An emaciated polar bear is seen on a small sheet of ice in this image taken in August in Svalbard, north of mainland Norway. (Kerstin Langenberger)

While it's difficult to appreciate the dangers of Earth's changing climate for many of us in the U.S. -- especially after the winter of the "polar vortex" and a summer without any sustained heat waves so far for the eastern two-thirds of the country -- global warming is having dramatic impacts around the world.

(MORE: Is Extreme Weather the New Normal?)

We compiled this photo essay of some of the places where its effects can be seen most strikingly, including photos of the things that promise to lead the world away from the path of ever-rising greenhouse gas emissions.