Climate change is a contentious issue in the world today with many arguments about its cause and how we should deal with it. It wasn’t just recently, though, that climate change was important. Much of our history was influenced by it.

10It Shaped Our Evolution

Numerous findings indicate that great leaps and bounds in human evolution coincided with radical changes in the climate. For instance, three million years ago, the first modern Homo species emerged around the time that Africa began to dry out, changing from a wooded landscape to the grasslands we know today. As the flora of Africa changed, we had to adjust ourselves from primarily climbing trees to walking across vast areas.

Another consequence of Africa drying out is a change in our diet. Before, we didn’t have to go very far to find our next meal. But droughts required more cunning on our part to find food, and we had to adjust our palates to whatever we could gather, causing considerable changes to our ancestors over time.

9It Accelerated Stone Age Innovations

There are two different schools of thought when it comes to the effects of climate change on our Stone Age ancestors. One theory, which became widely popular after being announced in 2013, is that climate change would have made such drastic changes to our ancestors’ lives that they were forced to innovate so they could fight against nature. The other theory, only recently put forth, states that it wasn’t the drastic changes in environment that spurred innovations but rather experimentation during good times.

The evidence for the first theory is found in Africa where 30,000–280,000 years ago, Homo sapiens started to develop symbolic expression, tools, and jewelry during times of wildly varying climates. However, findings in 2016 suggest that while the period when many of these innovations took place was a chaotic time for the climate, our ancestors may have just been developing independently. Climate change certainly played some part in Stone Age innovations. What we don’t know is to what degree.

8Climate Change Led To Man’s Early Migrations

Early humans originated in Sub-Saharan Africa, and for much of the time after they first emerged, there was no possible way for them to leave. 70,000 years ago, northeast Africa was a wasteland that would have prevented anyone from crossing the area into the Middle East, Asia, and Europe. However, the time when our ancestors are first known to have left Africa coincides with a drastic change in the climate that would have allowed for far more vegetation and food, which would have permitted them to migrate to other areas.

In some places, glaciers would have prohibited migrations, but after a change in the climate, many began to melt, opening up passages like the land bridge that once existed in what is now the Bering Sea connecting Siberia and North America.

7The Rise And Fall Of Mesopotamia

12,000 years ago, Mesopotamia became the cradle of civilization because the vast majority of our earliest cultures emerged from there. After our ancestors migrated to the area, they found it was fertile due to favorable climate circumstances. While much of the area is now arid, it would then have been perfect for our ancestors to lay down their roots.

However, around 6,000 years ago, several civilizations in the Fertile Crescent were abruptly abandoned, most likely due to sudden droughts in the region. During the first half of the Holocene epoch, which continues today, Mesopotamia was the center of civilization, but conditions abruptly changed again, causing the cradle of civilization to lose importance as North Africa and Europe rose.

6Climate Change Destroyed The Southwestern Native Americans

The Anasazi tribe was the most advanced Native American culture we’ve discovered. They inhabited southwestern America, which today is an arid death trap for humans. During the time of the Anasazi, though, it was an oasis because 3,000 years ago, the region was cooler.

The Anasazi thrived for centuries, but a drastic change around AD 300 forced them to abandon their empire. The same can be said of the Pueblo Indians who are most famous today for their cliff dwellings. Around AD 700, the Southwest became inhabitable again, bringing on the rise of the Pueblo, but 650–450 years ago, the climate shifted again, bringing the Pueblos down. After the fall of the Pueblos, the region was never inhabited by another tribe.

5Droughts Brought Down Several Empires

Due to climate changes, several powerful empires have fallen apart. Egypt, mostly desert today but for around the Nile River, was quite fertile in the past, allowing Egypt to become one history’s greatest empires. From 1250–1100 BC, though, severe droughts caused the empire’s collapse, and while conditions did improve over time, they never recovered.

The same can be said of Ancient Greece, which lost its power due to a 300-year drought from 1200–850 BC. Starting in AD 250, droughts throughout the Roman Empire brought it to its knees.

4Climate Change And Genghis Khan

After Rome’s decline, the infamous Genghis Khan took his place to strike fear in the hearts of vulnerable countries. However, if it weren’t for a favorable climate, Khan may have never been able to create his vast empire.

In the late 1100s, intense drought devastated Mongolia just before Genghis Khan’s reign, but from 1211–1225, unusually heavy rainfall and a favorable climate caused Mongol lands to become fertile, allowing the thousands of horses the Mongols possessed to become well fed and able to carry on the military campaigns against Asia and Europe. Conversely, while the fertile lands of Mongolia stimulated their rapid expansion, it kept Khan out of China during his lifetime because the Chinese during the Southern Song Dynasty also flourished from the warm climates and had enough resources to keep Khan at bay. While a favorable climate change enabled Khan to become powerful, he himself left a mark on the climate because he took enough carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere to offset a year’s worth of gasoline today.

3The Spread Of The Black Plague

The Black Plague ravaged the populations of Asia and Europe, killing off 25 million people from 1347–1353. Its spread is blamed on rats, but research now suggests black rats were not found in some areas hit by the plague.

During the time of the plagues, the world underwent a climate change known as the Medieval Warming Period, and rodent populations decrease during warmer times, so the plague bacteria would have to find another host. They turned to humans. Such fluctuations are still present in Asia today, supporting this theory.

2Climate Change Let The Spanish Empire Subjugate The Americas

Unbeknownst to the Spanish conquistadors who first began their conquests in Western Hemisphere, the climate of the Americas allowed them to take over without much resistance. They arrived at the perfect time because native civilizations were deteriorating due to severe droughts.

The Mayans reached their apex from AD 440–660 when wet conditions allowed them to flourish, but from 660–1000, the Mayans underwent extensive severe droughts that ravaged their empire. By the time the conquistadors arrived, the Mayans were unable to defend themselves. The Aztecs too underwent a decline due to a mega-drought that struck them in the 16th century. When they were conquered in 1519, there were 25 million people living in modern-day Mexico. A century later, there was just 1.2 million.

1Climate Change And Islam

The early history of Islam during the seventh century coincides with much of the Middle East languishing from climatic stress. The various nomadic tribes who inhabited Arabia were hit hard by the droughts, and the only way to survive was to be member of a tribe; to be exiled meant certain death.

In AD 615, when Muhammed was spreading Islam in Mecca, many of his followers were kicked out of their tribes, forcing them into the harsh climates that would have killed them had Muhammed and his acolytes not formed their own tribe in AD 622. Many social constructs at the time were built around the climatic stress experienced in the Middle East, which were eventually adopted by the followers of Islam. As conditions worsened, Islamists spread north, creating a massive empire. The need to keep ahead of the dire conditions around them created the foundations for the Islam we know today.

+Further Reading

Throughout the history of the planet, the global climate has changed dramatically (and sometimes incredibly rapidly), bringing with it fascinating changes. Here are some other lists about this ongoing process:

10 Animals That Surprisingly Benefit From Climate Change
10 Archaeological Sites Suffering From Climate Change
10 Conspiracy Theories About Weather Modification
10 Archaeological Discoveries Made Possible By Global Warming

Gordon Gora is a struggling author desperately trying to make it. He is working on several projects, but until he finishes one, he will write for for his bread and butter. You can write him at [email protected].

In the past few years, climate change has gone from a threat of the future to a disaster unfolding right in front of our eyes. Its effects are now being felt around the world, from shifting patterns of food production to natural disasters that are now more frequent and intense than any other time in recorded history. While there’s no doubt that it’s a global phenomenon that transcends national borders, some countries are right on the front line of this rapidly-developing crisis.

10. South Sudan

South Sudan is located in northeastern Africa, bordered by nations like Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, and others. The country has proven particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change in the past few years, made worse by a recently-concluded civil war that continues to break out in armed skirmishes in many parts of the country. 

Currently, South Sudan is at a high risk of flooding and drought, with over 2 million people already displaced by climate-related factors. Water remains a scarce commodity throughout the country, with only 55% of the population having access to safe drinking water. Rainfall has also decreased in the region by 10-20% since the mid-1970s, which is a huge problem for many rural families that rely on rain for farming and animals. According to some estimates, about 95% of South Sudan depends on nature for survival. 

9. Madagascar

The Republic of Madagascar is one of the largest island nations in the world, lying about 250 miles off the southeastern coast of Africa. It’s also one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change, thanks to the high frequency of disasters like floods, tropical storms, cyclones, and droughts. The country’s annual cyclone season, from November to March, usually comes with intense cyclones and storms, causing heavy rains, flooding, and rising sea levels in the past few years.

Additionally, Madagascar is also facing its most severe drought in the last four decades, particularly in the southern part of the country. The disaster has so far affected over a million and a half people across the region, largely due to its heavy reliance on subsistence agriculture and rain-fed crops. The rising price of water and extreme food scarcity, combined with the country’s economically-impoverished status, have intensified the consequences of these climate-related problems. Over the years, natural disasters like droughts, cyclones, floods, and extreme temperatures have caused a total damage of over $1 billion. 

8. Afghanistan

Despite its minimal contribution to global emissions, Afghanistan stands as one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change due to conflict and climate-related factors. Currently, the entire region is facing intensifying, extreme weather events like droughts, storms, floods, landslides, avalanches, and earthquakes. 

According to some reports, 80% of Afghans rely on agriculture for survival, making even slight climate shifts highly impactful on food production and availability, a problem that’s only made worse by outdated agricultural techniques and violence due to conflicts. Droughts are on the rise in almost all parts of the country, with about 64% of households and 50% of the population affected in 2022. There’s also acute water scarcity driven by rising temperatures and lower glacial melting rates, as sources of water like rivers and lakes dry up at a faster rate every year. 

7. Haiti

Haiti is a small island nation in the Caribbean region. Its location has made it more prone to disasters like floods, droughts, and hurricanes than other countries in the area, resulting in it being one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change around the world.

One problem specific to Haiti is its lack of trees, leading to soil erosion during heavy rains causing floods and landslides. The socioeconomic conditions within the country are further fueling the ongoing crisis, as a large part of the population relies on subsistence agriculture and depends on changing weather patterns to grow their food. Access to clean water is also growing scarcer by the year, adversely affecting public health and making all the above challenges even worse.

6. The Philippines

The Philippines is a western-Pacific island nation made up of more than 7,000 islands. Its unique topography makes it an ideal destination for tourists and explorers from around the world, though it also makes it particularly-prone to the oncoming effects of climate change. Every year, the country is hit by an average of 20 typhoons, and their frequency has only increased in the past few years. Five of the deadliest typhoons in the history of the Philippines have happened since 2006, each one more intense and damaging than the last.

Perhaps the most destructive of them was super typhoon Haiyan, or Yolanda, that claimed the lives of about 6,300 people. Rising sea levels further threaten the growing climate situation across the country; according to a report by Climate Central, southeast Asia is home to about 70% of 150 million people living in regions expected to submerge around the world by 2050.

5. Democratic Republic Of The Congo

Earlier known as Zaire, the Democratic Republic of Congo is easily one of the largest countries in Africa. According to reports from the last few years, the DRC has been identified as one of the most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change, particularly for its young population. According to assessment reports by UNICEF, Congolese children are the ninth-most-vulnerable to climate and environmental shocks worldwide.

By 2050, temperatures across the DRC could surge by 1–2.5 Celsius, accompanied by intensified heavy rainfall and prolonged droughts. In contrast, the southern region may experience decreased dry season rainfall. One can also expect a rise in sea levels in the coastal areas by 60-70 centimeters by 2080, adding to the overall risk of coastal erosion and water scarcity throughout the country. 

About 95% of the population in the DRC relies on farming crops like cassava and maize, both of which are severely threatened by climate-driven crop diseases. Additionally, the hydropower sector faces disruption due to reduced precipitation patterns, further threatening the energy and food security of the Congolese population.

4. Pakistan

As per the Global Climate Risk Index of 2021, the south-Asian country of Pakistan is the eighth-most-vulnerable nation to climate change in the long term. Over the last two decades, Pakistan has also been consistently ranked among the top 10 countries most susceptible to climate risks, thanks to thousands of climate-related fatalities and financial losses exceeding $4 billion due to climate-related factors. Furthermore, these effects compound the risk of conflict across the region, particularly over dwindling resources like water and food.

The recent heatwave has amplified Pakistan’s food insecurity crisis, with scorching temperatures damaging crop production and rendering arable land unusable for small farmers. Pakistan has also been increasingly vulnerable to recurring extreme weather events, like the devastating floods of 2010 and 2022. 

3. Ethiopia

Located in the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia is one of the largest and most-populous countries on the continent. It’s highly vulnerable to climate change due to its exposure to extreme weather events like droughts, floods, volcanoes, and earthquakes, made worse by poverty and the country’s dependence on sectors like agriculture, water, tourism, and forestry.

Among all the factors, drought is perhaps the most damaging, as droughts in Ethiopia have increased in magnitude, frequency, and impact since the 1970s. A major drought in 2011 left millions in need of food aid, which was later found to be linked to livestock deaths due to pasture and water shortages. Due to climate change and other human factors, areas affected by drought and desertification are expanding across the country, combined with increasing flash floods and seasonal river floods. Projections show a potential 20% rise in extreme high rainfall events by the end of the century.

2. Somalia

Somalia is another African country facing some of the worst climate-based challenges around the world, with around 70% of its population dependent on agriculture and pastoralism. Increasingly severe floods and droughts in recent years also threaten farmers and pastoralists, combined with environmental degradation caused by industrial activities like charcoal production.

Moreover, Somalia is facing its most severe drought in close to four decades. The absence of national land use and disaster risk management policies at the state level have worsened the situation, with a high impact on local settlements. Women in rural areas are particularly vulnerable to the worst effects of climate change, largely due to their lack of decision-making powers and unequal access to resources within their communities. According to reports, Somalia ranks as the world’s second most climate-vulnerable country, despite its minimal greenhouse gas emissions contribution.

1. Syria

While many people know that Syria has been going through a brutal civil war for more than a decade now, not many are aware of its particularly-high vulnerability to climate change. The country has been hit hard by extreme weather events throughout this time, like its record-low rain season in 2021, leading to decreased water flow into rivers like the Euphrates. 

These climate disasters have had a high impact on agricultural communities and pastoralists across the country, as they heavily rely on water and vegetation for livelihood. The effects are made worse by the ongoing civil conflict, with damaged infrastructure and displacement of people in vast parts of the country exacerbating the problem. Because of the situation, many Syrian families have been pushed deeper into poverty in the last few years, as even basic commodities like food, water, and shelter have become scarce across the region.

Since the beginning of Earth’s existence, the climate has changed. It has been influenced by the sun, geological factors, ecological factors, and perhaps even preternatural events (comets, asteroids, and the like).

But recently, largely due to the consequences of the industrial revolution, man’s impact on the climate has come into sharp focus. It is now front and center of all major news outlets and is taken into account—in almost all nations—before new legislation is mooted or passed into law. But after decades of discussion, climate change has recently begun to head in a very unexpected direction . . . toward something resembling a religion.

This list looks at the various elements of climate change (and its advocacy), which most resemble the qualities we find in traditional religions. The aim is not to denigrate or laud the views of either side of the climate discussion (of which both are fervent), but to simply take an objective view of the current state of things.

SEE ALSO: 10 Ways Climate Change Has Affected Us Through History

10 Religious Services & Sacraments

Most religions hold services of some kind. They are, in the most formal Christian sense (as sacraments), designed to impart God’s grace on His followers, and in their most basic sense, designed to give psychological health to adherents. Confession removes the feelings of guilt associated with wrongdoing, and funerals help us begin the steps of coping with the grief and loss of death.

In recent days, some people have begun to advocate for, or participate in, climate change related services for much the same reason. The Prime Minister and Minister for the Environment of Iceland installed a plaque in the presence of 100 mourners for the loss of a 700 year old glacier named Okjökull. This “climate funeral” was also attended by former Irish President Mary Robinson. The Icelandic geologist who had pronounced Okjökull dead in 2014 also attended with a death certificate.^[1]

But funerals are not the only climate change sacrament! NBC News recently launched “Climate Confessions” for people to confess their climate sins. The site states: “Even those who care deeply about the planet’s future can slip up now and then. Tell us: Where do you fall short in preventing climate change? Do you blast the A/C? Throw out half your lunch? Grill a steak every week? Share your anonymous confession with NBC News.” The confessions are anonymous and can be viewed by others. Pictured above are a few examples.^[2]

9 Evangelism

In Roman Catholic parlance, an evangelist is one of the four writers of the New Testament Gospels: Saints Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. In general use the word refers to someone who preaches at religious services. It is also occasionally used in the technology world to describe someone who strongly advocates for a particular brand or thing.

No faith is complete without its enthusiastic preachers or advocates and climate change is no different. Enter Al Gore, various celebrities, and latterly Greta Thunberg. Thunberg is almost something of a Saint Joan of Arc for the climate change movement in that she is young and passionate—she has even been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. Her speech this week to the United Nations illustrates her zeal:

“People are suffering. People are dying and dying ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction, and all you can talk about is the money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth. How dare you! For more than 30 years the science has been crystal clear. [ . . . ] How dare you. You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words[.]”^[3]

8 Tithing

“He commanded also the people that dwelt in Jerusalem, to give to the priests, and the Levites their portion, that they might attend to the law of the Lord. Which when it was noised abroad in the ears of the people, the children of Israel offered in abundance the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey: and brought the tithe of all things which the ground bringeth forth.” 2 Paralipomenon 31:4–5

Tithes are like a type of tax—often voluntary—in which members of a religion give a percentage of their income to the religious hierarchy (frequently 10 percent). Governments seldom need arm-twisting to impose new taxes, so it was inevitable that climate change would eventually lead to a whole new class of compulsory tithes. Carbon taxes are being enacted all over the world in the name of climate change. The taxes vary in amount but are not insignificant and are levied in many different ways. For example, in Canada, the carbon tax adds around $0.44 per gallon of gas, increases the cost of coal by 100 percent and increases the price of natural gas by 75 percent.^[4]

7 Martyrdom

Martyrdom is death for your faith. The pages of history are doused in the blood of those who have died for their beliefs—real or not. And climate change is no different in this regard. In October 2016, Mark Baumer (a “Climate Activist”) began to walk across the United States barefoot in order to draw attention to climate change and water shortages. He had previous achieved the same feat—albeit fully shod—in 2010.

He kept a prolific diary of his activity and became something of a climate change celebrity as a consequence. Tragically, in January 2017 whilst in the middle of his protest, Baumer was hit by an SUV and killed. Saint Peter died for God . . . Mark Baumer died for climate change. Both are deemed martyrs for their respective causes.^[5]

6 Heretics

Heresy is the obstinate refusal to accept an established doctrine of a religious faith . . . or denialism. Scientists,^[6] professors,^[7] and even news reporters^[8] have been summarily dismissed from their jobs for disagreeing with the standard views on climate change. They—like heretics in the middle ages—are branded denialists and cut off from their professional communities. There are even name and shame articles on prominent news sites to “out” climate change deniers.^[9]

Whether these contrarians are right or wrong matters not . . . it cannot be denied that these excommunications bear a striking parallel to the case of Galileo Galilei who was put under house arrest in the 17th century for stating that heliocentricity proved that the Bible was wrong.

5 Priesthood / Theologians

Like priests, bishops, and theologians who read the Scriptures and disseminate their meaning to laymen, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change takes all of the climate change studies coming out and renders an interpretation for the rest of us. Just as Bishops meet in their synods, the IPCC meets regularly at various places around the world to formulate their pronouncements. World governments use the data produced by this group to direct their environmental policies and taxes.

The panel was formed from the Advisory Group on Greenhouse Gases which was founded in 1985 to study the effects of Greenhouse gas on the environment. Yup . . . politicians have been discussing climate change for over thirty years now.^[10] The current head is South Korean Economics Professor Hoesung Lee.

4 Fatwas

In Islamic practice, a fatwa is a decree by a Muslim mufti or lawyer on matters of law. A fatwa can be issued to prohibit certain items from being used or to advocate for particular behaviors. Like a fatwa (which is non-binding), the climate change movement has its own set of rules for objects which are effectively forbidden. Despite being voluntary, refusing to adhere to the bans on these items can lead to public scorn and shame (a method historically used in religion to ensure the maintenance of social mores). And, also like religion, many of these items are now on their way to being banned by law—for example straws and plastic bags, which release greenhouse gasses upon decomposition.^[11]

So what happens when you ban certain objects? New objects arise to replace them. Objects that are quite distinctive. That leads us to climate change sacramentals . . .

3 Sacramentals

Sacramentals are manmade objects that are meant to remind the user of the benefits of being pious. In the Catholic religion these appear as rosary beads, scapulas, crucifixes, holy picture cards, and more. For Muslims and Buddhists they are prayer beads. They differ from sacraments in that the sacraments are considered to have come from God rather than man.

For those actively seeking to mitigate the effects of climate change, obvious sacramentals include the likes of re-usable shopping bags, metal or paper straws, re-usable coffee cups, and a variety of other recycled or non-plastic items. Of course these objects do also have uses outside of the environmental movement, but, as the NBC climate confessions show, they are very profoundly important when it comes to climate change.^[12]

2 Feast Days

We all love holidays and festivals. Many of our modern ones descend from religion: Christmas, Easter, and Halloween to name but three. In this day and age of anointing days to various causes, it is no surprise to find that climate change has a few of its own feast days. Earth Day (April 22) was first celebrated in 1970 and was obviously not connected to climate change. However it was co-opted by the movement in 2016 when it was chosen as the day to sign the Paris Agreement—a worldwide treaty hoping to ultimately halt global warming.

In 2005, the Global Day of Action was launched. Unlike Earth Day, which is a passive celebration of the Earth, Global Day of Action is a day set aside for active protests. The day was selected to coincide with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)—presumably in the hopes of inspiring action at the political level.^[13]

1 Eschatology

Eschatology is the theological study of the end of times (or of man). Since time immemorial we have foretold (and missed) the end of all civilization. The Jehovah’s Witnesses got their start predicting the exact date of the end of the world. When it failed to occur each time they changed their date, they opted for the now-official position of just stating it will be soon.

But taking over the reigns of the Kingdom Hall religion are a number of climate change advocates who are extremely concerned that the end is nigh. Here are two recent quotes from current sitting US politicians: “The world is gonna end in 12 years if we don’t address climate change [ . . . ],^[14] and “The scientists are unanimous on this. We have no more than 12 years to take incredibly bold action on this crisis[.]”^[15]

In 2006, Al Gore’s film “An Inconvenient Truth” warned of a ten year period in which to save the world from climate change or it was all over. Of course eschatology doesn’t just take form in religion or politics. Let’s not forget that not so long ago many people were waiting for the end of the world on December 12, 2012.