In Alaska, the effects of climate change are already becoming readily apparent.
At the moment, Anchorage is already experiencing coastal erosion that threatens the city's international airport, according to Arctic scientists, and food sources -- like walruses hunted by Inuit communities dependent upon them -- are also being threatened by global warming.
Because of thinning sea ice, coastal communities are experiencing extremely high rates of erosion, some of the fastest rates seen anywhere in the United States.
Alaska's ground is thawing from Fairbanks to Nome, releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and causing structures like homes and buildings to collapse. The thaw is linked to rising temperatures over the course of decades, measurements from the surface down to 2,000 feet have shown.
Wildfires in Alaska's boreal forests this year have burned more than 5.2 million acres, a land area equivalent to the state of Massachusetts. This extreme wildfire season was likely caused by a combination of a mild spring, a somewhat snowless winter and warming average temperatures.
Check out these photos illustrating Alaska (and the world's) changing climate:
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