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South Sudanese mother and her two daughters

Tackling climate change

How World Vision works to tackle climate change and protect children’s lives

Children are most vulnerable to the changing climate

Climate change is the greatest threat facing the world’s children and young people. One billion children are at ‘extremely high risk’ of the impacts of climate change. That is nearly half of all children.

The changing climate is increasing the intensity and frequency of disasters like droughts and floods, and people and communities who are poorer are less likely to be able to prepare for such events. This means people are affected more severely, poverty deepens, and the cycle continues.

Increasingly frequent climate shocks impact crop production, destroying families’ livelihoods and reducing the availability of food. Children are most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Instead of getting an education or living in a safe home, children are facing the global hunger crisis, which then increases the risks of child sexual exploitation and child marriage.

We’re protecting children facing climate change

World Vision is supporting the most vulnerable families and communities to become more resilient to the effects of climate change.

Last year, our emergency responses helped over 1.7 million people in 18 countries – over 900,000 of them were children. Our response to climate-related events included the provision of water, food, medical care, and farming techniques.

Keep reading to discover:

How World Vision is tackling climate change

Stories about children impacted by climate change

What you can do to help children

FAQs

How we’re helping

According to the World Bank, climate change threatens to push an additional 130 million people into poverty over the next 10 years.

With your help, we can:

Urgent action is needed to protect children from climate change.

Your support will help World Vision protect children's lives today and empower them for tomorrow.

Stories of how climate change affects children's lives

Discover more about our work to tackle climate change

How you can help

Learn how we're standing up for children's rights

FAQs: Learn more about climate change

  • Climate change describes shifts in weather conditions – such as temperature or rainfall – over a long period of time. These changes can sometimes be natural, but since the 1800s, burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas has been a main driver of climate change.  

    The changing climate is proven through warming temperatures, rising sea levels, flooding and droughts. 

  • Climate change is a ‘threat multiplier'. It creates more uncertainty around seasons, rainfall and droughts, making it harder for small-scale farmers to secure a stable livelihood as it increases the difficulty of planning and adapting crops or livestock expansion - trapping them in a cycle of poverty. 

    Children are most at risk of the effects of climate change. Right now, 45 million people – around half of them children – are facing starvation around the world. In Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Niger and Afghanistan the most vulnerable are now just one-step away from famine. 

  • At World Vision, we are taking action to protect children, their families and communities from the effects of climate change. We work together with communities to tackle the root causes of poverty and vulnerability. 

    Together we can empower the most vulnerable communities to become more resilient to climate shocks.