim Bhopal as a living classroom of resilience.
News: Investing in planetary health would deliver higher GDP, fewer deaths, less poverty
By United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) on Dec 11, 2025 04:19 pm
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report finds that climate change, biodiversity loss, land degradation, desertification, and pollution and waste have taken a heavy toll on the planet, people and economies.
News: More powerful hurricanes but less frequent: Was 2025 hurricane season a glimpse of the future?
By Union of Concerned Scientists on Dec 11, 2025 02:24 pm
The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season came to an end on November 30, and while no hurricanes made landfall in the United States or its territories, the season was one for the record books.
News: Rural farming for adaptation and resilience in West Africa
By Global Center on Adaptation on Dec 11, 2025 02:23 pm
Across West Africa, rural farming communities are facing one of the hardest tests of our time. Climate change is no longer a distant scientific forecast. It is a daily experience that affects how farmers plant, harvest, store food and plan their futures.
News: Increasing heavy rainfall and extreme flood heights in a warming climate threaten densely populated regions across Sri Lanka and the Malacca Strait
By World Weather Attribution on Dec 11, 2025 01:54 pm
On 27 November, Cyclonic Storm Ditwah struck Sri Lanka with strong winds and very heavy rainfall, causing the worst flooding and landslides since the early 2000s.
News: Soil erosion is tearing DRC cities apart: what’s causing urban gullies, and how to prevent them
By Conversation Media Group, the on Dec 11, 2025 01:50 pm
In fast-growing cities like some in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), heavy rains are carving huge scars into the land. Known as urban gullies, these deep erosion channels can swallow homes, destroy roads and displace entire communities.
News: Cracks in the Earth: Major gully erosion poses humanitarian crisis threats
By Griffith University on Dec 11, 2025 01:45 pm
Fieldwork by Griffith University researchers has highlighted an African country that is facing a rapidly escalating environmental crisis as severe gully erosion—locally termed “mega gullies”—advances across valuable agricultural landscapes.
News: Flood sensors help NYC residents stay out of dangerous waters
By Yale Climate Connections on Dec 11, 2025 01:42 pm
A team has installed about 300 solar-powered sensors near streets and intersections that are flood-prone during storms or high tides.
News: Evacuation lessons from the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires
By Domestic Preparedness on Dec 11, 2025 01:34 pm
The 2025 Eaton Fire was the fifth deadliest and second most destructive wildfire in California history. Those who died had a median age of 77, and at least a third had limited mobility.
News: Transforming disaster financing: an alternative to FEMA funding
By Domestic Preparedness on Dec 11, 2025 01:23 pm
The increasing frequency and severity of disasters caused by natural hazards strain traditional government-funded emergency management systems, particularly the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
News: 5 ways to strengthen disaster-resilient infrastructure in mountain regions
By United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) on Dec 11, 2025 01:04 pm
Five approaches show how mountain infrastructure can be made more resilient to withstand future shocks.
News: Climate change and rural livelihoods: How extreme heat drives international migration from El Salvador
By VoxDev/ CEPR on Dec 11, 2025 09:49 am
In El Salvador, extreme heat lowers agricultural productivity and rural incomes, pushing farmers – especially those with strong migrant networks – to use international migration as a climate adaptation strategy.
News: Art as a tool to enable resilience against tidal flooding
By Mongabay on Dec 10, 2025 05:26 pm
Sea level rise, local subsidence, canal siltation, ill-planned reclamation, and overstressed drainage systems together lengthen high tides, allowing slack water to linger for hours. Experts call it high-tide flooding or tidal flooding.
News: From coastal risks to resilience: Sharing lessons from Viet Nam’s Mekong Delta
By World Bank, the on Dec 10, 2025 05:21 pm
Driven by the action of the Government and the resilience of local communities, Viet Nam has treated challenges as a catalyst for transformative change, piloting innovative solutions that offer coastal nations practical models to adapt and build on.
News: GeoFlame VISION: Using AI and satellite imagery to predict future wildfire risk
By The Society for Risk Analysis (SRA) on Dec 10, 2025 05:18 pm
A new computer model produces a dynamic wildfire risk map, starting with the state of California.
News: Global study: Dangerous nighttime heat rising in 83% of global cities analyzed, becoming more oppressive, and more frequent
By Climate Resilience for All on Dec 10, 2025 05:14 pm
From the COP 30 Local Leaders Forum – a critical gathering of global mayors focused on climate action- a sweeping new scientific analysis was released of the most dangerous summer weather conditions across 100 major global cities.
News: Excessive heat harms young children’s development, study suggests
By New York University on Dec 10, 2025 05:14 pm
The study found that children exposed to higher-than-usual temperatures were less likely to meet developmental milestones for literacy and numeracy, relative to children living in areas with lower temperatures.
News: Study reveals wildfire risk and resource mismatch in Colorado
By Colorado State University on Dec 10, 2025 05:10 pm
There is a mismatch between wildfire risk and mitigation resources across Colorado, Colorado State University researchers found in a study revealing the areas of the state most vulnerable to wildfire.
News: Flood management collaboration: Rio Grande do Sul looks to the future with resilient recovery
By United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) on Dec 09, 2025 04:52 pm
This article highlights how the 2024 floods in Rio Grande do Sul triggered a coordinated response with UNDRR, the Dutch DRRS team, and international partners to embed resilient recovery and “Build Back Better” principles into reconstruction.
News: Asia and the Pacific preparing for a new era of disaster risks
By United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN-ESCAP) on Dec 09, 2025 03:13 pm
The Asia-Pacific region is entering an era of cascading risks driven by intensifying heat and extreme weather with marine heatwaves and warmer sea surface temperatures fueling this new normal.
News: Five ways cities across Europe and Central Asia are adapting to extreme heat
By United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) on Dec 09, 2025 03:04 pm
From Flames of change II: Urban action on Extreme Heat Across Europe and Central Asia, here are five ways cities in Europe and Central Asia are adapting to extreme heat.
News: When floods rise in Pakistan, women’s reproductive health falls behind
By Ipas on Dec 09, 2025 02:50 pm
In climate-induced crises, women and girls are disproportionately impacted. Many face unmet reproductive health needs, including unmanaged complications of pregnancy loss, disruption of antenatal services, and reduced access to contraception services.
News: 3D model to help mitigate groundwater flooding
By British Geological Survey on Dec 09, 2025 02:41 pm
BGS has released a 3D geological model of Gateshead to enhance understanding of groundwater and improve the response to flooding.
News: Homes that can withstand extremes: Study reveals pathways to housing resilience
By University of Notre Dame on Dec 09, 2025 02:35 pm
With disasters striking communities across the U.S. at an accelerating pace, the question of how to build homes that can endure them has never been more critical.
News: Primed to burn: what’s behind the intense, sudden fires burning across New South Wales and Tasmania
By Conversation Media Group, the on Dec 09, 2025 02:26 pm
Big, dangerous bushfires need fuel to burn. Scientists categorise these fuels as either “dead” or “live”. Dead fuels include fallen leaves and twigs on the ground, whereas live fuels include the foliage on living shrubs and trees.
News: Aging bridges are crumbling. Here’s how new technologies can help detect danger earlier
By Conversation Media Group, the on Dec 09, 2025 02:22 pm
To fully understand these risks, researchers can make use of the most recent technological advances such as drone imaging, AI-assisted defect detection and non-destructive testing to collect regular and reliable data about a structure’s condition.
News: Even ‘weak’ cyclones are being turned into deadly rainmakers by fast-warming oceans
By Conversation Media Group, the on Dec 09, 2025 02:22 pm
The final week of November was devastating for several South Asian countries. Communities in Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand were inundated as Cyclones Ditwah and Senyar unleashed days of relentless rain.
News: When should a Tsunami not be called a Tsunami?
By Eos – AGU on Dec 09, 2025 02:21 pm
It’s time to redefine the term so it more clearly conveys meaningful risks to coastal communities and prompts them to act when needed.
News: A 30-year-old sea level rise projection has basically come true
By Yale Climate Connections on Dec 09, 2025 02:20 pm
Even without today’s advanced modeling tools, scientists made a ‘remarkably’ accurate estimate.
News: Mali steps up efforts to reduce flood risks and strengthen community resilience
By United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) on Dec 09, 2025 01:54 pm
This article highlights Mali’s decisive, coordinated action to tackle increasingly destructive floods by uniting national institutions and humanitarian partners around a shared, forward-looking approach that blends DRR and anticipatory action.
DRR Community Voices: Playing seriously: Stop Disasters! Adapt our cities to climate change
By Mélanie Raphaël on Dec 09, 2025 10:43 am
Stop Disasters is an excellent tool to understand the challenges of natural hazard adaptation and sustainable development. Raising awareness contributes to better preparedness for hazards and encourages reflection on land use planning.