Giving Compass' Take:

• Global Citizen reports on new research that explores the risk of extreme heat, floods and food shortages faced by cities around the world due to climate change factors.

• Can we turn the trends around? It starts with reducing CO2 emissions on a larger scale, but it doesn't stop there. Leaders across many sectors will need to collaborate closely with local policymakers in order to avert disaster.

• Here's how Cape Town managed to avoid a catastrophic drought — at least this year.

In the next 30 years, cities around the world will face dramatically higher risks from extreme heat, coastal flooding, power blackouts, and food and water shortages unless climate-changing emissions are curbed, urban researchers warned.

Currently more than 200 million people in 350 cities face average daily peak temperatures of at least 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) for three months a year, according to a study by C40 Cities, a network of cities pushing climate action.

But by 2050, more than 1.6 billion people in 970 cities will face those conditions, researchers predicted.

The number of people in poverty and battling brutal heat — usually without air conditioning — will rise tenfold, they said.

"This is a wake-up call," said Kevin Austin, deputy executive director of C40 Cities, at a meeting in Cape Town on adapting to climate change.

"The magnitude of people affected by heat will be (much) greater than today if we continue to increase greenhouse gases at this rate."

With experts at the meeting predicting extreme weather such as heavy rainfall and flooding could trigger everything from disease outbreaks to road failures, food shortages and closed schools, Austin said cities must take direct action to curb risks as well as cut emissions.

Read the full article about cities facing extreme climate risks by 2050 by Laurie Goering at Global Citizen.