Dutch cities to have same warm climate as Paris by 2050: study

By 2050 the climate in Amsterdam,, The Hague and Rotterdam will be comparable to what Paris has today, according to an analysis by scientists from Crowther Lab, which forms part of the ETH Zuirch university. According to the researchers, 77 percent of the world's cities will see a "striking change" in climate by 2050.

Europe will have both warmer summers and winters, with summer temperatures increasing 3.5 degrees and winter temperatures 4.7 degrees, according to the scientists. 22 percent of places will even see circumstances that currently don't exist in large cities. "The climate in London in 2050 will be comparable to the climate now in Barcelona, Madrid with Marrakesh, Moscow with Sofia", they said. Maximums during the hottest month in Amsterdam will likely be 3.4 degrees higher in 2050 than today.

According to scientist Tom Crowther, precisely measuring the effects of climate change is no longer the biggest challenge in climate science. The biggest challenge now is to get people to visualize the concrete effects on their daily lives, so that they can take action, he said according to ANP. The scientists hope that their study will help achieve this.

"History has repeatedly shown that data and facts alone are not enough to make people change their minds or encourage the to take action", lead research Jean-Francois Bastin said, according to the news wire. The current climate change reports do not adequately reflect the acute nature of the problem, he believes. "For example, it is difficult to visualize how a temperature rise of 2 degrees, or changes in the average temperature in 2100, can affect daily life."