Climate crisis forces full face coverings

The facekinis on the rise in China. Now that the climate crisis there is pushing temperatures to extreme heights and all heat records have been broken for weeks, more and more Chinese are turning to completely cover their skin and face in a desperate attempt not to burn or contract skin diseases due to excessive sun exposure.


The facekini is a full face mask that only has openings for the mouth and nostrils. It is often worn in combination with wide-brimmed hats, long sleeves and UV-resistant jackets. In large parts of China, the air temperature has not fallen below 35 degrees for weeks. The soil temperature has now risen to 80 degrees Celsius in some places. Portable fans are hard to wear and people covered from head to toe are no longer a special sight in Chinese street life.

In Beijing, June had five days above 40 degrees. The heat is good for textile turnover: every Chinese person who wants to keep white skin has purchased a type of thin raincoat that protects against UV rays. But the unusual heat hardly sparks a debate about climate change. This is probably because such a topic is typically seen as something that ordinary citizens have no control over: the government should solve it.


That's not so much laziness or disinterest. After all, the government does not just allow a free discussion on this subject. On the one hand, the Chinese government strives for fewer CO2 emissions, and on the other hand, it wants to secure the energy supply, especially during hot summers, when there is a high demand for air conditioning. China is therefore building many new coal plants.

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