‘Turn down the heat,’ warns World Bank report on climate change

Washington Post : The World Bank , an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries, has just released a report warning of the dire consequences that could result if global temperatures continue to rise at the current rate. The report predicts that by 2100 Earth could be 4 °C warmer than in preindustrial times. At that rate, sea levels could rise by a meter or more, coastal cities could flood, severe weather events such as droughts and floods could increase, and food production could be severely impacted. And although all countries will feel the effects, the poorest nations will be the most affected. However, “a 4C-warmer world is not a foregone conclusion,” writes World Bank president Jim Yong Kim in a Guardian op-ed . He views the report as a call to action and as a roadmap to economic opportunity. All countries, both developed and developing, should seize the opportunity to find new technologies and new approaches for mitigating climate change.