Dust, hail and bank loans: the Mongolian herders facing life without grass

The climate crisis is bringing more storms, colder winters and drier summers which is threatening to extinguish a whole way of life on the Mongolian steppes When he thinks of last winter, Ganzorig Tserenchimed grimaces. Icy winds whipped across the steppe and a thick crust of frost hardened over the ground, preventing animals from getting to what little grass there was beneath. Temperatures plunged below -35C.Weakened by hunger, dozens of his livestock froze to death. Others suffocated in their pens as they desperately pressed together for warmth. To save the rest, Ganzorig travelled hundreds of miles to find pasture, spending several weeks sleeping in his car. The experience almost broke his resolve. Continue reading...