Drought and farming: how women in South Africa are using Indigenous knowledge to cope: Africa’s small-scale farmers make up nearly 80% of all farms in the agriculture sector. In South Africa, there are about 2 million small-scale farmers, predominantly Black and based in the eastern summer rainfall region of the country. A small-scale farmer produces …
El Niño drought leaves Zimbabwe’s Lake Kariba only 13% full: a disaster for people and wildlife: Water levels at Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe have dropped dramatically because of the latest El Niño drought. The country’s president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, has declared a national disaster. Historian and social scientist Joshua Matanzima grew up at Lake Kariba and …
Addis Ababa faces growing climate change risks like heat, drought and floods, study warns: About 70% of people in Addis Ababa live in informal settlements that are vulnerable to climate change. Amanuel Sileshi/AFP/ Getty Images Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital city, will likely face increased heatwaves, droughts and severe flooding over the next 67 years. These …
Drought recedes in Britain after a wet spring – but much of Europe is parched: Be careful what you wish for. Britain’s seesaw rainfall patterns that began last winter have continued, with an on-off pattern of dry and then wet months for many areas. In the south of England, last year’s drought was still affecting …
Kenya drought: Pastoralists suffer despite millions of dollars used to protect them — what went wrong?: A young herder grazes cattle on dwindling pasture in the drylands of Kenya. Tony Karumba/AFP via Getty Images Across the arid landscape of northern Kenya, roadside signs proclaim projects aimed at creating “resilience” among pastoralist communities. This is a …
If more houses had water butts, it could help with drought, flooding and water pollution: A small rain tank could supply 15% of a household's total annual water consumption on average across the UK. Alexander Knyazhinsky/Shutterstock Earlier this year, southern England experienced its driest July on record. The drought affected many parts of the UK …
The Horn of Africa has had years of drought, yet groundwater supplies are increasing – why?: Harvepino / shutterstock The Horn of Africa – which includes Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and some surrounding countries – has been hit by increasingly frequent and devastating droughts. Despite this, it seems the region has an increasing amount of groundwater. And …
Why the drought isn’t over even though it’s rained all week: Sandor Szmutko / shutterstock Only a few days into autumn, and the UK has experienced some truly autumnal weather. Heavy bands of rain and thunderstorms have swept over parts of Britain, particularly in southern England, that up until a few weeks ago were looking …
How Europe’s drought is making Britain’s energy crisis worse: The drought-affected Rhine River in Cologne, Germany, August 2022. alfotokunst / shutterstock Along the River Elbe, in Germany and the Czech Republic, is a series of rocks that are submerged in all but the lowest water conditions. The locals call them “hunger stones” because they are …
Drought: five ways to stop heavy rains washing away parched soil: Sup10mah/Shutterstock When William Blake described England’s “green and pleasant land” in his poem Jerusalem, he was actually writing during a prolonged drought. Two centuries later, much of Europe is withering under successive heatwaves amid one of the most extreme droughts ever recorded. The latest …
Drought: why some UK trees are losing their leaves in August: Britain is suffering its worst drought since the 1970s, with dry weather expected until October. Many parks and lawns are now more straw than grass, but some trees and other plants have responded in a more surprising way: by losing their leaves. It is …
Drought: heavy rain now might be a serious problem for the UK’s parched landscape: Southsea Common in Portsmouth, UK, parched after summer heat. Dave Colman/Shutterstock Large areas of the UK have officially entered a drought, as searing summer temperatures grip the European continent. We are currently seeing the introduction of hosepipe bans – a memory …
How not to respond to drought: lessons from Angola: Breakdown in local canal that led to micro-drought situation in Humpata (Huíla). Ruy Blanes Three years after a severe drought in southwestern Angola, people in the area continue to suffer. Hunger remains pervasive and they are still losing livestock. In a recent report we looked at …
Five easy ways to use less water at home – and not just in a drought: Wait for starchy cooking water to cool and then use it to water your plants. VH-studio/Shutterstock With so much of the world suffering from drought, you might think your ability to help is minimal. But when you consider the …
UK drought: are farmers facing the crop failures of 1976 all over again?: July 2022 was the driest July in England since 1935. Combined with record breaking temperatures, we are hearing talk of a drought comparable to the great drought of 1976, with fears of disruptions to public water supply and poor crop yields, especially …
Saving East Africa’s wildlife from recurring drought: A giraffe lies dead in the road near Matanaha village on December 9, 2021 in Wajir County, Kenya. Ed Ram/Getty Images Over the past two decades, the Horn of Africa – specifically Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya – has experienced more intense and frequent droughts. The affected areas in …
Is eastern Africa’s drought the worst in recent history? And are worse yet to come?: A man sits next to dead livestock in the village of Hargududo, Ethiopia, where there's hardly been a drop of rain in 18 months. Eduardo Soteras/AFP via Getty Images Large areas of Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya are currently in the …
Check out this Cape Town image: Large man on Foreshore during the drought in Cape Town Image by Louis George 2011 Cape Town is in the midst of the worst drought in more than a century. The channel on the left–beyond the first line of trees–is normally filled with flowing water. Leica MP, 50mm Summicron. …