Changing Pastures: How Climate is Shifting Grazing Lands

Climate shifts are shrinking the world’s biggest food farms. Across continents, grasslands that support millions of herders are becoming less suitable for livestock as temperatures rise and rainfall patterns change. Scientists used a “safe climatic space” method to map these changes, looking at heat, rain, humidity and wind. Their models predict that by 2100 the areas where grazing is viable will drop by one third to half. These losses are not evenly spread; some regions will gain, while others will lose the ability to keep animals.The biggest hit is expected in Africa, where up to 140 million people rely on pastoralism. In total, between one and two billion animals could be affected by the shift in suitable land. More than half of those impacted live in countries that already struggle with poverty, hunger and political instability. If these trends continue, the livelihoods of many communities could be lost, sparking social and economic crises worldwide.