Rising temperatures, extreme weather events, food shortages: the consequences of global warming have been known for decades.
Nevertheless, the willingness to pursue active climate protection, at least in Germany, was low for many years.
One reason: For a long time, the countries in Central Europe only marginally noticed the effects of the crisis - so why take action?
This attitude has meanwhile changed, and in Germany, too, the climate-related impacts are getting closer and closer.
The flood in the Ahr Valley made that clear to us.
A look at the world shows that other countries have been feeling the drama of the climate crisis for much longer and, above all, more strongly.
They are looking for solutions on how to adapt to the consequences of warming.
For example: the countries of Southeast Africa.
Heat records and the resulting droughts are causing problems in Mozambique and Zimbabwe in particular.
A technical response to this: early warning systems for periods of drought.
SPIEGEL Africa correspondent Heiner Hoffman says in the podcast: »Droughts are detected earlier, for example with satellite monitoring.
You can then respond with cash payments to those affected so they can prepare, rather than taking emergency action after the fact.”
Another area that is particularly hard hit by the effects of global warming: the west coast of the USA.
California in particular is struggling with forest fires and sea level rise.
USA correspondent Alexander Demling says: »If you go to Silicon Valley, it gets very hot in the summer and the houses are often not properly prepared for it.
For example, they don't have air conditioning at all because the climate when the houses were built was much milder and more predictable."
How is California responding?
In this episode of "Klimabericht", our podcast on the climate crisis, we look at how other countries are defying the consequences of climate change and ask ourselves: What can we in Germany learn from this?
The guests this time are SPIEGEL correspondents Heiner Hoffmann and Alexander Demling.
Curious? Then listen to our »climate report« now:
