"Why study, if our future is being destroyed?" This sign features a sentiment shared by increasing numbers of German students, who have joined young people worldwide in using Friday school strikes to call for action on climate change. The movement was inspired by 16-year-old Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, who began her protests alone in front of the Swedish parliament in August 2018.

With the 2015 Paris climate accord, nearly all of the world's countries committed to limiting global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius, preferably 1.5 degrees (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit), by 2100. The hope is that this target will prevent the worst effects of climate disasters. Concerned by the dire predictions from climate scientists, more and more people have called for immediate action.

Despite urgent warnings, politicians have dragged their heels on important climate decisions. It's become clear that Germany will miss its targets for 2020. Climate protection was an important factor in the European elections in late May, with the Greens winning more than 20% of the vote in Germany alone, more than double previous results. Among 18-24-year-olds, 34% backed the party.

Germany's climate movement is fighting on many fronts. In recent years, activists have fought to preserve Hambach Forest in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, building treehouses to prevent the old-growth forest from being felled to make way for the mining of lignite, or brown coal. Energy giant RWE has launched legal action, and police have cleared the camp several times.

In September 2018, a few days after the camp was removed again, a court ruling suspended the clearing of the forest until late 2020, after a lawsuit by environmental group BUND. RWE has argued that the forest has to be cut in order to ensure the coal necessary for Germany's electricity supply. Around 50,000 activists celebrated the victory.

Protests organized by groups such as Ende Gelände have increasingly been making headlines. Thousands of young activists have come out to staged events, blocking railway tracks used to deliver coal to power plants near Cologne and occupying huge coal excavators, as seen here in the open-pit mine in the east German town of Welzow in 2016.

In January 2019, after seven months of negotiations, a coal commission set up by the federal government to work out Germany's plans to phase out coal power released its findings. It recommended that Germany should continue coal mining until 2038, at the latest —far too late for the country to meet the targets of the 2015 Paris climate accord.

An increasing number of young people in Germany are demanding that the government find a way to meet the 1.5-degree target. The emerging Fridays for Future movement has been getting support from longtime environmentalists, teachers, academics and parents. They have called for all German coal-fired power plants to be shut down by 2030, and for renewable energy initiatives to be vastly expanded.

Although there is a combination of factors behind the numerous jellyfish that reach vacation havens like the Mediterranean coast, climate change is also partially to blame. Warmer sea temperatures are opening up new areas where jellyfish can reproduce, and increasing the availability of their favorite food: plankton.

Prized for their superior sound quality, an original Stradivarius can sell for millions of dollars. Yet, extreme weather events, such as unusually violent storms, are killing millions of trees, putting at risk the famous wood in the Paneveggio forest, in northern Italy. Replanting trees won't help much in the short term. A spruce has to be at least 150 years old before it can become a violin.

On very hot nights, people sleep worse, especially in big cities. By 2050 European metropolises may experience temperatures around 3.5 degrees Celsius warmer in summer. It not only affects sleep, but also mood, productivity and mental health. The only way to escape is to move to smaller towns and settlements, where the nights are cooler since there are fewer buildings and more greenery.

Spring is starting earlier in the year due to global warmer temperatures — bad news for allergy sufferers. With a longer frost-free season, plants have more time to grow, bloom and produce pollen. Therefore, pollen will freely roam around much earlier, which will make the suffering season longer and the annual pollen load greater. Will it be the century of masks for air pollution and allergies?

Heat not only makes us sweat; it also affects our health. By the end of this century three-quarters of the world's population is expected to be exposed to dangerous and deadly heat waves. Rising temperatures mean an increase in diarrheal diseases, as it's easier for bacteria to multiply in warm food and water. Mosquito numbers will also likely go up, along with the spread of diseases like malaria.

Soil in the region around the North Pole is increasingly thawing in the summer months, with dramatic local and global consequences. Warmer temperatures cause floors to become unstable and houses and roads to crack, and leads to many more insects. Moreover, if permafrost — frozen soil — melts, it will release CO2 and methane gases that could further exacerbate global warming. It's a vicious circle.

Temperature can influence the sex of several species. For sea turtles, the heat of the sand where the eggs are incubated determines the sex of the newborn. Low temperatures benefit male turtles, while females develop better in warmer areas. Researchers have found that over 99% of turtle hatchlings in northern Australia are already female, making it difficult for the species to survive.