Climate security

Gore warns of climate change risks at Atlanta conference

Among the most serious problems presented to conference attendees was the belief that the rising heat index could make parts of the world uninhabitable, Gore said.

“This is a relatively new finding, that in some areas of the Middle East and north Africa, there will be, according to the scientific predictions, areas that will no longer be fit for human habitation — beyond the limits for human survival,” Gore said. “The holy cities of Mecca and Medina are in this zone. Two years in Iran, the heat index — the combination of temperature and humidity — reached 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

“No human being can live for more than a few hours outdoors in those conditions,” Gore said.

Despite the gloomy outlook, Gore said there are ways to deal with the effects of climate change, but those will take collaboration both in the U.S. and abroad.