Climate change is a hunger issue
People in low-income countries face the impact of climate change on a daily basis – even though they contribute least to greenhouse gas emissions. Erratic and more severe weather patterns affect their livelihoods and food security.
The effects of climate change are becoming more noticeable in wealthier parts of the world, but poor and marginalized communities, especially women and indigenous populations, in low-income countries are even more vulnerable than before to shocks beyond their control.
Impacts of climate change
Climate change affects the types of crops that can grow well in certain areas and reduces access to land suitable to growing food or grazing animals.
It has brought new crop diseases and pests to some regions. The nutrient content of some crops has changed because of climate change, and water supplies in some regions are shrinking.
And, perhaps easiest to see, weather patterns are changing. Super-charged cyclones and hurricanes are increasing hunger from Africa to the United States. Mozambique and Puerto Rico, places already struggling with food insecurity before weather-related disasters hit, require aid to survive and rebuild.
In the highlands of Guatemala, chronic malnutrition affects roughly sixty-five percent of a primarily agrarian population and out-migration to the United States is increasing due to extreme drought and flooding.
Increased hunger and loss of livelihood force people to seek more habitable places to live. Since 2008, nearly 175 million people in developing countries have been displaced by climate-induced disasters—a number that continues to grow.
Climate change is also contributing to a growing number of conflicts. These conflicts have driven an increase in hunger in recent years, reversing a decade of progress. A record number of people are living in near-famine conditions.
Who experiences climate change
Bread for the World advocates for people who are most threatened by climate change – people who are already hungry or at risk of hunger. The cost and availability of food affects these groups more than anyone else. In some countries, people in the lowest income group spend 75 percent or more of their incomes on food. Two such nations are Pakistan and Malawi.
Of those most threatened by climate change, women and girls bear the heaviest burdens. They must travel farther in search of water and firewood. They work land that is less fertile and may already be depleted.
Women and girls are also more threatened by natural disasters. For example, in many areas devastated by the 2004 South Asian tsunami, those who died were more likely to be female. In India’s Cuddalore district, nearly 90 percent of victims were women and girls.
Adapting to climate change requires many interconnected actions and policies. Building resilience in communities where people have always struggled to produce enough food needs to be a high priority as does identifying and adopting sustainable farming practices.
The global food system is already under tremendous pressure to be more productive and meet the needs of a growing global population. If countries cannot work together to find and implement solutions, ending hunger by 2030 will be out of reach and the encouraging progress against hunger of the past few decades will be lost.
Nearly 175 million people in developing countries have been displaced by climate-induced disasters since 2008
Related Resources
Tools
from our Resource Library
For Education
U.S. Hunger and Poverty State Fact Sheets
These fact sheets provide a snapshot of hunger and poverty in the United States and in each state plus Washington, D.C.
Briefing Paper: A Multi-Sectoral Approach to Nutrition. Assessing USAID's Progress.
Better nutrition is a necessary component of a country’s capacity to achieve development goals such as economic growth and improved public health.
The U.S. Contribution to Ending Global Malnutrition
Worldwide, maternal and child malnutrition causes millions of deaths each year. In some countries, it holds entire generations back from reaching their economic potential.
For Faith
Unity Declaration on Racism and Poverty
A diverse body of Christian leaders calls on the churches and Congress to focus on the integral connection.
Dear Members of Congress,
As the president and Congress are preparing their plans for this year, almost 100 church leaders—from all the families of U.S. Christianity—are...
In Times Like These … A Pan-African Christian Devotional for Public Policy Engagement
This devotional guide invites deepened relationship with and among Pan-African people and elected leaders in the mission to end hunger and poverty.
Sermon by David Beckmann at Duke University Chapel
Remarks delivered October 1, 2017 at Duke University Chapel in Chapel Hill in North Carolina.
Thank you for inviting me to preach here at Duke University Chapel. And I especially want to thank the Bread for the World members who have come this morning.
Bruce Puckett urged...
For Advocacy
Fact Sheet: Why We Need $250 Million for Global Nutrition Programs
Bread for the World and its partners are asking Congress to provide $250 million for global nutrition in the fiscal year 2020 budget.
U.S. Hunger and Poverty State Fact Sheets
These fact sheets provide a snapshot of hunger and poverty in the United States and in each state plus Washington, D.C.
Fact Sheet: Hunger by the Numbers
In 2017, 11.8 percent of households in the U.S.—40 million people—were food-insecure, meaning that they were unsure at some point during the year about how they would provide for their next meal.