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Preparing Hydro-climate Inputs for Climate Change in Water Resource Planning
This lesson describes the process of selecting the best available climate projection information and using it to develop “climate-adjusted weather” inputs to be used for modeling climate change impacts. These modeled impacts can be used for planning of future water resources. Specific steps of this process include: 1) Recognizing the general science and terms associated with Atmosphere-ocean General Circulation Models (AOGCMs); 2) Making AOGCMs more regionally applicable through bias correction and downscaling; 3) Determining climate change scenarios based on climate projections and selecting ...
Arctic Meteorology and Oceanography
Diminishing sea ice has opened the Arctic to navigation and operations like never before. Forecasters are increasingly predicting weather in support of those operations. This module is intended to provide forecasters with a brief introduction to the Arctic, including its geography, climatology, and the forecast problems they are likely to encounter. The module follows a U.S. Coast Guard Cutter on a voyage from Dutch Harbor, in the Aleutian Islands, to Barrow, on the north coast of Alaska. Various topics are addressed along the way in a series of short, stand-alone lessons.
Monitoring the Climate System with Satellites
The international science community has identified a set of Essential Climate Variables (ECVs) that should be monitored for measuring the climate system, how it is changing, and its likely impact on future climate. Environmental satellites play an important role in this effort. They are uniquely positioned to provide broad, spatially consistent, and continuous global sampling of many of the ECVs. This module explores the benefits of monitoring the climate system with satellites. We begin by reviewing how satellites observe key atmospheric elements and features that are found in a variety of cl ...
Introduction to Climate Models
This module explains how climate models work. Because the modeling of both weather and climate share many similarities, the content throughout this module draws frequent comparisons and highlights the differences. We explain not only how, but why climate models differ from weather models. To do so, we explore the difference between weather and climate, then show how models are built to simulate climate and generate the statistics that describe it. We conclude with a discussion of models are tuned and tested. Understanding how climate responds to changes in atmospheric composition and other fac ...
Satellite Monitoring of Atmospheric Composition
Satellite monitoring of atmospheric composition provides important information for a number of applications, including stratospheric ozone monitoring, long-range pollutant transport, biomass burning, air quality monitoring and forecasting, and climate change. This module provides an overview of the use of satellites in these application areas, the measurement techniques used, and the development of related operational services. In addition, the module covers a short history of European and U.S. satellite missions, as well as a look at future missions planned for monitoring atmospheric composit ...
Climate Change and Regional Impacts
This short module is an overview of the different effects climate change produces in different regions of the United States. In addition to discussing impacts already being experienced, the module presents information on how climate scientists use specialized models and statistical techniques to estimate how regional climates are likely to change in the future.
Climate Change and Sea Level Rise
This module looks at how increasing temperatures due to climate change have affected sea level rise and what effects scientist expect in the future, given rising greenhouse gas emissions. The various mechanisms of sea level rise are discussed, as well as the tools and research used to study this topic. The module also discusses how countries and communities are preparing for future increases in sea levels.
Climate Change and Extreme Weather
This module discusses how a changing climate can also lead to changes in extreme weather events on the local scale. The role of natural variability is also explained. The module describes how climate change can have both positive and negative effects, depending on the situation, location, and the vulnerability of the population. While research on climate change and extreme events is still relatively new, the module discusses what changes scientists think are likely if greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise.
Suomi NPP: A New Generation of Environmental Monitoring Satellites
The Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership or Suomi NPP satellite, launched in 2011, is the first of a new series of missions under NOAA's JPSS program. Suomi NPP has two major goals: global observing of the Earth's atmosphere, land, and ocean surface; and climate monitoring. Suomi NPP observations are used to create operational forecast products and provide input to numerical weather prediction models. They also provide continuity to the satellite climate record and other environmental datasets. This module provides an overview of the Suomi NPP satellite. The first half describes its missi ...
ASMET: 2009 Drought in East Africa
The module examines the 2009 drought in the Greater Horn of Africa (GHA), focusing on conditions in Kenya. The module begins by reviewing drought conditions in the years leading up to 2009. From there, it examines the seasonal climate forecast for the beginning of 2009 and see what it portends. Satellite products are used to study rainfall performance throughout the year and its impact on the drought situation. Finally, the module describes the climate oscillations that can impact drought in the GHA and identifies patterns that were present in 2009 and contributed to its severity. By the end o ...
Introduction to Climate Models
This module explains how climate models work. Because the modeling of both weather and climate share many similarities, the content throughout this module draws frequent comparisons and highlights the differences. We explain not only how, but why climate models differ from weather models. To do so, we explore the difference between weather and climate, then show how models are built to simulate climate and generate the statistics that describe it. We conclude with a discussion of models are tuned and tested.
Flood Management Tool Series, Technical Document, 14. Urban Flood Management in a Changing Climate
The main thrust of this tool is to examine major aspects of urban flood management through in the context of climate change. This document deals with the “management” process and less about the technical, structural, and capital-intensive strategies usually pursued in coping with urban floods. It also explores the vital interaction and necessary overlap of urban flood management with land use management, urban planning, socio-economic development, and public awareness and participation. All of these issues lie at the core of planning for and carrying out strategies for climate change adaptatio ...
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Integrated Urban Water Management - Lessons and Recommendations from Regional Experiences in Latin America, Central Asia, and Africa
The purpose of this working paper is to review a set of Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) initiatives and pilot studies funded by the World Bank’s Water Partnership Program (WPP) in Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe, and Central Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.
The report is structured into three chapters:
(1)Introduces the main concepts of IUWM;
(2)Reviews the findings of 10 case studies;
(3)Puts forward recommendations to sustain and enhance the scope of IUWM activities;
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Making cities resilient assessment: Dar es Salaam
This report, part of the Making Cities Resilient Campaign by UNISDR, provides an in-depth analysis showing how the city of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, is resilient to disasters. The information was generated by the city council using the HFA-LGSAT self-assessment tool, which uses a ‘ten essentials’ thematic framework focused on improving cities disaster resilience. The paper begins with the background and aims of the study, and an overall assessment of the city council. A literature review then explores the geographic, demographic, and socioeconomic profiles of the city, as well as the potential ...
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Trend and variation [video]
NRK, 2012Animated short on statistics from Norwegian infotainment program Siffer. Produced by TeddyTV for NRK. Animation by Ole Christoffer Haga
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Protecting the public and minimizing health effects from heat: towards the development of a Heat-Health Action Framework for the Prefecture of Hyogo, Japan: In African Crop Science Journal, Vol. 20, Issue Supplement s2
Ntamack S. - 2012This paper addresses some methodological biases present in the mode of understanding climate change through scientific research. These overlapping biases are referred to as glocality. The paper argues that as a device of the cognitive globalisation around environmental issues, glocality operates in science as a cognitive form of ubiquity deriving from an attempt to compress the spatiotemporal dimension of the changing weather within the time and space of the mind. In the case of climate change, it refers to three focal points summarised as problems of climate change’s phenomena problem of the ...
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Climate risks, vulnerability and governance in Kenya: a review
Climate-related risks adversely affect lives and livelihoods in Kenya and threaten the country’s short- and long-term development prospects. To analyse how Kenya’s capacity to prevent, manage and recover from disasters and adapt to the impacts of climate change could be strengthened, this review summarises: Kenya’s vulnerability to climate risks given current progress toward meeting its development goals; Kenya’s exposure to climate risks historically, and how these might change in the future given available climate change projections; the degree to which key sectors of the Kenyan economy and ...
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Agency climate change adaptation plan 2012
This adaptation plan is an annex to the agency sustainability plan which assesses climate change risks, vulnerabilities, and opportunities for USAID missions, programs, and operations, and it identifies agency-level actions to understand and address climate change vulnerabilities. This plan also highlights: (i) USAID climate change adaptation plan for 2013; (ii) USAID policy framework for climate change adaptation; (iii) agency vulnerability assessment - analysis of climate change risk and pportunities; (iv) infrastructure and support systems (v) health and safety.
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The challenges of climate change and exposure growth for disaster risk management in developing countries
Over the past 30 years, total economic losses from natural hazards have more than tripled in real terms. The economic and social impacts have been particularly great in developing countries, where past development gains are at risk and human security is increasingly threatened. This report argues that at a global level, exposure growth could remain the main driver of risk in the short-term, but beyond about 2030, climate change could begin to play a more significant role. Climate change and the rapid accumulation of people and assets in hazard-prone areas increase the need for a more forward-l ...
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Gender and adaptation practices to the effects of climate change in Bahi and Kondoa districts Dodoma region, Tanzania: In Journal of Sustainable Development; Vol. 5, No. 12; 2012
Although climate change affects men and women differently, there are few studies on specific adaptation practices disaggregated by gender. This study aims to fill this gap by analysing adaptation practices to the effects of climate change in the Bahi and Kondoa districts of the Dodoma region, Tanzania. It examines perceptions of climate change and identifies elements influencing adaptation practices. A sample of 360 respondents, 12 focus groups and 78 key informants were consulted; the analysis involved descriptive statistics for quantitative data and content analysis for qualitative data. The ...
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Farmers' adaptation initiatives to the impact of climate change on agriculture in northern Nigeria: In Journal of Agricultural Extension, Vol. 16 (1), June 2012
This study examines the innovative adaptive measures used by farmers in northern Nigeria to respond to the effects of climate change. Quantitative and qualitative approaches (rapid rural appraisal, focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews) were used to gather information from 500 farmers. The findings indicate that 84 per cent and 79 per cent of the farmers were aware and knowledgeable of climate change issues, respectively, while 81 per cent of them noted that they had experienced climate change incidences. The paper highlights adaptive measures used by the farmers in northern N ...
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Improving small farmers' adaptive capacity in semi-arid regions
In Latin America, as in Africa and Asia, 15-25% of the population lives in semi-arid areas, mostly in small isolated rural communities that are often the most severely affected by climate change. Strategies employed to build adaptive capacity in Brazil’s semi-arid areas focused on improved water supply, management and use, while at the same time promoting access to technology and improved production techniques, all with a focus on knowledge sharing and multi-level collaboration. The lessons from Brazil’s response will be useful for policymakers and community organisations in other semi-arid re ...
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Earthquake preparedness guide
India Government, 2012This bilingual guide book highlights that we can't avoid future earthquakes, but preparedness and safe building construction practices can certainly reduce the extend of damage and loss. To take necessary action it is mandatory for every citizen to have elementary knowledge of earthquake, forces acting on structures, remedial measures to be taken for structural safety and knowledge of do's and don'ts before, during and after an earthquake.
This guide will serve as a reference tools to sensitize citizens about the issues of concerning preparedness measures for an earthquake.
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Adapting to climate change: assessing World Bank Group experience phase III
World Bank, 2012This report presents an extensive review of the World Bank’s experience dealing with climate variability and climate change, offering valuable lessons on adaptation efforts worldwide. It answers questions in three areas: (i) dealing with climate variability; (ii) factoring climate change risks into investment projects; and (iii) anticipating climate change. In addition to this learning-focused agenda, the evaluation also asks how the Bank Group has performed against climate adaptation goals of the Bank Group’s Strategic Framework for Development and Climate Change (FY09-11).
The evalua ...
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Linkages between population dynamics, urbanization processes and disaster risks: a regional vision of Latin America / Vínculos entre las dinámicas demográficas, los procesos de urbanización y los riesgos de desastres: una visión regional de América Latina
Fernandez Rogelio; Sanahuj Haris; United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT); et al. - UN/ISDR, 2012This document presents an analysis of the connections among population dynamics, urbanization processes and disaster risk reduction. Amongst the main findings are that public policies should increase governance and guide urban sustainable development in order to anticipate future levels of exposure, by enhancing land-use plans, climate change adaptation strategies and considering disaster risk management.
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Climate change and agriculture in the United States: effects and adaptation
The report analyses the effects of climate change on U.S. agriculture on the basis of research needs categorized within a vulnerability framework addressing specific actions that would improve understanding of the exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity to: (i) improve projections of future climate conditions, including extreme temperatures, precipitation, and related variables; (ii) evaluate and develop process-level understanding of the sensitivity of plant and animal production systems; and (iii) develop and extend the knowledge, management strategies and tools needed by U.S. agricultur ...
Climate change & Singapore: challenges, opportunities, partnerships
Singapore - gov, 2012This document outlines the current thinking about climate change and its implications for Singapore. It also highlights the initiatives and strategies they are pursuing to prepare for the challenges that climate change poses. The document covers i) the climate change imperative; ii) global mission, national vision, local action; iii) climate change and why it matters; iv) sustainable development: Singapore’s national circumstances v) mitigation: reducing emissions; vi) adapting to climate change: a more resilient singapore; vii) opportunities for green growth; viii) building our future togethe ...
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Costs of climate-change adaptation in Europe: a review
This review addresses the impacts of climate change on Europe, especially on its economic sectors and the distribution of economic activity. It considers adaptation as an essential component in addressing those impacts and estimates the overall costs of adapting Europe to climate change. It compares recent estimates based on their adaptation perspective, including a detailed review of the methodologies used and of the definition of adaptation adopted.
Flood risk management research in New Zealand
This discussion paper explores existing river flood risk management practices in New Zealand, including the national context for flood risk management and looks at regional practices. The document then provides a brief overview of research in areas that contribute to the better understanding of flood processes, briefly stepping through climate, flood flows and inundation research and considering complexities of coastal catchments, flood vulnerability studies and research around community awareness and preparedness for flood hazards. Finally, the document identifies gaps in flood research, and ...
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Adaptive governance and resilience: the role of multi-stakeholder platforms in disaster risk reduction+: In Natural Hazards Earth System Sciences, 12, 2923–2942
This study aims to provide an analysis of the spatial distribution of vulnerability of urban populations to extreme heat events in Australian capital cities at the present time, and to estimate future vulnerability in relation to projected climate changes.It provides a ‘tool’ to guide short-term, medium-term and longer-term heatwave adaptation policy.
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A critical analysis of climate change factors and its projected future values in Delta state, Nigeria: In Asian Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development, Vol. 2, No. 2
Emaziye P.O. - 2012This study analyses climate change factors (temperature and rainfall) and their projected future values in the Delta state, Nigeria. A variety of crops such as maize, yam and cassava produced in Delta state depend on rainfall for their optimum performance. Therefore, decreasing and/or irregular rainfall patterns threaten food security in the state. This study reveals increasing trends of temperature values and decreasing rainfall values in the state. However, projected future rainfall values indicated an increasing trend. The study suggests that the increasing trends in temperature values may ...
Climate change impacts, vulnerability and adaptation in Zimbabwe
IIED, 2012This working paper reviews impacts, vulnerability and adaptation to climate change in Zimbabwe, with the intention of providing a broad overview of the key issues related to climate change, including the mainstreaming of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction at the district, provincial and national levels. It draws on a set of background papers that were produced by the Policy and Advocacy for Climate Change in Zimbabwe project, examining climate trends, scenarios and projections for Zimbabwe and drawing upon a variety of case studies on adaptation projects.
Climate Response over Selected Urban and Desert Areas in Northern China
Many studies carried out have shown evidence of regional temperature and precipitation variability along with global climate changes. A key issue is whether these variability follow trends that are uniform or others have increasing trends while others decreasing trend. And this study was carried out using Mann-Kendall trend test method and regression analysis method with the data observed by a total of 20stations to investigate the trends of temperature and precipitation in northern China. 10stations were selected from urban areas (section 1.4.2: table 1.1) and another 10stations were selected ...
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Potential of semi-structural and non-structural adaptation strategies to reduce future flood risk: case study for the Meuse: In Natural Hazards Earth System Sciences, 12, 2012
Copernicus Publications, 2012This study assesses how semi-structural and non-structural measures can decrease the flood risk beyond the local level, now and in the future, in the Meuse river basin, in the region of Limburg, in the southeast of the Netherlands. It is aimed: (i) to assess the sensitivity of riverine flood risk to changes in land use and climate; and (ii) to examine the potential of different adaptation strategies at the regional scale to reduce future flood damage and risk. This assessment is the first study of this kind carried out in the Netherlands.
It considers the independent contributi ...
Environmental legislation for disaster risk management: module 1
Gupta Anil K.; Nair Sreeja S.; Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ); et al. - India Government, 2012“Environmental Legislation for Disaster Risk Management”, training module is based on the analysis of global context of environmental laws, policies and approaches of integrating environment and disaster risk management. This module cites examples of legal and policy framework from across the world, along with special references to the Indian legal framework and disaster management.
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The state of food and agriculture: investing in agriculture for a better future
FAO, 2012Recent food crises and growing concerns about global climate change have placed agriculture on top of the international agenda. Decision-makers have recognised the strong link between the dual goals of eradicating hunger and making agriculture sustainable. Achieving these goals will require a significant increase in agricultural investment but, more importantly, it will require improving the quality of this investment. This annual flagship report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reviews the economic and social rationale for agricultural investment, examines the causes of underinv ...
Using scenarios to improve understanding of environment and security issues
EEA, 2012Analysing the security risks resulting from climate change is essential for effective policy-making. The Organization for Security Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the European Environment Agency (EEA) is running the joint project 'Security implications of climate change in the OSCE regions' with the aim of improving understanding of the links between global megatrends and environment, and the security of food, fuel and water in different regions. It also aims to enhance cooperation and networking among the main institutions addressing climate security issues. A participatory-based scenario-bu ...
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Arctic Report Card 2012
ssued annually since 2006, the Arctic Report Card (hereafter the Report Card) is a timely and peer-reviewed source for clear, reliable and concise environmental information on the current state of the Arctic relative to historical records. The Report Card is intended for a wide audience, including scientists, teachers, students, decision-makers and the general public interested in the Arctic environment and science.
Comprising 20 essays on different topics in the physical and biological sciences, the Report Card is organized into five sections: Atmosphere; Sea Ice & Ocean; Marin ...
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Fragile States 2013: Resource flows and trends in fragile states
By 2015, half of the world’s people living on less than USD 1.25 a day will be in fragile states. While poverty has decreased globally, progress on Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 1 is slower in fragile states than in other developing countries. Fragile states are also off-track to meet the rest of the MDGs by 2015.
Fragile situations became a central concern of the international development and security agenda in the 1990s. Since then, powerful forces have been influencing the causes and manifestations of fragility, including the combination of democratic aspirations, new te ...
Adaptation to climate change – are governments prepared? – a cooperative audit
This joint report presents a cooperative audit based on eight individual national audit reports from Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia and Ukraine, and a fact-finding study by the European Court of Auditors. It reveals that the eight countries are in an early stage in adapting to climate change, and, so far, adaptation activities are related to identifying risk and vulnerabilities and to some extent policy development.
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Adaptation to a changing climate in the Arab countries : a case for adaptation governance and leadership in building climate resilience
Adapting to climate change is not a new phenomenon for the Arab world. For thousands of years, the people in Arab countries have coped with the challenges of climate variability by adapting their survival strategies to changes in rainfall and temperature. Their experience has contributed significantly to the global knowledge on climate change and adaptation. But over the next century global climatic variability is predicted to increase, and Arab countries may well experience unprecedented extremes in climate. Temperatures may reach new highs, and in most places there may be a risk of less rain ...
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Mainstreaming gender in health adaptation to climate change programmes : user's guide
World Health Organization (WHO) - WHO, 2012This User’s Guide builds on the WHO training manual Gender mainstreaming for health managers: a practical approach, which was developed by the WHO Department of Gender, Women and Health (GWH), and on the discussion paper Gender, climate change and health, jointly developed by the WHO Climate Change and Health Unit and GWH. This publication constitutes the adaptation of those two resources to the needs of climate change and health programme managers
Tackling the limits to adaptation: An international framework to address 'loss and damage' from climate change impacts
ActionAid International (ActionAid); Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere - International Secretariat (CARE) ; World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF) - ActionAid, 2012This document argues that current and future scale of climate change implies serious loss and damage, especially to the lives and livelihoods of those who are poor, most vulnerable and least to blame.
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OECD Environment Working Papers, 50. Climate Mitigation and Adaptation in Africa : evidence from patent data
This paper presents comparative data on innovation in selected climate change mitigation and adaptation technologies in the context of Africa. Such analysis informs policy aimed at encouraging international technology transfer and development of domestic innovation capacities. We present detailed analysis of the role of Africa in development of these technologies (invention), and then move on to examine Africa as a technology market (as reflected in patenting). In addition, we briefly touch upon the question of cross-border technology development (co-invention) in Africa. Despite Africa’s gene ...
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IRENA Handbook on Renewable Energy Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) for Policy Makers and Project Developers
Over the past five years, increasing attention has focused upon a promising new instrument to reduce carbon emissions in developing countries – one which does not attempt to impose a one-size-fits-all solution, but which takes advantage of national-led initiatives tailored to each country’s specific needs. This instrument is called ‘Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions’, or NAMAs, and is driven by the conviction that appropriate government policies and activities can mobilise public and private investment in low-carbon development. NAMAs vary considerably in scope – ranging from large-sca ...
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Policy Research Working Paper. Sea-level rise and coastal wetlands : impacts and costs
Scientific evidence indicates that global warming could well lead to a sea-level rise of 1 meter or more in the 21st century. This paper seeks to quantify how a 1-meter sea-level rise that would affect coastal wetlands in 76 developing countries and territories, taking into account how much of wetlands would be submerged and how likely the wetlands would move inland as the coastline recedes. It is estimated that approximately 64 percent of the freshwater marsh, 66 percent of Global Lakes and Wetlands Database coastal wetlands, and 61 percent of brackish/saline wetlands are at risk. A large per ...
Towards climate smart disaster risk reduction in Asia: In Southasiadisasters.net, issue no. 88 (November)
This white paper released by the National Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China provides an overview of the extreme weather and climate events of 2011 in China. Section two asserts addresses climate change and reports that during the 11th Five-Year Plan period, China strengthened scientific research in and impact evaluation of climate change, improved relevant laws and policies, and enhanced the capability of key sectors to adapt to climate change, so as to reduce the negative impact of climate change on economic and social development and people's lives. The sect ...
China's policies and actions for addressing climate change
China - Government, 2012This white paper released by the National Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China provides an overview of the extreme weather and climate events of 2011 in China. Section two asserts addresses climate change and reports that during the 11th Five-Year Plan period, China strengthened scientific research in and impact evaluation of climate change, improved relevant laws and policies, and enhanced the capability of key sectors to adapt to climate change, so as to reduce the negative impact of climate change on economic and social development and people's lives. The sect ...
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G20 Study Group on Climate Finance
Group of Twenty, the (G20) - G20, 2012This study group has been tasked by G20 leaders in Los Cabos to consider ways to effectively mobilize resources for climate finance within the broader set of issues discussed by G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors. G20 Leaders have identified the need for stronger engagement and cooperation to fight climate change in several declarations since 2009.
Strengthening disaster risk reduction in climate change adaptation related agendas at COP18, Doha, Qatar
UN/ISDR, 2012This paper provides key messages on climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction with the intent of strengthening disaster risk reduction in key climate change adaptation agendas at the UNFCCC COP18.
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CDM in Africa - Finance and Support
As early as 2006, Parties to the Kyoto Protocol recognized the importance of a balanced regional distribution of CDM projects and welcomed the establishment of the Nairobi Framework, which brings together UN and regional organizations to support equitable access to the mechanism. In light of the benefits that the CDM can bring to lesser developed regions, the Nairobi Framework partners and others began funding technical support and capacity-building programmes for the CDM, particularly in Africa. The following pages provide a short description of the most important financing and support opport ...
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Benefits of the Clean Development Mechanism 2012
This study assesses the claims made by project participants in the project design documents submitted for registration. The relative reliability of these claims, as verified by a follow-up survey, suggests that the CDM is making a contribution to sustainable development in host countries in addition to the mitigation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Almost all CDM projects claim multiple sustainable development benefits, but the mix of benefits claimed varies considerably by project type.
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The future of environmental sustainability in the Taita Hills, Kenya: assessing potential impacts of agricultural expansion and climate change
The indigenous cloud forests in the Taita Hills, Kenya, have suffered substantial degradation due to agricultural expansion. Currently, only one per cent of the original forested area remains preserved. Furthermore, climate change imposes an imminent threat for local economy and environmental sustainability. In such circumstances, elaborating tools to conciliate socio-economic growth and natural resources conservation is an enormous challenge. This article aims to tackle essential aspects for understanding the ongoing agricultural activities in the area and their environmental consequences. An ...
Turn down the heat: why a 4°C warmer world must be avoided
This report spells out what the world would be like if it warmed by 4 degrees Celsius, which is what scientists are nearly unanimously predicting by the end of the century, without serious policy changes. It provides a snapshot of recent scientific literature and new analyses of likely impacts and risks that would be associated with a 4° Celsius warming within this century, ranging from sea-level rise to increases in tropical cyclone intensity, unprecedented heat waves, severe drought, and major floods in many regions, with serious impacts on ecosystems and associated services.
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Disaster risk management and adaptation to climate change: experience from German development cooperation
German Government, 2012This publication aims to pinpoint commonalities between disaster risk management and adaptation to climate change. It describes the experience gathered from German development cooperation’s work in seven countries, which we see as a stimulus to aim for more effective and efficient interaction between the two fields and to work towards a significant reduction of risk in our partner countries by implementing risk management measures adapted to the respective conditions.
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Potential effects of climate change on crop pollination
Crop production must meet the demands of feeding a growing population in an increasingly degraded environment amid uncertainties resulting from climate change. there is a pressing need to adapt farming systems to meet these challenges. one of agriculture’s greatest assets in meeting them is nature itself: many of the ecosystem services provided by nature – such as nutrient cycling, pest regulation and pollination – directly contribute to agricultural production. the healthy functioning of these ecosystem services ensures the sustainability of agriculture as it intensifies to meet growing deman ...
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Adaptation to climate change with a focus on rural areas in India
The publication provides an overview of the main issues in current adaptation discussions and suggests adaptation options in six different fields related to rural areas: (i) agriculture; (ii) forests; (iii) biodiversity; (iv) water resources; (v) coastal zones; and (vi) disaster risk management. It describes concepts and approaches for adaptation and its integration into development planning using examples from India, as well as other parts of the world, to illustrate how existing theory can be put into practice.
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Central Asia mountains: sustainable mountain development from Rio 1992 to 2012 and beyond
Hughes G.; GRID-Arendal ; United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); et al. - ZOI Environment Network, 2012This report is an illustrated overview of the trends and challenges in sustainable mountain development in Central Asia since 1992. It highlights selected achievements and lessons learned, and identifies opportunities for further progress. It also presents two case studies from Tajikistan addressing the issues of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction in mountain regions. The first is a study on the Pilot Program for Climate Resilience, and the second is a tree-planting project designed to stabilize hazardous mountain slopes.
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Climate change in Eastern Europe: Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine
This publication explores the impacts of climate change on Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine. The three countries of Eastern Europe will not be affected as strongly as many other parts of Eurasia, yet they will see more of severe floods and forest fires, decreasing water reserves in the south, and gradual changes in biodiversity, agriculture and food security.
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Progress report on the work of the Consultative Group of Experts on National Communications from Parties not included in Annex I to the Convention: report on the hands-on training workshop for the Asia and Pacific region on vulnerability and adaptation assessment : Note by the secretariat
The Consultative Group of Experts on National Communications from Parties not included in Annex I to the Convention (CGE) conducted a hands-on training workshop for the Asia and Pacific region on vulnerability and adaptation assessment in Vientiane, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, from 8 to 12 October 2012. This report outlines the proceedings of the workshop and summarizes the feedback and recommendations from the participants relating to the updated CGE training materials on vulnerability and adaptation assessment, and the financial, technical and institutional issues in the con ...
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Climate Security Report
ASP, 2012One of the most significant challenges to the global security system in the 21st Century will be a changing climate; the effects of these changes are already being felt all over the world. Climate change poses a clear and present danger to the United States through its effects on our global allies as well as its direct effects on our agriculture, infrastructure, economy and public health.
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Recalibrating Food Production in the Developing World: Global Warming Will Change More Than Just the Climate
Thornton Philip K.; CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) - CCAFS, 2012
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Climate-change mitigation and adaptation in small island developing states: the case of rainwater harvesting in Jamaica: In Sustainability: Science, Practice, & Policy, vol. 8, issue 2 (Summer 2012)
Waite Marilyn - 2012This essay looks at climate change impacts on small island developing states (SIDS). It argues that climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies must be developed to cope with changes such as shifting precipitation patterns, increasing evapotranspiration and expanding saline intrusion into coastal aquifers and wells. Using Jamaica as a case study, the paper examines the utility of rainwater harvesting (RWH) in SIDS and answers questions regarding: 1) how much rainwater can be harvested on the island given present and future precipitation patterns; and 2) how much can RWH realistically c ...
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CCAFS Policy Briefs, 06. Recalibrating Food Production in the Developing World
Thornton P.; CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) - CCAFS, 2012^An analysis of the effects of climate change on 22 critical agricultural commodities and three important natural resources in the developing world reveals a number of cross-cutting themes: The world’s agricultural systems face an uphill struggle in feeding a projected nine to ten billion people by 2050. Climate change introduces a significant hurdle in this struggle.
- Securing and maintaining necessary levels of calories, protein and nutrients for populations around the world will be an exceptional challenge.
- Recalibrating agriculture in the face of climate change is more t ...
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Climate knowledge for action: Global Framework for Climate Services (in Kit form)
Contains:
- Building country-wide support for the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) [Leaflet]
- Climate knowledge for action: a global framework for climate services (WMO-No.1065) [CD-Rom]
- Presentation of the GFCS [1 page]
- Climate information for health [4 pages]
- Climate information for disaster risk reduction [4 pages]
RA VI Operating Plan 2012-2015
Following the advice of the XV Session of the Association, the TT-SPAP developed the regional Operating Plan by compiling the tasks in the Work Programmes of the Working Groups. Thus, the Operating Plan contains concrete tasks and deliverables aimed at assisting RA VI Members to implement their national plans for further development of their NMHSs and improvement of the provision of meteorological, hydrological and climatological services for supporting their national economies and the society. The RA VI Operating Plan is intended to be a living document regularly monitored and adjusted as nec ...
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Green Water Defense for Flood Risk Management in East Asia
The purpose of the ‘Green Water Defense in East Asia’ study is to take stock of advances in management practices, institutional and technological innovations for managing water resources under changing climate. The focus of this note is on green water defense for flood risk management in deltas and other areas vulnerable to flooding.
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Grow in Concert with Nature: Sustaining East Asia’s Water Resources through Green Water Defense
This study will assess advances in management practices, institutional and technological innovations for managing water scarcity sustainably under a changing climate. The impetus for this analysis comes from the World Bank’s concept note ‘Towards Green Water Defense (GWD) in East Asia’ study, specifi cally one of the building blocks of the GWD concept: Managing water scarcity by “producing more with less” or increasing water productivity and reducing undesirable externalities.
Climate Prediction and Monitoring for Egypt
Apart from the northern coast, most of Egypt is desert. However, the northern coastal region experiences some precipitation mainly during winter. We investigate the variability of wintertime (December, January and February) precipitation in North Egypt during the 30-yr interval 1976-2005 and its relationship with the North Atlantic Oscillation during winter and subtropical jet stream.
Climate Prediction and Monitoring for Uganda
Uganda is located between latitudes 1.5 0 S to 4.5 0 N and longitudes 28o E to 35 0 E. It contains complex topography that includes large Lakes, Rivers, Great Rift Valley and Mountains, and supports varied wildlife of scientific and economic value. Due to its Equatorial location, this country is expected to receive abundant rainfall throughout the year. This is, however, not the case as frequent occurrences of years of insufficient rainfall for agricultural activities have been observed. Rainfall over Uganda exhibits large spatial and temporal variability. The inter-annual variability has feat ...
Climate Prediction and Monitoring for Burundi
“The dominant pattern of Burundi rainfall is the seasonal move of the dominant Intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), the Congo air mass and the interconnection with EL Nino/Southern oscillation (ENSO) phenomena. Much of Burundi experiences a bimodal seasonal distribution of rainfall with maxima occurring in the March- April and November. The Interannual variability of rainfall in Burundi shows interesting association with atmospheric and oceanic phenomena. We investigate the variability of rainfall using OND (October, November, December) and MAM (March, April, May) precipitation in Burundi du ...
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Report on the discussions on key elements of the potential host agreement for the Climate Technology Centre
This report, prepared by the secretariat, presents the outcome of the discussions on the key elements of the potential host agreement for the Climate Technology Centre (CTC) between the secretariat and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) (on behalf of a consortium of partner institutions), which is the proponent ranked first by the Subsidiary Body for Implementation, at its thirty-sixth session, for hosting the CTC. The key elements of the potential host agreement are contained in the draft memorandum of understanding between the Conference of the Parties and UNEP, which is contain ...
Climate ExChange
Climate ExChange is a fully illustrated 250-page book with over 100 authors relating their work in weather, climate and water services at international, regional, national and local levels. The commentaries draw upon experiences around the world reflecting how people are using climate information to improve their lives. Climate ExChange reflects the progress and challenges in these fields, highlighting good practices in a wide variety of societies and disciplines.
Atlas of health and climate
The Atlas of Health and Climate is a product of this unique collaboration between the meteorological and public health communities. It provides sound scientific information on the connections between weather and climate and major health challenges. These range from diseases of poverty to emergencies arising from extreme weather events and disease outbreaks. They also include environmental degradation, the increasing prevalence of noncommunicable diseases and the universal trend of demographic ageing.
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Engineering the climate: research questions and policy implications
Earth’s climate appears to be changing faster than previously observed. Even with active mitigation and adaptation measures, additional efforts to avoid significant climate disruptions may be needed. Geoengineering the climate is an option that is now gaining scientific, policy, and public attention while raising important environmental, ethical, social, and political challenges.
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The poverty and welfare impacts of climate change quantifying the effects, identifying the adaptation strategies
Although poverty remains widespread in south Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, substantial progress has been made especially in the past three decades. Nevertheless, this report stresses that climate change is likely to reduce agricultural productivity, which will directly affect poor people's livelihood assets including health, access to water and other natural resources, homes and infrastructure. Increasing climatic variability will make poor households even more vulnerable to extreme weather conditions, which could in turn exacerbate the incidence, severity and persistence of poverty in developi ...
Children’s action for disaster risk reduction: views from children in Asia
This publication provides children and youth in Asia a platform to report on progress made towards "the need to protect women, children and other vulnerable groups from the disproportionate impacts of disaster and to empower them to promote resiliency within their communities and workplaces" (as recognized in the declaration adopted in Incheon by the Asia Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in 2010) from their own point of view. Previous surveys conducted with children globally show that their views on local governance for disaster risk reduction often tend to be less positive th ...
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Information and communication technologies (ICTs) and climate change adaptation and mitigation: the case of Ghana
This report focuses on exploring an increasingly important question: ‘How can developing countries effectively integrate ICT tools within climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies?’ The contribution of this report is two-fold. It presents the potential of ICTs towards adaptation and mitigation through the concrete case of Ghana, illustrating the challenges and opportunities faced by developing countries in this field. The report complements this analysis by offering concrete lessons learned and practical suggestions aimed at developing country decision makers and practitioners, ...
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Report of the Adaptation Fund Board: note by the chair of the Adaptation Fund Board
This report responds to the decision requesting the Adaptation Fund Board to report on its activities at each session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP), and covers the period from 30 November 2011 to 30 June 2012. It contains information on decisions and actions taken by the Adaptation Fund Board to be noted by the CMP. Disaster risk reduction is one of the sectors targeted in the 14 proposals approved for funding.
Tortillas on the roaster: Central American maize-bean systems and the changing climate
This study predicts the potential impacts that climate change will have on the production of maize and beans, the two most important food crops in Central America. Using state-of-the-art climate models and GIS tools, agronomic research and socio-economic analyses, it makes recommendations to climate change adaptation strategies tailored to El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The results of the study are intended to fill a critical gap in the knowledge of the impacts of climate change on maize/bean production in Central America, in order for stakeholders to shift from a position of ...
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CGIAR Working paper, 19. Participatory gender-sensitive approaches for addressing key climate change-related research issues: evidence from Bangladesh, Ghana and Uganda
Chaudhury M.; Kristjanson Patty; Kyagazze Florence; et al. - Climate Change Agriculture Food Security, 2012The researchers investigated if and how farming practices are being modified to deal with a changing environment, and the constraints and opportunities these changes pose for both men and women. The field research covered three main research priorities for the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Climate Change (CCAFS), relating to the climate change, agricultural development and food security ‘nexus’: How to enable farmers, both men and women, to visit farms of the future, i.e. visit climate analogue sites; How to ensure equality in access and usage of seasonal weather fo ...
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Air & Climate: conversations about molecules and planets, with humans in between
European Commission, 2012This is a collection of conversations with some of the ‘fathers’ of air pollution and climate change science. Through careful observation and a mix of intuition and critical thought, they have uncovered some of the workings of our planet: its atmosphere and climate. They were generally driven by curiosity and gradually by a concern that mankind might indeed have a devastating impact on Earth and the life it hosts. Their findings were so important that they could not stay in the ivory tower of scientific research. They personally reached out to decision makers and the public at large because in ...
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Multi-model climate change projections for India under representative concentration pathways: In Current Science, vol.103, issue 7 (10/10/2012)
Climate projections for the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) are made using the newly developed representative concentration pathways (RCPs) under the Coupled Model Inter-comparison Project 5 (CMIP5). This article provides multi-model and multi-scenario temperature and precipitation projections for India for the period 1860–2099 based on the new climate data. We find that CMIP5 ensemble mean climate is closer to observed climate than any individual model. The key findings of this study are: (i) under the business-asusual (between RCP6.0 and RCP8.5 ...
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Climate change and agriculture: can market governance mechanisms reduce emissions from the food system fairly and effectively?
Agriculture accounts for 30 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. How agriculture is practised, therefore, has significant potential for mitigating climate change, providing food security and improving the livelihoods of food producers worldwide. There is growing interest in the use of market governance mechanisms for tackling climate change by giving the financial incentives to make the required changes. The key messages emerging from this study are that economic measures have a vital part to play, but to be effective, emissions from food production and consumption must be addressed to ...
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Extreme weather events and crop price spikes in a changing climate: illustrative global simulation scenarios
Willenbockel D. - Oxfam, 2012Agriculture is highly sensitive to climate variability and weather extremes. Various impact studies have considered the effects of projected long-run trends in temperature, precipitation and carbon dioxide concentrations caused by climate change on global food production and prices. However, according to this study, an area that remains underexplored is the food price impacts that may result from an expected increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. The study uses a global dynamic multi-region computable general equilibrium (CGE) model to explore the potential food pri ...
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The recent shift in early summer Arctic atmospheric circulation: in Geophysical Research Letters, vol. 39, L19804
The last six years (2007–2012) show a persistent change in early summer Arctic wind patterns relative to previous decades. The persistent pattern, which has been previously recognized as the Arctic Dipole (AD), is characterized by relatively low sea-level pressure over the Siberian Arctic with high pressure over the Beaufort Sea, extending across northern North America and over Greenland. Pressure differences peak in June. In a search for a proximate cause for the newly persistent AD pattern, we note that the composite 700 hPa geopotential height field during June 2007–2012 exhibits a positive ...
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CGIAR Working paper, 23. Impacts of climate change on the agricultural and aquatic systems and natural resources within the CGIAR’s mandate
CCAFS, 2012The document attempts to distil what is currently known about the likely impacts of climate change on the commodities and natural resources that comprise the mandate of CGIAR and its 15 Centres. It was designed as one background document for a review carried out by the High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition (HLPE) at the behest of the UN Committee on World Food Security (CFS) on what is known about the likely effects of climate change on food security and nutrition, with a focus on the most affected and vulnerable regions and populations. A total of 25 summaries covering 22 ...
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Climate change, water stress, conflict and migration
UNESCO, 2012This collection of papers, presented at the symposium ‘Climate change, water stress, conflict and migration’ held on 21 September 2011 in the Netherlands, highlight how climate change, water stress and other environmental problems threaten human security. For example, the paper by Muniruzzaman ilustrates how water ignores political and community boundaries, and how decisions in one place can significantly affect water use elsewhere. India’s plans to build more dams could, for instance, have devastating affects for Pakistan’s agricultural productivity which is highly dependent on water supply f ...
Storm surges and coastal erosion in Bangladesh - State of the system, climate change impacts and 'low regret' adaptation measures
The effects of global environmental change, including coastal flooding stemming from storm surges as well as reduced rainfall in drylands and water scarcity, have detrimental effects on countries and megacities in the costal regions worldwide. Among these, Bangladesh with its capital Dhaka is today widely recognised to be one of the regions most vulnerable to climate change and its triggered associated impacts. Natural hazards that come from increased rainfall, rising sea levels, and tropical cyclones are expected to increase as climate changes, each seriously affecting agriculture, water & fo ...
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Biodiversity: delivering results in Europe and the CIS
World Bank, 2012This publication presents some of the outcomes of GEF-funded work managed by UNDP in Europe and the CIS that aims to conserve biodiversity
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Learning Lessons: ADB’s Response to Natural Disasters and Disaster Risks
ADB, 2012Natural disasters triggered by extreme hazards have increased sharply worldwide since the 1980s, as measured in lives lost, displaced people, and financial cost. Asia and the Pacific have borne the brunt of the physical and economic damage. This brief highlights lessons and recommendations from an independent evaluation report that assessed ADB support for disaster prevention and recovery programs during 1995–2011. The evaluation finds that disaster recovery projects have been much more successful than ADB-supported projects overall. Nonetheless, it also finds that most ADB country programs ha ...
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Climate Change Adaptation in Grenada: Water Resources, Coastal Ecosystems and Renewable Energy
United Nations, 2012This report presents the results of a study conducted for Grenada under the UNDESA project. The pilot study focuses on three priority areas: water resources, coastal ecosystems and renewable energy systems. The priorities were selected following a systematic approach using analytical tools to help Grenada in the comprehensive assessment of potential impacts from climate change. It identifies the best potential courses of action to hedge for and adapt to these critical impact areas. The analytical work contributes to the knowledge base to support implementation of climate change adaptation/miti ...
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