The outlook for climate-related weather disasters is stormy for S-E Asia

THE deadly forest fires enveloping swathes of territory in Australia are the latest and most dramatic illustration of the devastating impact of human-induced climate change. Yet policymakers show no urgency to reverse climate change, as evidenced by the collapse of COP 25 climate summit in Madrid late last year. A way forward is to strengthen public understanding of the ongoing climate disaster, which could swing public opinion in favour of taking action.

A recently published journal article ("Impacts of Carbon Dioxide Emissions on Global Intense Hydrometeorological Disasters", in Climate, Disaster and Development Journal) provides the connection between rising carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere and the uptick in flood and s…