Is there link between humans and climate change or not？ This question was first studied in the early 1900s． Since then， many scientists have thought that our actions do make a difference． In 1997， the Kyoto Protocol explained our role in the Earth's changing atmosphere and set international limits for gas emissions from 2008 to 2012． Some countries have decided to continue these reductions until 2020． More recently， the Paris Agreement， stuck by nearly 200 countries， also aims to limit global warming． But Just now how much warmer it will get depends on how deeply countries cut carbon emissions．

This is how much temperatures would rise by 2100 even if nations live up to the initial Paris promises to reduce carbon emissions； this rise could still put coastal cities under water and drive over half of all species to extinction．

To meet this minimum goal， the Agreement requires countries to tighten emissions targets every five years． Even this increase could sink some islands， worsen drought （干旱） and drive a decline of up to a third in the number of species．

This is the most ambitious goal for temperature rise set by the Paris Agreement， after a push by low﹣lying island nations like Kiribati， which say limiting temperature rise to 1.5°C could save them from sinking．

This is how much temperatures have risen since the industrial age began， putting us 40% of the way to the 2°C point．

The baseline here is average global temperature before the start of the industrial age．

Living on an island might sound wonderful. But what if you left for a trip and found you could never return? What if your home, and even the land it stood on, was gone forever? For people living in the Pacific Islands, this is really possible.

Why? Climate (气候) change. Climate change is causing the sea to rise. That's bad news for the Pacific Islands. Young people on the islands are even starting to wonder: Will they be the last generation (一代人)?

Not if the islanders have anything to do about it. These people are deeply connected to their homelands. The Pacific Islands are made up of 11 different countries: the Marshall Islands, Fiji, Samoa, and others. But now, those countries are working together. They're joining forces to fight climate change.

Why is climate change such a huge threat to this part of the world? Islands are low elevations (海拔). So they are among the first places influenced by rising sea levels. That's why countries of the Pacific Islands are working together to do their part.

But these are small countries. When it comes to climate change, can they make a big difference? They can, because most of the things that people on islands buy are brought by ships. This is very harmful to the environment. After all, ships put out almost 3 percent of the world's carbon emissions (碳排放). That makes climate change worse.

Pacific Islanders realize the problem. So, in 2019, six countries got together: Fuji, the Marshall islands, Samoa, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu. They came up with a plan. They agreed to cut carbon emissions from shipping by 40 percent by 2030. And by 2050, they expect zero-carbon shipping.

How will they pull this off? They plan to use some really cool carbon-free technologies. They'll make use of solar and wind energy.

Sea levels are rising, but hopes aren't sinking in the Pacific Islands.

Small mammals will have a hard time surviving the stressors associated with climate change, according to a new study from the University of Southern Denmark. The experts found that large, long-lived animals are better able to cope with extreme weather such as long-time drought and heavy rainfall.

The researchers analyzed historical population variations among 157 mammal species from around the world. These fluctuations (波动) were compared with weather and climate date from the same time period. The results are providing new insight into how animals respond to extreme weather. In particular, the experts have identified which animal populations will be the hardest hit by climate change.

“We can see a clear pattern: Animals that live a long time and have few offspring are less vulnerable (脆弱的) when extreme weather hits than animals that live for a short time and have many offspring,” said study Professor Owen.

Large animals that live longer can cope better with an extreme event such as a persistent drought because these animals have the option to wait until conditions improve to reproduce. The same weather event would affect small mammals differently, as food sources like insects, flowers, and fruits would disappear quickly.

On the other hand, populations of small mammals may also take advantage when weather conditions improve by producing many offspring.

“These small mammals react quickly to extreme weather, and it goes both ways. Their weakness to extreme weather should therefore not be equated (等同) with a risk of extinction. Our analysis helps predict how different animal species might respond to future climate change based on their general characteristics.” said study co-author Jackson. He emphasized that the ability of animals to endure climate change is not the only factor for their extinction. Habitat destruction, pollution, poaching and invasive species are factors that threaten many animal species — in many cases even more than climate change,” he added.