27th August 2025
Climate change means that the likelihood of hotter and more prolonged heatwaves will increase. Culturally in the UK, the pessimistic view is that our summers of cold and wet and not as good as the long, hot and relaxing summers that Europe enjoys. Therefore spells of hot weather are seen as things to be enjoyed! We have not yet come to understand that heatwaves can be uncomfortable, damaging for our health and destructive for agriculture.
Our buildings and urban areas – unlike many of their European counterparts – are not designed to provide shade and protection from high temperatures. Nor are our working practices adapted to cope with excess heat. High temperatures do damage our health: the heat wave in June of this year likely caused 600 deaths. (1) High temperatures and lack of rain damages both crops and livestock. 84% of UK farmers have reported reduced crop yields. (2) With many other countries on whom we rely for food imports similarly affected, rises in food prices and shortages are inevitable.
Rising temperatures should not be seen as a means of getting a suntan, but treated as real risks that need to be addressed if we care for people’s (and other living things’) wellbeing both here and world wide.
- https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/21/heatwave-expected-deaths-england-and-wales-analysis?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
- https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jul/02/farmers-climate-crisis-livelihood-extreme-weather-study?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
The Green Tau 