The poorest people within countries will suffer the most severe economic impacts of climate change: globally, a 1% increase in income decreases the costs of climate damages by 0.4%. A new study, conducted by CMCC researchers, provides an in-depth view of the economic damages caused by climate change and inequalities in the distribution of impacts between and within countries. The results highlight the need to consider adaptation differences and distributive consequences in climate policies.

By coupling the current economic impacts of climate change and their geographical distribution with different historical responsibility principles, researchers can establish possible contributions and entitlements to Loss and Damage (L&D) funding. A new article led by the CMCC and published in Nature Reviews Earth & Environment leverages developments in climate economics to inform and bolster evidence for the costs and needs associated with L&D and provides inputs to help advance international negotiations.

Europe is the fastest warming continent in the world, and climate risks are threatening its energy and food security, ecosystems, infrastructure, water resources, financial stability, and people’s health. According to the European Environment Agency’s (EEA) assessment, coordinated with CMCC and published today, many of these risks have already reached critical levels and could become catastrophic without urgent and decisive action.