Rising temperatures disrupt supply chains and send shocks through national economies, making it harder for people to buy the things they need to survive.
One study, which sought to quantify the existing economic burden of the shifting climate, found that high temperatures contributed to a roughly 12% reduction in U.S. incomes since 2000.
How do warming temperatures affect the economy?
Warming temperatures contribute to events such as heat waves and drought that make it harder for crops to grow. Hotter days can also harm human health and decrease productivity. All of these factors lead to declines in countries' gross domestic product.
A study, published in the journal PNAS and summarized by BBC Science Focus, compared temperature data with income levels across the U.S. It found that high temperatures in one location had effects that rippled throughout the country.
"Climate change is already costing the U.S. economy by changing temperatures around the country," Derek Lemoine, the lead author of the paper, told BBC Science Focus.
"Most of those costs are not driven by changes in weather where you live but by how changes in weather everywhere else affect supply chains and the cost of products you buy from elsewhere in the U.S."
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The study's findings are even starker considering that they did not take into account the economic burden of catastrophic climate-related extreme weather events, such as wildfires and hurricanes.
These conditions can damage infrastructure and send insurance premiums soaring, contributing to billions of dollars in economic losses.
Why are lost wages concerning?
By focusing on lost wages, the study showed how warming temperatures make it harder for people to afford necessities.
For example, rising food prices are causing people to spend more at the grocery store and sometimes forcing them to make do with less.
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$200 or more 💰 When money doesn't go as far, people spend less, putting a damper on the overall economy. Low wages can also cause significant stress, which further limits productivity.
How climate adaptation can help prevent economic losses
The short-term cost of preventing climate catastrophe is far less than the cost of proceeding with business as usual.
For example, investing 1% to 2% of global GDP in climate mitigation and adaptation could help stave off productivity declines of 15% to 24% by 2100, according to one study.
Research, such as Lemoine's study, is also crucial for helping people understand the all-encompassing effects of a warming world.
"Climate change is pervasive," Lemoine told BBC Science Focus. "The effects of that pervasiveness are harder to see in our day-to-day lives, but appear to be much more important than the more obvious effects on local temperature.
"Climate adaptation must mean more than just protection against local, physical weather."
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