Born into the Climate Crisis 2. An unprecedented life: Protecting children’s rights in a changing climate

The climate crisis is not a distant threat; it is a pressing reality that children are facing today. Despite having contributed the least to the climate crisis, the inherent intergenerational injustice of climate change means that children are bearing the brunt of its impacts, particularly those most affected by inequality and discrimination in low- and middle-income countries.

This report is a follow-up to the 2021 publication “Born into the Climate Crisis,” expanding on its findings and insights. Developed in collaboration with climate scientists from Vrije Universiteit Brussel, it provides a comprehensive analysis of the future that awaits children, depending on our actions or inactions today. It presents new data on the projected unprecedented lifetime exposure of millions of children born in 2020 to six climate extremes—heatwaves, crop failures, droughts, river floods, tropical cyclones, and wildfires—across three warming scenarios: 1.5°C, 2.7°C, and 3.5°C above pre-industrial levels by the end of the century. The findings underscore the critical importance of achieving the Paris Agreement target of limiting warming to 1.5°C to safeguard children’s rights, including their right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment. Without rapid, significant emissions cuts, children will inherit a future marked by unprecedented lifetime exposure to climate extremes.

The report also highlights promising adaptations to address the impacts, losses, and damages that children are already facing, emphasizing the need for child-responsive strategies to safeguard their rights and wellbeing. Ensuring that children and climate justice are at the heart of climate mitigation, adaptation, and responses to loss and damage is crucial for protecting their rights and securing a sustainable future for generations to come.