Temperature records are unfortunately nothing new. What is striking is the global scale and breadth of the extreme heat and drought conditions we have endured. Some summer lowlights in climate:

While extreme heat typically captures the headlines, parts of the southern hemisphere have recently endured record-breaking cold temperatures. A powerful anticyclone originating from the South Pole caused extreme cold temperatures stretching from Chile and Argentina to parts of Paraguay and Uruguay.

Numerous weather stations across Chile and Argentina set new temperature records, falling below -15°C, particularly in Patagonia and the Andes.

Often lost in the data are the very real human impacts brought by such temperatures. At their most extreme, an analysis led by World Weather Attribution found that 2,300 people may have died as a result of this summer’s extreme heat conditions across Europe. An analysis of 12 cities over a 10-day period showed 3x the number of deaths projected in the absence of climate change.

Extreme heat conditions in China have also weighed heavily on their economic output, with labour productivity in key sectors like agriculture and industry falling sharply. An analysis by The Lancet of less severe extreme heat conditions in 2023 found work hours lost to heat stress reached 36.9 billion hours. Meanwhile, extreme drought conditions in Henan, Xinjiang and Hubei - China’s agricultural breadbaskets, will increase food price pressure in an economy already facing significant headwinds.

The extreme cold conditions experienced this winter in South America will also severely impact agricultural output, with reports of damage to sensitive crops like kiwifruit and leafy green vegetables grown across the agricultural valleys of central Chile and northern Patagonia.

Beyond stopgap measures like hosepipe bans in the UK when faced with extreme drought conditions, governments have largely responded with thoroughly designed, if at times poorly implemented, heat warning and action plans. July 2025 saw China’s first-ever nationwide high-temperature health risk warning, aiming to strengthen public health preparedness by providing the public with early guidance to reduce the health impacts of extreme heat. This mirrors similar heat-health warning systems triggered across Europe. France, Spain, Portugal and Italy issued red alerts, over 1,350 schools closed in France, and workplace adjustments were temporarily implemented across multiple countries.

While well-meaning extreme heat government policies are in place, practical realities often inhibit their adoption. After the death of a municipal city worker in Barcelona, the city toughened heat protocols, including mandating workers take five-minute breaks to hydrate every hour during heatwaves. Such policies are inherently self-enforcing, leaving all responsibility to workers. Similar dynamics are at play for China’s gig economy workers. The Hangzhou government established policies to protect the city’s 350,000 registered food delivery drivers from extreme heat, with districts across the city launching “break stations” with amenities like water dispensers and charging facilities. However, a survey of delivery drivers found minimal use of such stations, primarily due to high pressure on delivery performance by food delivery platforms.

Some governments have reverted to more extreme measures to protect citizens from extreme heat. Italy’s government has implemented new measures, going as far as shutting down business activities when temperatures reach certain levels, meanwhile Greece’s Labor Ministry restrict all outdoor work from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. when temperatures exceed 40°C.

Outside of shutting down businesses, a wide variety of low-tech heat mitigation initiatives are being deployed to improve liveability and adapt to a warmer climate. China is undertaking urban heat mitigation programs in cities across the country, planting tree canopies and misting pedestrian-dense city “hot zones”, alongside accelerated investment in heat-resistent crop varieties and cooling technologies.

More technical solutions to improve liveability are also being deployed: consumer wearables like personal air conditioning devices (e.g. Coolify), smart cooling wristbands (e.g. Embr Wave), and cooling jackets (e.g. Midori Safety) for outdoor worker comfort and wellbeing. Businesses are also playing a direct role in deploying solutions, with British Columbia’s energy utility distributing portable air conditioning units to the most vulnerable populations in the province, with more than 8,000 units expected to be deployed.

Climate change hits the poor hardest, and they typically have the lowest capacity to adapt. A project hosted at the Kenya Medical Research Institute aims to develop localised, community-led solutions through simple modificiation to doors, windows and eaves in homes, aiming to deliver ambient cooling to improve indoor thermal comfort while also minimising the risk of malaria and vector-borne disease.

We are at an inflection point in attention and progress on climate adaptation with an increasing cadence of reporting, news and the deployment of solutions for a more liveable world. It’s time to build.

To Truth, Justice and a Better Tomorrow.

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