{"id":2167,"date":"2026-07-21T21:03:53","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T21:03:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/?p=2167"},"modified":"2026-07-21T21:03:53","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T21:03:53","slug":"climate-silence-grows-as-extreme-weather-intensifies-worldwide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/american-community-media\/climate-silence-grows-as-extreme-weather-intensifies-worldwide\/","title":{"rendered":"Climate silence grows as extreme weather intensifies worldwide"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Scientists urge stronger climate communication as communities face worsening disasters and shrinking political attention worldwide.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As extreme heat scorches Europe, wildfire smoke spreads across North America and meteorologists warn that a powerful El Ni\u00f1o could reshape weather patterns across the globe, climate experts say one troubling trend has received far less attention: public conversation about climate change is fading just as its consequences become impossible to ignore. During a briefing hosted by American Community Media, scientists, environmental advocates and resilience leaders warned that political polarization and declining climate messaging are widening the gap between scientific evidence and public understanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rather than focusing solely on reducing carbon emissions, the speakers emphasized the need to rethink how climate change is communicated. They argued that communities are already living through its consequences, making local resilience, environmental justice and accessible public messaging just as critical as long-term mitigation policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Climate impacts are becoming harder to ignore<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Karen McKinnon, associate professor of statistics and the environment at UCLA, said the scientific evidence connecting climate change to many extreme weather events has become much stronger over the past decade. While discussions once centered on abstract global temperature targets, researchers can now identify with increasing confidence how climate change influences heat waves, wildfire conditions and heavy rainfall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We are having perhaps a reduced discourse about climate change,” McKinnon said. “But around the world, people are feeling very acutely the impacts of climate and weather extremes.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She pointed to a series of recent events that illustrate this reality. Europe experienced record-breaking heat waves that contributed to thousands of excess deaths, while the eastern United States endured dangerous combinations of heat and humidity that forced Fourth of July celebrations to be canceled in some communities. At the same time, smoke from Canadian wildfires spread across large portions of the United States, creating hazardous air quality hundreds of miles away from the fires themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scientists are also closely monitoring the development of what could become one of the strongest El Ni\u00f1o events in decades. Although El Ni\u00f1o is a naturally occurring climate cycle, McKinnon explained that it now unfolds in a world that has already warmed significantly because of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We don’t know whether climate change is changing El Ni\u00f1o itself,” she said. “But we do know that El Ni\u00f1o is now happening on top of a much warmer climate.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That distinction matters because higher background temperatures amplify El Ni\u00f1o’s effects. Regions already prone to extreme heat may experience even hotter conditions, while warmer air can hold more moisture, increasing the intensity of heavy rainfall and flooding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For McKinnon, one of the clearest examples of climate change is the increasing frequency of record-breaking heat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Every heat wave is hotter because of climate change,” she said, explaining that natural weather patterns now develop over a warmer atmospheric baseline than they did decades ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She added that climate science has evolved considerably. Researchers no longer discuss only long-term global averages but can increasingly measure how climate change alters the probability and severity of individual extreme weather events. That scientific progress, she argued, should reshape how climate change is discussed with the public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of focusing primarily on targets such as limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, she believes communication should emphasize the everyday experiences people already recognize, including dangerous air quality, canceled outdoor activities, prolonged heat and wildfire smoke that keeps families indoors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Communities are building resilience from the ground up<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While scientists continue refining climate projections, many communities have already shifted their attention toward adaptation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shina Robinson, resilience projects director at the Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN), described how immigrant and refugee communities across California often face multiple environmental threats simultaneously. Many neighborhoods are located near refineries, industrial facilities or heavily trafficked transportation corridors, leaving residents exposed to chronic air pollution before climate-related disasters are even considered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Our communities face the daily environmental injustices you might expect from being on the front lines,” Robinson said. “Then climate impacts layer additional threats on top of those existing burdens.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During wildfire season, smoke combines with existing pollution. During heat waves, many families live in older buildings that trap heat while lacking adequate cooling systems. Power outages can trigger additional industrial accidents or leave vulnerable residents without safe places to shelter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To address those overlapping risks, APEN has promoted the development of resilience hubs, trusted community facilities designed to provide services before, during and after emergencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the organization’s most ambitious projects is the transformation of Oakland Chinatown’s Lincoln Recreation Center into one of the first municipal resilience hubs in the United States. The facility welcomes roughly 1,000 people each day through senior programs, youth activities, language-accessible public services and community events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After years of advocacy, construction is scheduled to begin this month. The redesigned center will include rooftop solar panels, battery storage systems, upgraded ventilation, air filtration, emergency shelter capacity and a community kitchen capable of operating even during power outages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Robinson, however, resilience extends well beyond infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Resilient communities are organized communities,” she said. “Resilient communities are connected communities.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The recreation center illustrated that principle during the COVID-19 pandemic, when volunteers coordinated neighborhood safety patrols, distributed multilingual health information and supported isolated seniors facing both the pandemic and anti-Asian violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robinson also argued that climate communication becomes far more effective when technical language is replaced with concepts people immediately understand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of discussing “equitable decarbonization,” APEN speaks with residents about healthier homes, cleaner indoor air, lower asthma rates, affordable energy and safer neighborhoods. Those conversations, she said, help connect climate policy to everyday life rather than abstract environmental goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She encouraged journalists to amplify local voices and allow communities to describe climate impacts in their own languages and through their own lived experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Changing the climate narrative<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Mark Valentine, senior advisor to the Omega Resilience Awards and founder of ReFrame It, said climate change can no longer be viewed in isolation. Instead, it intersects with economic instability, political conflict and social inequality in what many researchers describe as a “polycrisis.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through fellowships supporting grassroots leaders across Africa, Latin America and India, his organization has documented how communities are responding to overlapping environmental and economic pressures while developing local solutions that often receive little international attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Valentine cautioned that even projects intended to combat climate change can create new forms of injustice if local communities are excluded from decision-making. Mining for critical minerals, large renewable energy developments and hydroelectric projects may reduce global emissions while disrupting Indigenous lands or displacing vulnerable populations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Communities don’t want to be congratulated for being resilient,” he said. “They would rather not have had to survive the crisis in the first place.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The panelists also agreed that climate coverage itself requires a new approach. Wildfires, floods and extreme heat dominate headlines, but those events are often reported individually without consistently explaining how climate change increases their frequency or intensity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The coverage of climate change may be disappearing,” Valentine said. “The coverage of wildfire, heat and drought certainly isn’t. What’s missing is connecting those dots.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

McKinnon acknowledged that scientists also face communication challenges. Although evidence linking climate change to heat extremes is overwhelming, other questions remain scientifically complex. She argued that acknowledging uncertainty where it exists strengthens, rather than weakens, public trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Robinson emphasized that climate solutions should begin with the people most affected by environmental hazards. Communities living on the front lines possess practical knowledge that should shape public policy, she said, adding that resilience depends as much on participation as it does on technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite growing political polarization and climate fatigue, the speakers rejected narratives of hopelessness. McKinnon said the technologies needed to reduce emissions already exist, while Robinson argued that stronger community leadership can produce more equitable climate policies. Valentine called for shifting away from an economy driven primarily by extraction toward one centered on collective well-being.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Together, the panelists delivered a shared message: the scientific evidence is becoming clearer, communities are already adapting to escalating climate risks and practical solutions are available. The greatest remaining challenge is ensuring that public conversation, political leadership and media coverage keep pace with the accelerating realities of a changing climate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

El silencio clim\u00e1tico crece mientras se intensifican los fen\u00f3menos extremos<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Expertos advierten que la crisis clim\u00e1tica avanza mientras disminuye la atenci\u00f3n p\u00fablica y pol\u00edtica sobre el tema.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mientras Europa enfrenta olas de calor sin precedentes, el humo de incendios forestales cubre amplias zonas de Norteam\u00e9rica y los cient\u00edficos advierten que un potente fen\u00f3meno de El Ni\u00f1o podr\u00eda agravar a\u00fan m\u00e1s las condiciones clim\u00e1ticas durante los pr\u00f3ximos meses, especialistas sostienen que uno de los mayores desaf\u00edos ya no es demostrar la existencia del cambio clim\u00e1tico, sino explicar por qu\u00e9 ha desaparecido del centro del debate p\u00fablico. Durante una conferencia organizada por American Community Media, investigadores, l\u00edderes comunitarios y expertos en resiliencia coincidieron en que la brecha entre la evidencia cient\u00edfica y la conversaci\u00f3n pol\u00edtica contin\u00faa ampli\u00e1ndose justo cuando los efectos del calentamiento global son cada vez m\u00e1s visibles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

M\u00e1s all\u00e1 de reducir las emisiones de carbono, los ponentes insistieron en la necesidad de transformar la manera en que se comunica el cambio clim\u00e1tico. A su juicio, las comunidades ya est\u00e1n viviendo sus consecuencias, por lo que fortalecer la resiliencia local, impulsar la justicia ambiental y conectar la ciencia con las experiencias cotidianas resulta tan importante como las pol\u00edticas de mitigaci\u00f3n a largo plazo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Los impactos del cambio clim\u00e1tico ya forman parte de la vida cotidiana<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Karen McKinnon, profesora asociada de Estad\u00edstica y Medio Ambiente de la Universidad de California en Los \u00c1ngeles (UCLA), explic\u00f3 que durante la \u00faltima d\u00e9cada la ciencia ha avanzado significativamente en la capacidad de relacionar eventos meteorol\u00f3gicos extremos con el cambio clim\u00e1tico. Si antes las discusiones se centraban en metas globales de temperatura, hoy los investigadores pueden determinar con mucha mayor precisi\u00f3n c\u00f3mo el calentamiento global influye en olas de calor, incendios forestales y lluvias extremas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Estamos hablando menos sobre cambio clim\u00e1tico, pero las personas alrededor del mundo est\u00e1n experimentando de forma muy directa los impactos de los fen\u00f3menos clim\u00e1ticos extremos”, se\u00f1al\u00f3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Como ejemplo, mencion\u00f3 las recientes olas de calor que provocaron miles de muertes adicionales en Europa, las temperaturas extremas registradas en la costa este de Estados Unidos y el humo proveniente de los incendios forestales de Canad\u00e1, que deterior\u00f3 la calidad del aire en buena parte del pa\u00eds. A ello se suma el desarrollo de un evento de El Ni\u00f1o que podr\u00eda convertirse en uno de los m\u00e1s intensos de las \u00faltimas d\u00e9cadas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aunque El Ni\u00f1o es un fen\u00f3meno natural, McKinnon explic\u00f3 que actualmente ocurre sobre un planeta considerablemente m\u00e1s c\u00e1lido debido a las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero. Esto significa que sus efectos son hoy m\u00e1s intensos que en el pasado.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“No sabemos si el cambio clim\u00e1tico est\u00e1 modificando a El Ni\u00f1o, pero s\u00ed sabemos que El Ni\u00f1o ocurre ahora sobre un clima mucho m\u00e1s c\u00e1lido”, afirm\u00f3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

La cient\u00edfica explic\u00f3 que una atm\u00f3sfera m\u00e1s caliente puede retener mayor cantidad de humedad, lo que incrementa tanto la intensidad de las lluvias como el riesgo de inundaciones. De igual forma, las temperaturas extremas se vuelven a\u00fan m\u00e1s severas porque parten de una l\u00ednea base mucho m\u00e1s elevada que hace apenas unas d\u00e9cadas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Cada ola de calor es m\u00e1s caliente debido al cambio clim\u00e1tico”, asegur\u00f3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

McKinnon tambi\u00e9n destac\u00f3 que la ciencia ya no solo mide el aumento promedio de la temperatura global, sino que puede identificar c\u00f3mo el cambio clim\u00e1tico incrementa la probabilidad y severidad de eventos meteorol\u00f3gicos espec\u00edficos. Esto, dijo, deber\u00eda transformar la manera en que se comunica el problema.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

En lugar de hablar \u00fanicamente de metas como limitar el calentamiento global a 1,5 o 2 grados Celsius, considera que la conversaci\u00f3n debe enfocarse en experiencias que cualquier persona pueda reconocer, como los d\u00edas en que la calidad del aire impide salir de casa, las altas temperaturas obligan a cancelar actividades al aire libre o el humo de los incendios mantiene a las familias encerradas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Las comunidades responden fortaleciendo su propia resiliencia<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Mientras la ciencia contin\u00faa perfeccionando sus proyecciones, muchas comunidades ya trabajan para adaptarse a una realidad marcada por eventos clim\u00e1ticos cada vez m\u00e1s frecuentes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shina Robinson, directora de proyectos de resiliencia de Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN), explic\u00f3 que numerosas comunidades inmigrantes y refugiadas de California enfrentan simult\u00e1neamente contaminaci\u00f3n industrial, olas de calor, humo de incendios forestales y viviendas con infraestructura deficiente.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Nuestras comunidades enfrentan diariamente las injusticias ambientales propias de vivir en la primera l\u00ednea. Luego, los impactos del cambio clim\u00e1tico se suman a esas amenazas existentes”, afirm\u00f3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Durante la temporada de incendios, el humo se combina con la contaminaci\u00f3n generada por refiner\u00edas y corredores industriales. Durante las olas de calor, muchas familias viven en edificios antiguos que retienen temperaturas elevadas y carecen de sistemas adecuados de ventilaci\u00f3n. Adem\u00e1s, los cortes de energ\u00eda pueden agravar a\u00fan m\u00e1s la situaci\u00f3n al interrumpir servicios esenciales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Para enfrentar estos desaf\u00edos, APEN impulsa la creaci\u00f3n de centros comunitarios de resiliencia, espacios de confianza que permanecen activos antes, durante y despu\u00e9s de una emergencia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Uno de sus principales proyectos es la transformaci\u00f3n del Lincoln Recreation Center, ubicado en Chinatown, Oakland, en uno de los primeros centros municipales de resiliencia de Estados Unidos. El recinto atiende diariamente a unas mil personas mediante actividades recreativas, programas para adultos mayores, servicios comunitarios y atenci\u00f3n en varios idiomas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tras a\u00f1os de trabajo comunitario, las obras comenzar\u00e1n este mes e incorporar\u00e1n paneles solares, bater\u00edas de respaldo, sistemas avanzados de ventilaci\u00f3n y filtraci\u00f3n de aire, espacios para refugio temporal y una cocina comunitaria que podr\u00e1 seguir funcionando incluso durante interrupciones del suministro el\u00e9ctrico.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sin embargo, Robinson insisti\u00f3 en que la resiliencia no depende \u00fanicamente de la infraestructura.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Las comunidades resilientes son comunidades organizadas. Son comunidades conectadas”, sostuvo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Durante la pandemia de COVID-19, el centro comunitario se convirti\u00f3 en un punto clave para distribuir informaci\u00f3n sanitaria en distintos idiomas, organizar patrullajes vecinales y brindar apoyo a adultos mayores afectados tanto por el aislamiento como por el incremento de ataques contra personas asi\u00e1ticas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Para Robinson, las pol\u00edticas clim\u00e1ticas tambi\u00e9n deben comunicarse con un lenguaje mucho m\u00e1s cercano a las preocupaciones cotidianas de la poblaci\u00f3n.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

En lugar de hablar de “descarbonizaci\u00f3n equitativa”, APEN conversa con los vecinos sobre viviendas saludables, aire limpio, menores tasas de asma, ahorro energ\u00e9tico y seguridad para las familias.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Cuando hablamos con los residentes, hablamos de salud. Hablamos de proteger a sus hijos”, explic\u00f3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asimismo, pidi\u00f3 a los medios de comunicaci\u00f3n dar mayor espacio a las voces de las comunidades y permitir que sean ellas mismas quienes expliquen c\u00f3mo viven el cambio clim\u00e1tico desde sus propias experiencias.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cambiar la narrativa tambi\u00e9n es una forma de actuar<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Para Mark Valentine, asesor principal de Omega Resilience Awards y fundador de ReFrame It, el cambio clim\u00e1tico no puede analizarse de forma aislada, ya que interact\u00faa con crisis econ\u00f3micas, desigualdades sociales y conflictos pol\u00edticos que se refuerzan mutuamente.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A trav\u00e9s de programas que apoyan a l\u00edderes comunitarios en \u00c1frica, Am\u00e9rica Latina e India, su organizaci\u00f3n ha documentado c\u00f3mo distintas comunidades desarrollan soluciones locales frente a problemas ambientales que rara vez reciben atenci\u00f3n internacional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Valentine advirti\u00f3 que incluso algunas iniciativas dise\u00f1adas para combatir el cambio clim\u00e1tico pueden generar nuevos conflictos cuando excluyen a las poblaciones locales. La extracci\u00f3n de minerales estrat\u00e9gicos, los grandes proyectos hidroel\u00e9ctricos o algunas instalaciones de energ\u00edas renovables pueden reducir emisiones globales mientras afectan territorios ind\u00edgenas o desplazan comunidades vulnerables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Las comunidades no quieren ser felicitadas por ser resilientes. Preferir\u00edan no haber tenido que atravesar esa crisis en primer lugar”, afirm\u00f3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Los panelistas coincidieron adem\u00e1s en que la cobertura medi\u00e1tica suele informar sobre incendios, inundaciones o sequ\u00edas como hechos aislados, sin explicar de manera consistente c\u00f3mo el cambio clim\u00e1tico aumenta la frecuencia e intensidad de estos fen\u00f3menos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“La cobertura del cambio clim\u00e1tico puede estar desapareciendo. La cobertura sobre incendios, calor extremo y sequ\u00edas no. Lo que falta es conectar esos puntos”, se\u00f1al\u00f3 Valentine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

McKinnon reconoci\u00f3 que la comunicaci\u00f3n cient\u00edfica tambi\u00e9n enfrenta retos importantes. Aunque existe evidencia contundente sobre el v\u00ednculo entre el calentamiento global y las olas de calor, otros procesos clim\u00e1ticos contin\u00faan siendo objeto de investigaci\u00f3n, por lo que comunicar tanto las certezas como las incertidumbres resulta esencial para mantener la confianza p\u00fablica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Por su parte, Robinson subray\u00f3 que las soluciones clim\u00e1ticas deben construirse junto a las comunidades m\u00e1s afectadas, cuyo conocimiento cotidiano puede orientar mejores pol\u00edticas p\u00fablicas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pese al cansancio social frente a las m\u00faltiples crisis y a la creciente polarizaci\u00f3n pol\u00edtica, los tres especialistas coincidieron en que a\u00fan existen razones para el optimismo. Las tecnolog\u00edas para reducir emisiones ya est\u00e1n disponibles, las comunidades contin\u00faan desarrollando estrategias de adaptaci\u00f3n y cada vez hay m\u00e1s evidencia cient\u00edfica para orientar la toma de decisiones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

El desaf\u00edo, concluyeron, ya no consiste \u00fanicamente en comprender el cambio clim\u00e1tico, sino en lograr que la conversaci\u00f3n p\u00fablica, las pol\u00edticas y la acci\u00f3n colectiva avancen con la misma rapidez con la que est\u00e1 cambiando el planeta.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Scientists urge stronger climate communication as communities face worsening disasters and shrinking political attention worldwide. As extreme heat scorches Europe, wildfire smoke spreads across North America and meteorologists warn that a powerful El Ni\u00f1o could reshape weather patterns across the globe, climate experts say one troubling trend has received far less attention: public conversation about […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2168,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[686],"tags":[3384,122,4586],"class_list":["post-2167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-american-community-media","tag-acm","tag-climate-change","tag-wildfire"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2167","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2167"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2167\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2169,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2167\/revisions\/2169"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavoz.us.com\/homepage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}