Climate Change has been found to increase the frequency of extreme weather events and the duration of heat waves.
WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE A LOOK:
The frequency of hot days and nights are expanding the length of the “hot” season and creating more risk to communities. This toolkit by Climate Signals shares tips for communicating about heatwaves and global warming.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
How can writers discuss climate change?
- Compare long-term trends and real time events by asking how the long-term is linked to climate change.
- Climate change is increasing the frequency of hot days and nights, and expanding the length of the “hot” season.
- Look at whether heatwaves are record-breaking, whether it is lasting longer than usual, and whether it appears unusually early in the season.
- When writing about heatwaves ask whether the event brings the total number of hotter-than-normal days in the year to date above the long-term average for the current year.
- Consider that four out of five record-hot days globally are now amplified by the trend in global warming.
- Look at how overnight lows when writing about heat waves
- When writing about heatwaves consider what is define as “normal” now compared to in the past.
- Hot nights do not permit any respite from the heat when discussing extreme weather impacts look at the importance of respite and how it effects children, the elderly and the ill
