Query: Famine, economic collapse, a sun that cooks us: What climate change could wreak — sooner than you think.

Relevant passages:
New York Harbor Storm-Surge Barrier <=SEP=> The New York Harbor Storm-Surge Barrier is a proposed flood barrier system to protect New York-New Jersey harbor estuary shores from storm surges . The proposed system would consist of one barrier located across the mouth of Lower New York Bay between Sandy Hook ( N.J. ) and Far Rockaway ( N.Y. ) and second on the upper East River to provide a ring of protection to most of the bi-state region .   To address the problem of sea-level rise , smaller scale projects to increase seawall heights or otherwise raise vulnerable coastlines would be necessary . Thus a storm-surge barrier system combined with coastline adjustments would form a two-tiered , or bifurcated , strategy to protect the region . The barrier system could also be extended eastward , filling in the gaps between barrier islands , to protect the various communities lining the south shore of Long Island .   The proposal was developed in the wake of Hurricane Sandy by the New York/New Jersey Metropolitan Storm Surge Working Group , composed of prominent entrepreneurs , civic leaders , social scientists , oceanographers , marine ecologists , meteorologists , engineers , architects , economists , attorneys and media experts . The group is chaired by Malcolm Bowman , a professor of physical oceanography at the State University of New York at Stony Brook . Within the barrier system lies crucial infrastructure such a sthe seaports and maritime facilities ; ground level and underground transportation terminals ; three major international airports ; subway and roadway tunnels ; hospitals ; communication centers ; the industrial complex of northern New Jersey ; as well as the millions of residents at risk in New York City and coastal New Jersey north of Sandy Hook .

Global warming <=SEP=> Global warming , also referred to as climate change , is the observed century-scale rise in the average temperature of the Earth 's climate system and its related effects . Multiple lines of scientific evidence show that the climate system is warming . Many of the observed changes since the 1950s are unprecedented in the instrumental temperature record which extends back to the mid 19th century , and in paleoclimate proxy records over thousands of years .   In 2013 , the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC ) Fifth Assessment Report concluded that `` It is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century . '' The largest human influence has been emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide , methane and nitrous oxide . Climate model projections summarized in the report indicated that during the 21st century the global surface temperature is likely to rise a further 0.3 to for their lowest emissions scenario and 2.6 to for the highest emissions scenario . These findings have been recognized by the national science academies of the major industrialized nations and are not disputed by any scientific body of national or international standing .   Future climate change and associated impacts will differ from region to region around the globe . Anticipated effects include warming global temperature , rising sea levels , changing precipitation , and expansion of deserts in the subtropics . Warming is expected to be greater over land than over the oceans and greatest in the Arctic , with the continuing retreat of glaciers , permafrost and sea ice . Other likely changes include more frequent extreme weather events including heat waves , droughts , heavy rainfall with floods and heavy snowfall ; ocean acidification ; and species extinctions due to shifting temperature regimes . Effects significant to humans include the threat to food security from decreasing crop yields and the abandonment of populated areas due to rising sea levels . Because the climate system has a large `` inertia '' and greenhouse gases will stay in the atmosphere for a long time , many of these effects will not only exist for decades or centuries , but will persist for tens of thousands of years .   Possible societal responses to global warming include mitigation by emissions reduction , adaptation to its effects , building systems resilient to its effects , and possible future climate engineering . Most countries are parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNFCCC ) ,  whose ultimate objective is to prevent dangerous anthropogenic climate change . Parties to the UNFCCC have agreed that deep cuts in emissions are required and that global warming should be limited to well below 2.0 C-change relative to pre-industrial levels , with efforts made to limit warming to 1.5 C-change .   Public reactions to global warming and concern about its effects are also increasing . A global 2015 Pew Research Center report showed a median of 54 % consider it `` a very serious problem '' . There are significant regional differences , with Americans and Chinese ( whose economies are responsible for the greatest annual CO2 emissions ) among the least concerned .