We can no longer live in denial. The global impact of climate has been front and centre this year: more destructive storms in our oceans, record heat across Africa, bigger wildfires in Europe and North America, pandemics in Madagascar.

A recent study by the prestigious Journal of Environmental Economics and Management found that one extra day of temperature above 90 degrees Fahrenheit can cost the average Chinese manufacturing plant roughly $10,000 in lost output. The methodology of this research involved tracking temperatures at half a million Chinese plants for a decade, from 1998 to 2007.

In an outcome that is likely to hog headlines in the near future, the research also revealed that high-tech manufacturers – those producing medical supplies, aerospace equipment and computer parts – are just as sensitive to extreme temperatures as low-tech sectors, such as apparel and textiles.

“China is the de facto factory for the world,” explains Kyle Meng, a co-author of the study and assistant professor of environmental economics at the University of California. “Losses in the Chinese manufacturing sector can have ripple effects on consumer prices around the world…” 

Unfortunately, not everyone shares that perspective. President Donald Trump has repeatedly denied the existence of anthropogenic climate change and his administration has dismantled former president Barack Obama’s climate legacy by withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement. According to a report made public ahead of the COP 21, the US contributes to 17.89 % of total greenhouse gas emissions in the world. Only China, which supports efforts to mitigate the effects of global warming, produces more greenhouse gas with 20.09 % of total emissions.

Whether Trump likes it or not, scientific evidence confirms that climate change is real and progressing more quickly than expected. The thawing of the polar ice caps, the rising sea levels and the erratic weather patterns tend to confirm the concern of climate experts.

Africa in general and Mauritius in particular must take climate change seriously because we are located in what climatologists call “a zone of vulnerability”, where even small increases in temperature yield significant changes in humidity, rain patterns, soil quality and sea level rise. The global impact of sea level rise for small island economies, and even as well, for the mammoth urban centres (Mumbai or Manhattan), can lead to catastrophic impacts on regional to global economic health. To some extent, the impact of large scale coast erosion has already been felt in Mauritius, and if not managed or counteracted, the effects on our tourism industry will be consequential.

Our part of the world has not benefited from many of the technological advances that have allowed developed economies to cope with climate change, such as water storage facilities, irrigation systems and efficient supply chains. This is why Africa is one of the more vulnerable regions forced to face the evils of climate change, with the poorest citizens of the world most at risk.

Relevant stakeholders often express their concerns in international fora that recent democratic gains and positive human development trends – mainly in terms of income, health and education – may be reversed due to increased competition for diminishing resources.Environmental challenges such as severe droughts, land degradations and air pollution will amplify income disparities in countries rife with issues like Madagascar, where 85 % of the poor have no access to proper sanitation. This situation, fraught with the dangers of climate change, could lead to pandemics of an unprecedented proportion and a quality of life so dismal for underdeveloped communities that one would be forced to hold a mirror up to society.

On a number of occasions, the drought plaguing East Africa has been referenced as a reminder of how severe the situation can become. Several countries in the broader Horn and East Africa region, including Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Uganda, are currently experiencing a drought worse than anything they have seen in more than 60 years.

There are clear signs that the situation will continue to deteriorate if we don’t indulge the idea of common but differentiated responsibilities. Climate change is everybody’s concern but the elite countries – as identified in Annex 1 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – like Trump’s US cannot shy away from their responsibilities.

The number of people facing hardship will rise and so will food shortages and rising food prices. Our role, as a media group, cannot be just confined to creating awareness about the negative impacts of climate change, but can also involve local activism in these dire times. The complexity and magnitude of climate change requires that the information that we provide is understandable and accessible to the public. Without a more engaged and knowledgeable media, it will be difficult to achieve and sustain public interest in climate change… especially during Trump’s reign of ignorance.