Climate Impacts

Climate change increases risks to our economy, health, infrastructure, food and water, and almost every facet of life and governance. The prevalence and severity of storms and wildfires; the loss of landmass and flooding of homes; forced migration; and the decimation of crops and natural wonders that have stood for years are accelerating due to climate change. The Center for American Progress diligently seeks to provide a spotlight on the costs of human-caused climate change and the strategies to mitigate climate impacts in the future.

Latest

Compact View

Securing Environmental Justice for All Report
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House before signing an executive order that would create the White House Office of Environmental Justice.

Securing Environmental Justice for All

The Biden administration has launched the most ambitious climate and environmental justice agenda in history to ensure that every community has clean air and water, can access living-wage jobs and affordable clean energy, and is protected from climate change threats.

Securing Clean Air, Clean Water, and a Healthy Environment for All Video

Securing Clean Air, Clean Water, and a Healthy Environment for All

Industrial facilities are most often located in or near Black, brown, and low-income communities who face the brunt of harmful industrial pollution, climate change impacts, and other environmental and public health hazards—something Harold Mitchell experienced firsthand in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Fortunately, the Biden administration’s long-overdue environmental justice investments can ensure that all people—regardless of race, income, or ZIP code—have clean air and clean water and live in safe and healthy communities.

Facing the Fire: Phoenix Airport Workers Demand Protections Against Extreme Heat Video

Facing the Fire: Phoenix Airport Workers Demand Protections Against Extreme Heat

Amid record-breaking temperatures, Phoenix airport service workers filed an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) complaint against their employer and are demanding action to improve job conditions and safety measures.

LNG Exports Raise Natural Gas Prices for Americans Article
Construction cranes stand silhouetted by the sunset at the Golden Pass LNG terminal.

LNG Exports Raise Natural Gas Prices for Americans

U.S. export terminals for liquified natural gas (LNG) are turning what was once a domestic energy source into an internationally traded commodity, exposing American households and businesses to higher natural gas prices set on a volatile global market.

Chris Martinez

2023 CAP IDEAS Conference Past Event
CAP IDEAS Conference logo

2023 CAP IDEAS Conference

Join the Center for American Progress as we celebrate 20 years of innovative policy solutions and look boldly forward to a progressive future.

The Climate Adaptation Imperative: Front-Line Lessons for Global Solutions Past Event
A man holding children walks in the middle of a flooded street.

The Climate Adaptation Imperative: Front-Line Lessons for Global Solutions

In partnership with the Columbia Climate School, join experts from around the world to learn why climate adaptation and resilience planning is an essential part of the response to the climate crisis.

Implementing America’s Clean Energy Future: Leveraging Federal Investments To Support State and Local Climate Leadership Past Event

Implementing America’s Clean Energy Future: Leveraging Federal Investments To Support State and Local Climate Leadership

Please join the State-Federal Climate Initiative at the Center for American Progress to discuss the opportunities and challenges facing states and local governments as they look to implement historic levels of federal climate funding.

Comments on the National Credit Union Administration’s Request for Information Regarding Climate-Related Financial Risk Article

Comments on the National Credit Union Administration’s Request for Information Regarding Climate-Related Financial Risk

The Center for American Progress submitted a comment to the National Credit Union Administration on the effects of climate-related financial risks and the steps to manage and mitigate exposure to those risks.

Crystal Weise, David Correa, Lilith Fellowes-Granda

The Health Care Costs of Extreme Heat Report

The Health Care Costs of Extreme Heat

Daily climate and health care utilization data from Virginia illuminate the health care costs of extreme heat, which amount to approximately $1 billion every summer when extrapolated nationally.

Steven Woolf, Joseph Morina, Evan French, 6 More Adam Funk, Roy Sabo, Stephen Fong, Jeremy Hoffman, Derek Chapman, Alex Krist

A Framework for Federal Mining Reform: Impact Planning, Benefits Sharing, and Asset-Based Revenue Management Report
A reclamation inspector takes a call while standing under a gallows frame located near the Berkeley Pit.

A Framework for Federal Mining Reform: Impact Planning, Benefits Sharing, and Asset-Based Revenue Management

Building a new clean energy economy will require mining for minerals used in renewable energy technologies, creating a mining boom that policymakers should leverage by helping affected communities build resilient and equitable economies.

How Exemptions From Securities Laws Put Investors and the Economy at Risk Report
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission seal hangs on the facade of its building.

How Exemptions From Securities Laws Put Investors and the Economy at Risk

Congress and the SEC should roll back public registration and reporting exemptions that undermine the basic bargain of the securities laws; companies seeking to raise capital from the public must first disclose reliable information about their operations, finances, and governance.

Tyler Gellasch, Alexandra Thornton, Crystal Weise

What the U.S. Must Bring to the 2023 U.N. Loss and Damage Negotiations To Address Climate Change Impacts Article
Photo shows people at the edge of a road town apart by flooding, with a giant crater in between the broken sides.

What the U.S. Must Bring to the 2023 U.N. Loss and Damage Negotiations To Address Climate Change Impacts

The United States must show up to loss and damage discussions this year with solidarity, constructive negotiating positions, and credible finance solutions so that the world can not only address the losses and damages of climate change, but also continue to pursue ambitious climate mitigation goals.

Cassidy Childs

Sacred Stories: Indigenous-led Conservation of Lands and Waterways Past Event

Sacred Stories: Indigenous-led Conservation of Lands and Waterways

Please join the Center for American Progress, Native Americans in Philanthropy, and the Biodiversity Funders Group for a panel of storytellers discussing Indigenous-led conservation of lands and waterways.

How FEMA Can Build Rural Resilience Through Disaster Preparedness Report
Photo shows a flooded street in Kentucky.

How FEMA Can Build Rural Resilience Through Disaster Preparedness

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is vital to the nation’s climate resilience, but pre-disaster resilience funds are not reaching the rural communities most vulnerable to climate risk and least able to prepare.

Kevin Manuele, Mark Haggerty

Related Priorities

Tackling Climate Change and Environmental Injustice

Tackling Climate Change and Environmental Injustice

We pursue climate action that meets the crisis’s urgency, creates good-quality jobs, benefits disadvantaged communities, and restores U.S. credibility on the global stage.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.