Hi, I'm Josh Haner and I'm a staff photographer at the New York Times covering climate change.
For years we've sort of imagined this picture of a polar bear floating on a piece of ice.
Those have been the images associated with climate change.
My challenge is to find stories that show you how climate change is affecting our world right now.
If you want to support the kind of journalism that we're working on here on the Climate and Environment desk at the New York Times, please subscribe on our website or our app.
This is the Opinions, a show that brings you a mix of voices from New York Times opinion.
You've heard the news.
Here's what to make of it.
I'm Nick Mott.
I'm a podcast producer and a radio journalist and a print journalist based in Montana and I've also co written a book called this is how to protect Yourself, your home and your community in the Age of Heat in LA Right now we have one of the most damaging wildfires in the state's history.
At the time I'm recording, there's been more than 12,000 structures destroyed, at least 24 people dead, and likely a lot more to come because the winds and the destruction is not over yet.
Crews are beginning to make progress battling the flames, but once the fires are under control, Louisiana will likely address another crisis.
Insurance damage is already estimated in the hundreds of billions, and it comes after.
At least 10 major insurance left.
California for years has been facing this insurance crisis in large part because of their wildfire problem.
You know, since 2022, at least seven of the 12 largest insurers in the country have pulled out or at least altered the way they offer policies in California.
To some extent, hundreds of thousands of people are not able to get traditional homeowners insurance.
What's happening right now is going to put even more stress on an industry that already has no idea how to cope with the reality of climate change.
Homeowners insurance was designed to deal with one off things that happen like a tree falling on your house or your oven starting a fire or something.
Insurance companies can handle that when that happens.