Global Solutions Centre

Climate Change & Environmental Sustainability

What the evidence shows, what is at stake, and the practical responses — from energy to farming to home.

Starter edition · Last reviewed 13 Nov 2026

The challenge

The planet is warming because greenhouse gases from human activity — mainly burning fossil fuels and deforestation — trap heat. This is not a projection but a measurement, confirmed by thermometers, satellites, oceans and ice records worldwide, and assessed by the IPCC, the UN body that reviews the scientific literature.

The effects arrive as extremes: heavier rains and floods in some places, drought and heat in others, pressure on farms, water and health. The responses are equally practical: cleaner energy, efficiency, resilient farming and infrastructure, and protecting the ecosystems that protect us.

What the evidence says

1.1 °C

of human-caused global warming had occurred by 2011–2020 compared with 1850–1900, with larger increases over land (about 1.59 °C) than ocean.

Source: IPCC Sixth Assessment Report, Synthesis Report Summary for Policymakers (2023).

Every increment matters

the IPCC finds that each additional increment of warming intensifies weather and climate extremes — heatwaves, heavy rainfall, droughts — in every region.

Source: IPCC AR6 Synthesis Report (2023).

Practical solutions

Waste less energy first: insulation, efficient lighting and appliances, and fixing leaks cut bills and emissions together.
Choose clean power where you can: renewable electricity tariffs, rooftop solar where viable, and efficient electric heating and transport as they become available.
Protect water: fix leaks, harvest rain, plant shade and ground cover; water stress is how climate change reaches many homes first.
Farm climate-smart: soil cover, agroforestry, drought-suited varieties and water harvesting (see the Agriculture centre).
Plant and protect trees — and mangroves, wetlands and grasslands, which store carbon and buffer floods.
Prepare for extremes: know your flood and heat risks, keep an emergency kit, and look out for elderly neighbours in heatwaves.
Reduce, reuse, recycle — in that order, and waste less food: food in landfill makes methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

Make your home more resilient in five steps

Learn your local risks: flood maps, heat warnings and water advisories for where you live.
Cut the energy bill: seal drafts, switch to LED lighting, and service heating/cooling systems.
Guard your water: repair leaks, store emergency water, and add rain capture for gardens where allowed.
Prepare a 72-hour kit: water, food, medicines, torch, radio, documents and chargers.
Agree a family plan: where to meet, who to call, and how you will check on neighbours who live alone.

Test yourself

Questions people ask

Is climate change really caused by humans?
The IPCC — assessing thousands of studies — states it is unequivocal that human activity has warmed the climate, principally through greenhouse-gas emissions. Natural factors alone cannot explain the observed warming since the mid-20th century.

What difference can one household make?
Households drive demand for energy, food and transport — a large share of emissions — and resilience is local by nature: the home you insulate, the water you save and the neighbour you check on are real outcomes, not symbols.

Is renewable energy practical in places like Ghana and Canada?
Solar resources in Ghana are excellent and costs have fallen worldwide; Canada adds hydro, wind and geothermal strengths. The practical path differs by place — efficiency everywhere, then the clean resources each region has in abundance.

References

IPCC — AR6 Synthesis Report: Summary for Policymakers (2023)

Facts above are labelled with their sources and dates. Where this centre offers guidance, it is educational information to help you decide — not a substitute for advice about your own situation.