Right now, in the U.S. and around the world, children's lives are under threat due to climate change. Nearly 710 million children are currently living in countries at the highest risk of suffering the impact of the climate crisis. However, every child will inherit a planet with more frequent extreme weather events than ever before.

Extreme events, including wildfires, floods and hurricanes, have become a frightening new normal. Hotter temperatures, air pollution and violent storms are leading to immediate, life-threatening dangers for children, including difficulty breathing, malnutrition and higher risk of infectious diseases.

What Are the Effects of Climate Change on Future Generations? 

While climate change affects everyone, those who have contributed the least to the crisis—children, those in poverty, and future generations—are the most affected.

  • Extreme temperatures leave many families living in poverty with less food, less clean water, lower incomes and worsening health.
  • Children’s immune systems are still developing, leaving their rapidly growing bodies more sensitive to disease and pollution.
  • Extreme events can destroy homes, schools, childcare centers and infrastructure critical to children’s well-being.
  • Droughts and flooding can destroy crops and cut access to clean water.
  • The UN warns that many families will have to choose between starvation and migration.

Read the full article about the impact of climate change on children at Save the Children.