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European Commission
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The Cost of Waiting in a Warmer World: Why Climate Investment Cannot Wait for the Next Disaster

  • Publication | 2026

A record-strength El Niño is forming in a warmer world, and its impacts are already forecast. The Cost of Waiting in a Warmer World shows that climate shocks quickly become development and security crises, from failed harvests to deepening poverty. Evidence suggests acting early can offer the same protection for 50–80 percent of the cost of responding later. The window to act is now, before the next disaster, not after it.

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