In 2010, heavy monsoons led to devastating floods in Pakistan that destroyed 11,000 schools. Thousands of additional schools had to be used as community shelters, preventing them from operating as classrooms. In the immediate aftermath of climate-related events such as this, damage to schools and infrastructure often interrupt a child’s education. This is even more devastating in countries and communities where access to educational resources is already strained.

Research has shown an overall reduction in educational attainment, lower academic performance, and higher rates of absenteeism among children who have experienced climate shocks. After these events, children may also miss school due to sickness (e.g., malnutrition during drought, or increased rates of diarrheal disease after floods), injury, or displacement. In the long run, this may reduce lifetime earnings when these children reach adulthood.

Climate events disproportionately affect vulnerable students, particularly adolescent girls. This pattern is particularly alarming, as evidence suggests that climate-related shocks (cyclones, flash floods, wildfires) and stresses (drought, for example) are increasing in frequency and intensity.

Detailed information about where climate events occur, who is at risk, and why, is essential for policymakers and school officials to take actions that minimize lost school time. These risks are particularly acute for adolescent girls, who have a short window of opportunity to get back to school before they are forced to take a different path—including marriage or migration for work.

Read the full article how natural disasters undermine schooling by Erica Chuang, Jessie Pinchoff, and Stephanie Psaki at Brookings.