Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing WPR series on countries’ risk exposure, contribution and response to climate change.
An epic heat wave engulfed the Middle East this summer, with temperatures reaching as high as 129 degrees Fahrenheit in Kuwait in July, and climate experts warn the region could become too hot for human survival. In an email interview, Mohamed Abdel Raouf, a research fellow at the Gulf Research Center, discusses climate change’s impact on the Gulf.
WPR: What are the Gulf countries’ risk exposure to climate change, what effects of climate change are already apparent, and what sorts of adaptation approaches will they have to adopt or develop?