Book excerpt: This latest Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) again forms the standard scientific reference for all those concerned with the environmental and social consequences of climate change, including students and researchers across the natural and social sciences, professionals in medicine and law, and practitioners in environmental planning, resource management, development, disaster risk reduction, and adaptation. It provides relevant material for decision makers and stakeholders at all levels of government, NGOs, and the private sector worldwide. This assessment provides information on: • Impacts of climate changes that have already occurred and risks of future impacts; • Vulnerabilities and interactions that make some climate events devastating, while others pass with little notice; • Risks of climate change impacts for the health and security of people and ecosystems; • Risks of climate change impacts for human activities; • Prospects for adaptation, including opportunities, barriers, and financing; • Broad dimensions of a climate change "solution-space".