For centuries, Earth’s oceans and wild places have been shaped by the extraordinary migrations of whales, birds, and countless other species—journeys finely tuned to seasonal cues, ancient memory, and the promise of food or safe breeding grounds. But today, those once-reliable signals are being scrambled. Climate change, conflict, and human development are converging to disrupt not only wildlife but also the very arteries of global trade and the ecosystems that support human civilization.
“Nature has finely tuned these journeys, guided by memory and environmental cues that tell whales when to move and where to go,” Trisha Atwood, an ecologist and associate professor at Utah State University, told Inside Climate News. “But climate change is scrambling these signals,” she warned, noting that migratory species everywhere are veering off course—or worse, facing extinction.
Earlier this year, Atwood joined more than 70 scientists at a United Nations workshop to assess the global impacts of climate change on migratory species. The group, which monitors over 1,000 species that cross borders in search of food, mates, or favorable conditions, delivered a sobering verdict: over 20 percent of these species teeter on the brink of extinction. From whales and dolphins to arctic shorebirds and elephants, all are affected by rising temperatures, extreme weather, and shifting ecosystems. Asian elephants, for instance, are being driven to higher ground and closer to human settlements as droughts intensify, fueling more frequent and sometimes deadly human-elephant conflicts. Meanwhile, Arctic shorebirds are arriving at their breeding grounds out of sync with insect blooms vital for their chicks’ survival. Even the seagrass meadows that sustain sea turtles and dugongs have declined by about 30 percent, threatening not only marine life but also the 20 percent of oceanic carbon these meadows store.
But it’s not just wildlife feeling the heat. The same forces are upending global commerce, as climate change and geopolitical instability reshape the world’s busiest shipping routes. According to Oilprice.com, between 80 and 90 percent of the world’s trade moves by sea, making the sector especially vulnerable. Since late 2023, attacks on ships in the Red Sea and the war in Ukraine have snarled the Red Sea and Black Sea corridors, while climate-induced droughts have lowered water levels in the Panama Canal, forcing ships to reduce cargo loads by up to 40 percent. The result? Major delays, higher costs, and a spike in carbon emissions as vessels take longer, alternative routes and ramp up their speeds to compensate.
The knock-on effects are enormous. In 2023, about 22 percent of global container trade passed through Egypt’s Suez Canal, generating $9.4 billion in revenue, or 2.3 percent of Egypt’s GDP. But security fears in the Red Sea caused a 40 percent drop in Suez Canal revenues the following year, with ripple effects across the region. Meanwhile, the Panama Canal’s woes have forced many companies to use land and rail alternatives, or to send ships on lengthy detours around Africa—decisions that, ironically, push up fuel consumption and emissions. As Oilprice.com reports, just a 1 percent increase in a ship’s speed can raise fuel use by 2.2 percent, illustrating how these disruptions reverberate through the global supply chain and the environment alike.
Yet, in a twist worthy of a maritime epic, climate change is also opening new doors. Melting polar ice is making way for two Arctic shipping routes: the Northern Sea Route (NSR) along Russia’s border, and the Northwest Passage along Canada. The NSR could be ice-free as early as 2030, potentially shaving 9,000 kilometers and two weeks off the journey between East Asia and Europe. China, ever watchful for opportunity, sent the Istanbul Bridge container ship on an 18-day test voyage along the NSR from Ningbo-Zhoushan to Felixstowe, UK, in September 2025. If successful, such routes could reduce emissions by shortening travel times—though the environmental risks of increased Arctic shipping remain uncertain, and seasonal ice still makes these passages unreliable and perilous.
While shipping companies and governments scramble to adapt, scientists warn that vital marine ecosystems are nearing—or have already crossed—catastrophic tipping points. On October 13, 2025, more than 160 scientists from 23 countries issued a stark report: global warming is pushing humanity into a “danger zone” marked by the collapse of coral reefs, the dieback of the Amazon rainforest, disruption of major ocean currents, and melting polar ice sheets. Warm-water coral reefs, which support a quarter of all marine life and up to a billion people, are experiencing unprecedented mortality from repeated mass bleaching events. The report found a 99 percent probability that these reefs will collapse even if global warming stabilizes at 1.5 degrees Celsius, their upper thermal limit.
“I think a lot of people don’t really understand how much their lives depend on a functioning ocean,” marine molecular ecologist Neha Acharya-Patel told The Pointer. “The air we breathe, the oxygen we rely on, the nutrients that support our food systems, all of that comes from the ocean.” Acharya-Patel, who has completed over 1,000 scientific dives, has witnessed the devastation firsthand. The Florida Reef Tract, the world’s third-largest barrier reef, has lost 97 percent of its acroporan corals since the 1970s. Canada, too, is home to only two known live coral reefs—one in British Columbia’s Finlayson Channel and another off Nova Scotia—both of which have suffered damage but are now protected by conservation measures.
Yet, there are glimmers of hope. The same Global Tipping Points report highlights positive tipping points in renewable energy. In 2024, the world added a record 582 gigawatts of renewable capacity—mostly solar and wind—avoiding about $57 billion in fossil fuel costs. “For the first time, fossil-fuel electricity is in structural decline…That’s a great cause for hope,” Steve Smith, a research fellow at the University of Exeter and co-author of the report, told The Pointer. Solar photovoltaics are now 41 percent cheaper and onshore wind 53 percent cheaper than the lowest-cost fossil fuel alternatives. Asia, led by China, drove much of this growth, but significant advances were also seen in the United States, India, Brazil, and Germany.
Public support for climate action is surging. In 2024, a United Nations survey found that 72 percent of people globally support a rapid transition from fossil fuels to clean energy, with strong majorities even in major oil-producing countries. In Canada, nearly two-thirds of the population favor prioritizing clean energy, and 85 percent want federal climate action maintained or strengthened, according to Abacus Data and the David Suzuki Foundation.
Still, the road ahead is riddled with challenges. In Canada, emissions from oil and gas, transportation, buildings, and heavy industry dominate the landscape. While individuals can make a difference—by switching to electric vehicles, improving home energy efficiency, or adopting plant-based diets—systemic change remains essential. Policy incentives, such as rebates for heat pumps or support for renewable energy, are crucial but have faced setbacks due to shifting government priorities.
Nature’s resilience offers another reason for cautious optimism. Kelp forests, seagrass meadows, and mangroves have rebounded in some regions where pollution and overfishing have been curbed, and protected areas are helping cold-water coral reefs recover. But as species and shipping lanes alike are forced to adapt to a rapidly changing world, the message from scientists is clear: immediate, coordinated action is needed to safeguard the planet’s living systems and the societies they support.
As the world approaches the next UN climate summit in Brazil’s Amazon, the stakes have never been higher. Whether it’s whales navigating scrambled migration routes, ships dodging conflict and drought, or coral reefs fighting for survival, the future will be shaped by the choices made today. The planet’s living systems, as Steve Smith reminds us, “still want to heal”—but only if humanity chooses to help them.
