Climate trends over the last 40 years in the Sahel show overall temperatures rising, droughts increasing in frequency and severity, and when it does rain, floods are more frequent and intense.
Or is it helter-skelter-polar? Or on a planet whose temperatures are rising, droughts growing more severe, and future food prices threatening to soar (meaning yet more protest, violence, and disruption), are there even "poles" any more?
This could result in catastrophic climate change, leading to sea level rises, drought, extreme weather, hunger, water shortages and inevitably, forced migrations.
The surge in public concern over rising temperatures following an abnormally warm winter in the US and the historic Paris climate deal in December, in which nearly 200 nations agreed to curb their emissions in order to avoid dangerous sea level rises, droughts, extreme weather events and food insecurity.
It will also be offset by an increase in forest dieback elsewhere, caused by rising aridity, drought, pests and fires all symptoms of global warming.
But climate change and its horsemen — rising temperatures, drought and bark beetle — are accelerating this pace.
Hundreds of millions of people could be driven from their homes by rising seas, drought, food shortages, stronger storms, and military conflict over limited resources.
If we do too little or act too slowly to reduce our dependence on carbon-based fuels, future generations will face rising seas, drought, floods, hurricanes and spreading disease.
An overwhelming majority of scientists believe that carbon dioxide emissions from burning oil, gas and coal is a significant contributor to global climate change, causing sea level rise, drought, and more frequent violent storms.
The reports acknowledge that while the magnitude of these risks — sea level rise, drought, disease, the destruction of marine- and land-based ecosystems — are difficult to predict, society would be wise to move swiftly and aggressively to minimize them.
