Study: 85 percent of global population has been affected by human-induced climate change

Sandbags on a beach in the Maldives protect against rising sea levels.
(Image credit: Allison Joyce/Getty Images)

Researchers have found that about 85 percent of the world's population has experienced weather events exacerbated by human-induced climate change.

In a study published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change, the scientists wrote that they analyzed data from more than 100,000 events that could be linked to global warming, including floods, heat waves, and crop failures, as well as changes in temperature and precipitation caused by carbon emissions. They were able to make a connection between more extreme weather and human activities, and determined climate change has affected 80 percent of the Earth's land area, where 85 percent of the population lives.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.