EarthBeat Weekly: How climate change is hindering child growth

How climate change is stunting the growth of children   EarthBeat Weekly Your weekly newsletter about faith and climate change June 19, 2026   An internally displaced Somali family prepares breakfast outside their makeshift shelter in Mogadishu May 7, 2026. Experts say nearly 6.5 million people in Somalia are experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity and more than 1.8 million children are suffering from acute malnutrition because of recurrent drought, displacement, prolonged instability and insufficient resources.(OSV News/Reuters/Feisal Omar) When we think of how climate change is impacting our world, the images that typically come to mind are those of intensified hurricanes battering coastal communities, people beleaguered under extreme summer heat, melting glaciers calving huge ice chunks into the sea, and yes, even stranded polar bears floating adrift. Less front of mind are the ways rising temperatures impact human health, especially that of children.  A recent study by researchers at the University of Notre Dame examined this question with a particular focus on how climate change is hindering children as they grow, as I reported today in a story for EarthBeat.  After examining 16 years of health and demographic data for 34 African countries, alongside temperature observations and climate modeling, the researchers found that every 1 degree Celsius the planet heats due to human activities is directly linked to a 3.45% increase in childhood stunting.  Stunting refers to impaired growth or development and is commonly visible through a child's diminished weight and height. It is a sign of malnutrition. That 3.45% may at first seem like a small percentage, but it equates to close to 7 million children across Africa, said Arun Agrawal, one of the study's co-authors and director of Notre Dame's Just Transformations to Sustainability Initiative. "It's a significant proportion of the population being affected, and it's a significant effect on their life chances after they're born," he told EarthBeat. There are many factors at play with childhood stunting. Poor diets, repeated infections and inadequate sanitation, as well as genetics, maternal diet and education, and access to healthcare all play a role. Hotter temperatures do too, both directly and indirectly. Droughts worsened by climate change, for example, strain agriculture production and food access, worsening nutrition for both children and expectant mothers. Increased heat can also place biological stressors on a child in utero, such as reduced blood flow through the placenta, Agrawal told me.  In a press release accompanying the study, he elaborated on the "threat multiplier" that climate change poses on existing social inequalities facing vulnerable communities and the poorest households, especially those lacking the means to buy food elsewhere after a bad harvest. "We are seeing a direct physical translation of global emissions into child undernutrition. When extreme heat limits food availability and drives up prices, young children are the very first to suffer the biological consequences," he said. "Their developing brains and bodies simply do not get the fuel they need, cementing a cycle of intergenerational poverty before they even reach their fifth birthday." Global temperatures have already risen 1.3 C since the Industrial Revolution of the late 1800s, primarily fueled by humans burning fossil fuels. Temperatures are projected to rise between 2.3 C and 2.8 C by the end of the century, bringing with it significant consequences for the health of the world's ecosystems, its people and its children, too.  Read more: Notre Dame study links climate change to stunted child growth in Africa What else is new on EarthBeat:   Church leaders to G7 leaders: Place the human person 'at the heart' of governance by OSV News Presidents of Catholic bishops' conferences of the G7 member states called on heads of state and government to root governance in human dignity, as national leaders prepare for the G7 Summit. Read more here »   Sisters find creativity is key in converting land, buildings by Dan Stockman When it comes to unneeded buildings and property with built-in challenges, such as out of the way locations or buildings too expensive to heat and maintain but not worth renovating, sisters find new ways to make them useful. Read more here » What's happening in other climate news: The tiny solar panel that could change America —Robinson Meyer for The New York Times US public still favours action on climate change despite Trump's fossil fuel drive —Oliver Milman for the Guardian Trump's EPA unlawfully cancelled environmental justice grants, judge rules —Lauren Dalban for Inside Climate News Trump DOJ supports Musk-owned data center in suit by NAACP —Hassan Ali Kanu for E&E News Nearly 12,000 residents have been evacuated as a wildfire spreads in Washington —Nadine El-Bawab and Jenna Harrison for ABC News Democrats once vowed to stop oil and gas. Now they're not so sure. —Lisa Friedman and Brad Plumer for The New York Times Reflecting Pool algae bloom is one of biggest recorded in years after $14M renovation —Meg Kelly and Maura Judkis for the Washington Post Final Beat: This week, we at EarthBeat learned the sad news of the passing of James Bruggers, a longtime environmental journalist.  Bruggers, 68, died Tuesday while in the hospital in Louisville, Kentucky.  A widely respected veteran of the environmental beat, primarily for the Louisville Courier Journal and Inside Climate News, in recent years he began exploring more the intersection of ecology and faith.  I met James a few times over the years, first in New Orleans in 2023 at a journalism briefing about the multitude of environmental health threats facing residents in southern Louisiana, often referred to as "Cancer Alley." From that trip, James reported on the Black women of faith — including several Catholics, among them Sharon Lavigne — who are leading the region's opposition to industrial facilities and petrochemical complexes in their communities.  He also reported stories on Pope Francis' climate messages in Laudato Si' and Laudate Deum, Cardinal Wilton Gregory's environmental track record and faith leaders' rebukes of the EPA director's disparaging comments about "the climate change religion." One of his final articles, published in March, was an interview with Passionist Fr. Joe Mitchell about faith and ecological crises as well as the work of the Passionist Earth & Spirit Center in Louisville.  James was always kind in our brief interactions, and we at EarthBeat and NCR welcomed having his award-winning reporting turn toward faith-and-environmental issues. He will be missed, and we send our condolences and prayers for him, his family and his colleagues.  You can read more about his life and career in obituaries at Inside Climate News and the Louisville Courier Journal.  As always, thanks for reading EarthBeat.   Brian Roewe Environment Correspondent National Catholic Reporter broewe@ncronline.org     Featured Advertisers   Become a Healer. Online, Flexible, Stackable. Apply your credits towards a Master’s in Ministry. NACC education collaborator.   Advertisement