I was talking to my mum last night and she quickly mentioned the extreme heat in Europe. I said: what about the extreme heat in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Vietnam and all the others? She said I haven’t heard anything about that (and she pays attention), which is a HUGE concern for me.
People are really suffering, and a new report estimates 3,400 excess deaths a day in India during heatwaves, with a five-day heat wave causing nearly 30,000 deaths. India and its neighbours have been suffering heatwaves for months, with official deaths reported at 37 in India and 10 in Pakistan. So, which is it?
I mean, how’s this for an understatement in a headline? The sustained heatwave in India and Pakistan is quite dangerous – Asia Times. Quite?!
I appreciate it’s been hell in Europe, with deaths also reported, not to mention the tennis players having a really tough time at Roland Garros, but the furnace that is Asia not even remotely getting the same attention? Come on.
When you read/watch the news below, think of these people, because they are the ones who make our societies work. They grow our food, build our cities, and do the work we don’t want to do. Don’t you think it’s time we cared about them, by doing everything possible to turn this around?
- Heatwave: As mercury rises in Delhi, survival comes before safety for informal workers
- ‘My head spins with the heat’: India’s gig workers battle exhaustion amid soaring temperatures | India | The Guardian
- India’s Scorching Nights Strain Power Grid and Threaten Health – Bloomberg
Some of the people saying ‘my head spins with the heat’ will already have died. Many more will be pushed into long-term organ damage (especially kidneys) and that will see them needing medical interventions, like dialysis, for whatever life they do have left. Yes, it’s that grim.
Heat is cumulative. If it doesn’t kill you quickly, it kills you slowly. I know this, I’ve lived in Asia since 2003 and I’ve watched it get hotter. I’ve also heard the heat stroke death stories from families impacted. It breaks my heart.
After seven years in Thailand, we’ve been back in Singapore nearly two years now, which means I’m as safe as can be in Asia when it comes to extreme heat events. The government is prepared and has been preparing for decades. It is also a government that takes care of its people, because it always operates with long-term vision AND, most importantly, it listens to the science and acts accordingly.
But we’re still in Asia and it’s been really hot here. As an example, I got up for a 3am-insomnia-wander the other night, and the ‘feels like’ temperature was 37°C – at 3am!! I’m writing this during the heat of the day, and the actual temperature is 33°C, but the ‘feels like’ is 41°C – and that’s lower than what it’s been recently. If you don’t know, 41°C in a humid environment ain’t pleasant.
Suffice to say, my early evening walks the last couple of months have been revolting. It’s just so hot, but I’ve got nothing to complain about compared to the poorest who live in this region.
Then get this – Lethal humidity may be one of climate change’s most overlooked threats | The Strategist – really? Regardless of it being overlooked, more preposterous is the claim that over 50 per cent of humanity could face life-threatening heat and humidity by century’s end – CENTURY’S END? We’re already inside the early phase of lethal heat regimes, like right now. What the hell is wrong with journalists and scientists clinging to these 2050 or 2100 statements?
Am I frustrated? You bet I am, because if we are not facing the actual reality on the ground, then we’re just not going to do what we need to do to protect those who need it most. It also means millions will be on the move, because they have NO CHOICE, and guess what, that’s when our societies really fall apart.
There are approximately 100 million refugees/internally displaced people/asylum seekers in the world right now. As we look to the future, the estimates are a minimum 200 million to 1.2 billion climate migrants expected to be on the move. This isn’t some distant future wave: it’s already happening internally across countries, and it will increasingly spill across borders.
How do you think the world is going to absorb that many people, considering how well we’re doing right now?
It will be a disaster. We need to help people stay where they are, and that means we need to be doing everything we can – RIGHT NOW – to make sure they can. People never leave home because they want to. They leave because they have no choice.
Listen to how refugees are treated – Fortress Europe: The Fight for Refugees in Europe –Reveal.
The potential of mass human migration from climate change, novel entities, ocean acidification, biogeochemical flows, freshwater use, land-system change, and change in biosphere integrity – aka the seven of the Nine Planetary Boundaries already transgressed – will create societal collapse, accelerate right-wing extremism, we’ll see more inhumane responses to people suffering, and will be leaving a future for our kids that will be horrendous.
Are we really just going to continue down this path? #WakeUpWorld!
Some other news
- The Encyclical Letter of His Holiness Leo XIV Magnifica Humanitas (15 May 2026) made headlines this week, here’s the full version if you want to read it
- The backlash to AI is rising in the US, but it’s also now considered extremism – US Law Enforcement Warns of ‘Anti-Tech Extremism’ as AI Hatred Grows | WIRED – fascism anyone?
- Is AI inevitable? Well, as the costs are now starting to be felt, this could be an interesting turn of events – Uber’s COO Says It’s Getting Harder to Justify the Money Spent on AI – Business Insider
- Another tipping point, sheesh – Arctic ocean passes ‘irreversible’ chemical tipping point – Oceanographic
- Duh – World almost certain to endure record hot year by 2030, UN warns | Climate crisis | The Guardian
- If you’re having a bad day, remember the people in Somalia – Somalia: Drought, fuel prices, and conflicts heighten famine risk · Global Voices
- Thailand is sounding the alarm on the impact of the forthcoming Super El Niño – Thailand Enters Climate Crisis as ‘Super El Niño’ Threatens Historic Drought and Temperatures Above 45°C – remember you can’t grow rice past 40°C
- The Eternity Glaciers in Indonesia are gone ‘Planetary destruction on fast-forward’: witnessing the disappearance of Indonesia’s ‘eternity glaciers’ | Climate crisis | The Guardian
- Keep an eye on this story. The ripple effects across the Middle East will be enormous – US and Israel ‘actively working’ to strip Jordan of Al-Aqsa custodianship, sources say | Middle East Eye
- In Bangladesh, not only are they suffering extreme heat and energy shortages, but their babies are also dying of something we can prevent – Measles outbreak kills more than 500 children in Bangladesh | The Straits Times
And Thwaites (the Doomsday Glacier) could break up in a matter of days or weeks, but definitely this year… Great work humanity!
Yeah, I know, it’s all a bit crappy isn’t it, but my word, when are we going to rise up and fight? We know we can do it; the datacentre protesters are showing us it’s possible. I’m still (impatiently) waiting for the day we show the same kind of energy to tackle the polycrisis. Let’s get going.
In the meantime, if you want to reduce deaths from extreme heat, make sure your country has (and enforces):
- Standards (e.g., maximum work temperatures)
- Urban design (shade, materials, airflow)
- Labor protections
- Cooling access (not just AC, but passive cooling)
- Early warning and enforced rest periods
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We had Nicola Upham on The Sh*t Show this week talking about what it’s like to work in the humanitarian field right now. You might be surprised to learn; there are a lot of positives!
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Dig into the news
When you go into the daily news app, remember to save it to your home screen and you can check the news anytime, as it’s updated throughout the day, every day – by a real human, me.
This news curation tool covers news and thought leadership across all issues relevant to the polycrisis, as well as some light stuff, because we can’t be serious all the time. To get to the news, click through on the image below, and a reminder, this goes back weeks, so have a scan and read/watch/listen to whatever jumps out at you. The categories are right on top as well, so you can dig into whatever issue you care about.
Let me know what caught your attention? Or share with me what has your attention now? There’s a lot going on, which means none of us can cover everything. Besides, it’s always great to get feedback so I know I’m delivering something of value.
Cheers
Andrea
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