2024: A Year of Climate Reckoning for Greece and the World

Record heat, drought, and extreme weather in 2024 underscored the climate crisis, while stalled climate talks revealed humanity's struggle to act.

Igrabbed a glass and turned on the faucet. A sputter, a blast of orange-tinged water, and then—nothing. For the second summer in a row, the town of Arachova on Mount Parnassos was dry, as climate change induced-drought hit the region hard.

The high-altitude escape and its nearby villages, celebrated for its ski slopes, biodiversity and proximity to the iconic Delphi archaeological site, has become yet another symbol of Greece’s vulnerability to climate change. A nearly snowless winter in 2023 left ski slopes barren and local businesses struggling. By summer 2024, record-high temperatures and relentless drought forced the mayor to ration water, cutting access every evening.

As taps ran dry, blame spread like wildfire. Locals pointed fingers at Athenians watering vacation home lawns, while videos of broken pipes wasting water circulated on social media. Whispers of illegal boreholes and water theft intensified frustrations and suspicions. Meanwhile, the long-promised reservoir project remains unrealized, leaving residents to fend for themselves.

Some filled private tanks during the day, undermining nightly bans; others resorted to stockpiling plastic water bottles, filling recycling bins to the brim. In 2023, a fragile consensus chose to bury the problem to protect the region’s tourism industry and property values. But with the declaration of a temporary state of emergency in 2024, there was no avoiding the headlines.

A Record Year of Climate Extremes

Across Greece, 2024 will be remembered as another year when the impact of climate change was impossible to ignore and the general public struggled to cope.

The country endured its hottest summer on record, including a 16-day heatwave in July, while the world posted its hottest year yet. “Breaking records has become the norm,” says meteorologist Kostas Lagouvardos. “We’ve just experienced Greece’s warmest winter, followed by its warmest summer. If trends continue, 2024 may surpass 2023 as the hottest year ever recorded.”

Water shortages plagued the Cyclades, Dodecanese, and Crete, where a longer tourist season added to the strain, but even mountainous regions like Parnassos were hit. Tragically, over a dozen heat-related fatalities, including British TV presenter Michael Mosley, highlighted the deadly cost of rising temperatures. Meanwhile, Greece’s €22-billion tourism industry came under fire with accusations of overtourism and insufficient protection for tourists.

Extreme weather also dominated global headlines. From Brazil’s catastrophic floods to Dubai’s submerged streets and a Sahara dust storm sweeping Southern Europe, the ripple effects of climate change reached every corner of the world. Yet, as Lagouvardos notes, “For Greece, the biggest concerns remain drought and water management. Without significant snowfall this winter or a clear strategy, 2025 will bring more problems.”

The Global Climate Stage

While Greece grappled with its local challenges, 2024 was also a year of underwhelming progress on the global stage. COP29 in Azerbaijan yielded a long-awaited financial agreement to provide $300 billion annually for climate mitigation until 2035, but that is $1 trillion less than is needed yearly. Meanwhile, the long-awaited global plastics treaty stalled, as oil-producing nations blocked commitments to reduce production.

“We can’t expect substantial breakthroughs with nearly 200 states at the table,” says Emmanuella Doussis, UNESCO Chair on Climate Diplomacy. “We know what needs to be done: stronger cooperation, more robust financial support, and tackling the root causes of emissions.” But implementation has a strong social dimension that we have neglected – known as the just transition- which requires dramatic shifts in lifestyle that most people are unprepared for, adds Doussis.

Greece Steps Forward, and Steps Back

In Greece, 2024 was a year of contradictions. At the Our Oceans conference in Athens, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced two new marine protected areas and a ban on bottom trawling—steps forward for conservation. Also the country enhanced its fire prevention and firefighting capacities. Yet deeper systemic issues persist.

“Greece portrays itself as a leader in renewables, but it’s also positioning itself as a gas hub for Southeast Europe,” says Nikos Charalambides, Executive Director of Greenpeace. “We’re taking steps forward while entrenching fossil fuel dependence.”

Biodiversity remains at risk, with illegal construction in forests continuing, along with the legalization of structures built without permits. “Greece is disproportionally rich in biodiversity in terms of flora and fauna, but biodiversity still hasn’t found its value at any level in the political system,” adds Charalambides.

Meanwhile, renewable energy projects continue to spark tensions as poorly planned or communicated wind farms exacerbate concerns and conflicts with local communities.

Engaging the Public: The Missing Link

One of the biggest challenges in addressing climate change is public engagement. Distrust in political and scientific institutions often disconnects citizens from the policymaking process, leaving space for misinformation, the spread of populism, and trapping communities in a reactive cycle rather than proactive planning.

This divide is reflected in media coverage. Chartbeat data shows that stories about extreme weather, like Hurricane Helene, dominate engagement across 5,000 media outlets, while broader climate issues struggle for attention. Similarly, WSJ’s “Biggest News Stories of 2024” focused on dramatic events, such as Northern California’s snowstorm, with little mention of climate change.

“People aren’t told how renewable energy or conservation measures benefit their daily lives,” notes Charalambides. “We’re losing the argument because we fail to connect policies to tangible benefits like lower energy bills or healthier environments.”

Doussis emphasizes local action: “Climate adaptation plans must be developed with public participation at the municipal level. Global agreements mean little without community buy-in and solutions people understand and support.”

Looking Ahead to 2025

As Greece looks to 2025, the challenges are daunting. Key priorities include improving water infrastructure, accelerating renewable energy adoption, and further enhancing fire prevention.

“We’re likely to see an accumulation of warm years, longer heatwaves, and more prolonged droughts so preparation is crucial.” As the summer grows longer, so will the wild fire season.

There are glimmers of hope. Youth-led initiatives, like the Youth Diplomacy Forum in Dubai, inspire optimism. China and India are scaling renewable energy investments, while market forces in the U.S.   driving solar and wind development, despite political challenges and Donald Trump’s promise to deregulate and overturn Biden-era support.

Courts have also played a role, as seen in Montana’s landmark ruling upholding residents’ constitutional right to a clean environment. Indigenous groups have granted rights to whales in an effort to protect them, and Greece’s decades long program to save Caretta caretta is baring fruit.

Still, Charalambides intimates that the problem is deeper and calls for a paradigm shift: “It’s not just about recycling or reducing emissions. We need to rethink our entire economic model, moving from a linear system of production and consumption to a circular economy that prioritizes reuse and sustainability.”

He adds, “We’re behind. We need to move fast. We need a 60% reduction in emissions in 9 years. The question is not how to fear more, but how to engage citizens more, how to prioritize and act.”

This means citizens worldwide must embrace collective action—seeking information, identifying solutions, and proving that even small communities can drive global change.

For the villages of Parnassos, this means turning prayers for rain into open discussions to develop actionable strategies. Without such efforts, 2025 may bring yet another summer where the sound of a sputtering faucet signals a community still unprepared for the challenges of a changing climate.

Cover photo: Greek beekepers, reeling from 2023’s devastating floods, began 2024 with mass protests, warning their trade faces extinction.