Climate change

How it is used

The central term in science, policy and the media. You tackle, fight or address climate change; you adapt to its effects and mitigate it by cutting emissions. Common phrases are the impacts of climate change, human-induced climate change and climate change policy. Some media and campaigners use the stronger term 'climate crisis'.

Example sentences

1. Climate change is making heatwaves in the Mediterranean longer and more intense.

2. The city's new plan looks at how climate change will affect the water supply over the next 30 years.

Common collocations

• tackle climate change
• impacts of climate change
• human-induced climate change
• adapt to climate change
• climate change policy

Related terms

• global warmingThe rise in the Earth's average surface temperature since the late 1800s, caused mainly by greenhouse gases released by human activities.
• greenhouse gasA gas in the atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide, methane or nitrous oxide, that traps heat from the sun and warms the Earth's surface.
• mitigationAction to reduce or prevent greenhouse gas emissions, or to remove these gases from the atmosphere, in order to limit climate change.
• adaptationChanges in how people, cities, businesses and ecosystems work so that they can cope with the current and expected effects of climate change.
• IPCCShort for Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: the UN body that assesses and summarizes the science on climate change, its impacts and possible responses.

More terms: Climate Change and Climate Science

• greenhouse effect
• extreme weather
• sea level rise
• drought
• pre-industrial levels
• tipping point
• heatwave
• ocean acidification