Mapped: How climate change affects extreme weather around the world by Carbon Brief

Over the past two decades, attribution research has made headlines around the world as scientists have linked climate change to extreme weather that impacts millions of people.

And what started with a single study in 2004 has developed into a research field where scientists can quantify the impact of warming on an extreme event in just a few days.

Now totalling hundreds of studies, they collectively tell a story of how climate change is affecting society right now – and Carbon Brief’s interactive feature is the only place where every single one can be found.

Published during the COP29 summit in Baku, our map presents more than 600 studies, covering almost 750 extreme weather events and trends in all corners of the world.

The map groups the events into 13 distinct regions and categorises them by finding. Clicking on a region gives the reader a breakdown of events by extreme type and ranked by number of studies, providing insight into how events compare regionally.

The map is underpinned by an easy-to-use database, providing a resource that allows readers to search for extreme events in their location. Each event also has its own digital “card” that summarises the key findings and includes a link to the original study for those who want to find out more.

The Guardian used the map as a focal point for two articles – one focusing on heatwaves that were found to be “impossible” without climate change and a second on the scientific techniques of attribution. The former was run as an exclusive on the homepage of the website and given a full page on page four of the print edition.

In Unearthed's list of the best environmental journalism of 2024, the map was described as “exhaustive, public-interest science journalism”.

Work is also underway by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) – the world's leading source of data and analysis on internal displacement – to use the map to identify links between climate change and extreme events that leave people homeless around the world.