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On November 8, the devastating Super Typhoon Haiyan came ashore in the Philippines, killing more than 2,000 people, displacing 660,000 more, and impacting nearly 10 million throughout the islands.
Those who have been affected are now struggling to survive without access to power, food, shelter or clean drinking water. The storm is being described by disaster management experts as one of the most intense and strongest of its kind to make landfall.
On November 11, Yeb Sano, the Philippines' delegate at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change now underway in Poland spoke out powerfully and poignantly, saying:
"To anyone who continues to deny the reality that is climate change, I dare you to get off your ivory tower and away from the comfort of your armchair. I dare you to go to the islands of the Pacific, the islands of the Caribbean and the islands of the Indian Ocean and see the impacts of rising sea levels ... to the hills of Central America that confront similar monstrous hurricanes, to the vast savannas of Africa where climate change has likewise become a matter of life and death as food and water becomes scarce ... And if that is not enough, you may want to pay a visit to the Philippines right now."
To underscore the urgency of the situation, Sano has chosen to fast until the UN makes real progress on a plan for action to solve the climate crisis.
Our hearts and thoughts go out to everyone who has been impacted by this terrible event. Some of our own Climate Reality Leaders are among those affected by the devastation, and I hope you'll join me in keeping them in your thoughts as we wait for more news.
Although the full extent to which climate change influenced Super Typhoon Haiyan has not yet been determined, the storm is another reminder of how climate change has already made extreme weather more extreme. This horrific example of dirty weather shows just how critical your work to put a market price on carbon and a political price on denial is.
There are other and equally important ways for us all to help right away. By joining the relief effort, you can help provide immediate assistance to those impacted by the typhoon and now living with its aftermath. Please contact the Philippine Red Cross, Team Rubicon, or UNICEF to donate and find out about other ways to help.
The Climate Reality Project family
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