1. Poverty and Climate Change

2. The human and environmental cost Between 1980 and 2004: o The number of victims of weather disasters in developing countries more than tripled, to 257 million a year. o The incidence of floods and cyclones — which disproportionately affect poor nations — quadrupled.

3. The financial cost o Rich countries' greenhouse emissions will cost poor ones more than $2.3 trillion in damages over the next century. o This is half a trillion dollars more than their current external debt.

4. Bolivia In January 2008, catastrophic floods hit Bolivia's Amazonian lowlands for a second straight year, rendering much of Trinidad, a city of around 95,000, essentially uninhabitable. Flooding and severe rainstorms (which, due to climate change, are now commonplace) have displaced nearly 50,000 people in Bolivia, one of South America's poorest countries.

5. A man outside flooded home in Bolivia

6. Where do climate refugees go? Tuvalu, a Pacific island nation, is disappearing due to rising sea levels. Around one-fifth of the 12,000-some inhabitants have already left, most bound for New Zealand, where the Tuvaluan community has nearly tripled since 1996.

7. The meaning of being a refugee T he Tuvaluan migrants, many of whom had to come to New Zealand illegally, face many new problems: unemployment low wages rising debt young children with no place to go while their parents struggle to work.

8. A Tuvaluan Refugee in New Zealand

9. For every flood, there is a drought In the Sahel region of West Africa, nearly half of the population survives on subsistence farming. Rainfall there is projected to decline severely. Overall, the number of Africans facing water shortages is expected to double by 2050.

10. Disappearing Lake Chad Lake Chad, a formerly large lake in the Sahel region, has shrunk by 90% since 1963: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXW29zsr6xg

11. What happens when a lake disappears? The region around Lake Chad has experienced: A 60% decline in fish production Shortages of pasturelands and healthy livestock decreasing biodiversity conflicts over limited water emigration due to residents' inability to make a living, feed themselves, or find water

12. The true meaning of environmental justice All people have a right to a safe and secure home, and to a steady supply of food and water However, due to poverty and climate change, many people lack these necessities Climate change and poverty are directly linked - when we fight climate change, we fight poverty and disaster

13. Your choices can affect millions of people around the world Learn what you can do to lower your carbon footprint today

14. Bibliography 1. http://motherjones.com/environment/2009/11/tuvalu-climate- refugees: What Happens When Your Country Drowns? 2. http://motherjones.com/environment/2009/11/bolivia-paying- rain: Cash for Thunder: Bolivia Demands "Reparations" 3. desertification.wordpress.com/.../shrinking-lake-chad-could- trigger- humanitarian-disaster-unnews/