LIVE: Climate change is here - What happens next is still in our hands

A person stands in shallow water holding a net against a sunset sky in Punta Negra, Maldonado, Uruguay.

LIVE: Climate change is here - What happens next is still in our hands

Special coverage LIVE

23 September 2026 Climate and Environment

From deadly floods in the Himalayas to wildfires and extreme heat across Europe, 2026 has brought a succession of stark reminders of a changing climate. The task is immediate: Protect people from the impacts already unfolding while rapidly cutting the emissions of harmful gasses driving climate change. World leaders have been meeting on Wednesday to discuss how to turn those priorities into action.

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News Tracker: Past Stories on This Issue

A woman wearing a pink patterned wrap walks away through a dry maize crop in an open savanna landscape under a cloudy sky.

How El Niño offers a test of whether the world can adapt to a changing climate

22 September 2026

Climate and Environment

El Niño is strengthening in a world that is already hotter, raising the risk of drought, floods and crop losses across some of the world’s most important food-producing regions. But unlike many disasters, this one can be seen coming. UN experts say the months ahead offer countries a chance not only to protect the next harvest and our food security, but to prepare for a more unpredictable climate in the long run.

South Asian woman in a pink headscarf smiles while tending to cabbages in a vegetable field.

Why climate action now comes down to speed, finance and cooperation

21 September 2026

Climate and Environment

Temporarily exceeding the 1.5°C global warming goal set in Paris is widely considered inevitable. The challenge now is to keep that overshoot as small and short as possible by cutting emissions faster, unlocking finance and strengthening international cooperation.