Date: Thursday 28th May

Time: 8:00am – 9:00am

Venue: ASPI Auditorium, Ground Floor
            40 Macquarie Street, Barton, ACT 2600

Climate change is increasingly driving extreme weather events that are damaging economies, displacing communities and contributing to humanitarian crises around the world. Nowhere are these risks more acute than in the Indo-Pacific, the world’s most disaster-prone region, where climate impacts are emerging as a growing challenge to human security, economic stability and social cohesion.

One of the most dangerous but least understood threats is extreme humid heat.

A major new report by ASPI Senior Fellow Dr Robert Glasser examines the growing risk posed by “lethal humidity” — conditions in which heat and humidity combine to push human survivability towards its limits. The report argues that extreme humid heat is not only a deadly hazard, but part of a broader pattern of interacting and cascading climate risks intensified by global warming.

As the atmosphere warms, it holds more moisture. High humidity dramatically reduces the body’s ability to cool itself, meaning dangerous and potentially fatal impacts can occur at far lower temperatures than many people realise. The report warns that some of the world’s most densely populated regions are moving steadily closer to conditions that challenge the limits of human tolerance.

The report also explores how extreme humid heat can amplify other climate-related shocks — including power failures, water stress, food insecurity and infrastructure disruption, creating compounding risks for governments, communities and regional stability.

To discuss the report’s findings, ASPI is pleased to invite you to join us on 28 May for a public event on lethal humidity and the systemic risks of climate change. Held in partnership with the Minderoo Foundation, the event will feature remarks by Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy, the Hon Josh Wilson MP, report author Dr Robert Glasser, and Dr Arnagretta Hunter.