Singaporeans' love of travel this recent holiday season may have served as an eye-opener and an unusual wake-up call to the impact of climate change. Osaka's Kansai airport shut down after Typhoon Jebi flooded the facility, resulting in flight cancellations. This deluge follows an unprecedented summer heatwave in Japan which killed at least 65 people in one week in July.

Japan is not the only country that experienced record temperatures. Summer in Europe saw the mercury at sizzling new highs, with temperatures in Spain and Portugal soaring above 40 deg C. Drought hit large swathes of Australia, wildfires ravaged California, and in balmy Singapore, July and August temperatures hit highs of 35 deg C.