Inconsistent climate projections for much of the Global South from six generations of IPCC assessments have compounded the many challenges it faces in adapting to climate change. Here, we propose using emerging technologies and strengthening international collaborations to address these challenges.

The Global South, which hosts the majority of the world’s population, is unequivocally more vulnerable to climate change than the Global North, owing to widespread poverty, income inequality and its heavy dependence on climate-sensitive sectors. By contrast, the affluent Global North, which mostly consists of high-income countries, is better poised to face climate change, particularly in implementing mitigation and adaptation policies. Climate risks are exacerbated for the Global South because climate projections that inform adaptation policies are found to be inconsistent over many of its most vulnerable regions — a major pitfall in effective policymaking. Therefore, it is imperative to provide actionable climate projections for the Global South, although doing so is a challenge.