Qatar is a country of extremes: no larger than the province of Upper Austria, the desert state on the Persian Gulf is one of the world’s richest countries due to its huge natural gas deposits. It is also one of the countries most affected by global heating. Already, temperature peaks above 50 degrees Celsius present an existential danger for plants, animals and people. That’s why Qatar has become a research laboratory for the future, attracting international scientists who investigate the strategies plants and animals use to deal with global heating.