• Energy Research

Assessing global progress on human adaptation to climate change is an urgent priority. Although the literature on adaptation to climate change is rapidly expanding, little is known about the actual extent of implementation. We systematically screened >48,000 articles using machine learning methods and a global network of 126 researchers. Our synthesis of the resulting 1,682 articles presents a systematic and comprehensive global stocktake of implemented human adaptation to climate change. Documented adaptations were largely fragmented, local and incremental, with limited evidence of transformational adaptation and negligible evidence of risk reduction outcomes. We identify eight priorities for global adaptation research: assess the effectiveness of adaptation responses, enhance the understanding of limits to adaptation, enable individuals and civil society to adapt, include missing places, scholars and scholarship, understand private sector responses, improve methods for synthesizing different forms of evidence, assess the adaptation at different temperature thresholds, and improve the inclusion of timescale and the dynamics of 536 responses.

AbstractClimate change impacts are being felt across sectors in all regions of the world, and adaptation projects are being implemented to reduce climate risks and existing vulnerabilities. Climate adaptation actions also have significant synergies and tradeoffs with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 5 on gender equality. Questions are increasingly being raised about the gendered and climate justice implications of different adaptation options. This paper investigates if reported climate change adaptation actions are contributing to advancing the goal of gender equality (SDG 5) or not. It focuses on linkages between individual targets of SDG 5 and climate change adaptation actions for nine major sectors where transformative climate actions are envisaged. The assessment is based on evidence of adaptation actions documented in 319 relevant research publications published during 2014–2020. Positive links to nine targets under SDG 5 are found in adaptation actions that are consciously designed to advance gender equality. However, in four sectors—ocean and coastal ecosystems; mountain ecosystems; poverty, livelihood, sustainable development; and industrial system transitions, we find more negative links than positive links. For adaptation actions to have positive impacts on gender equality, gender-focused targets must be intentionally brought in at the prioritisation, designing, planning, and implementation stages. An SDG 5+ approach, which takes into consideration intersectionality and gender aspects beyond women alone, can help adaptation actions move towards meeting gender equality and other climate justice goals. This reflexive approach is especially critical now, as we approach the mid-point in the timeline for achieving the SDGs.

The Paris Agreement articulates a global goal on adaptation, which aims to ensure an ‘adequate adaptation response’ to the ‘global temperature goal’, and requires countries to report progress through periodic global stocktakes. However, there remain conceptual and methodological challenges in defining an adaptation goal and mixed evidence on what effective adaptation looks like and how it can be enabled. In this review, we demonstrate how different normative views on adaptation outcomes, arising from different epistemological and disciplinary entry points, can lead to very different interpretations of adaptation effectiveness. We argue that how effectiveness is framed will significantly impact adaptation implementation and outcomes. This, furthermore, represents a way of exercising influence in adaptation decision-making. Eleven principles of effective adaptation are distilled as a way to pluralize guidance in international processes such as the Global Stocktake as well as national and sub-national exercises on tracking and monitoring adaptation.

Dans cette vue personnelle, nous expliquons comment les risques climatiques affectent la transmission, la perception, la réponse et l'expérience vécue de la COVID-19. Premièrement, la température, le vent et l'humidité influencent la transmission de la COVID-19 d'une manière qui n'est pas entièrement comprise, bien que les facteurs non climatiques semblent plus importants que les facteurs climatiques pour expliquer la transmission de la maladie. Deuxièmement, les extrêmes climatiques coïncidant avec la COVID-19 ont affecté l'exposition aux maladies, augmenté la sensibilité des personnes à la COVID-19, compromis les interventions d'urgence et réduit la résilience du système de santé à de multiples stress. Troisièmement, le changement climatique à long terme et les vulnérabilités prépandémiques ont augmenté le risque de COVID-19 pour certaines populations (par exemple, les communautés marginalisées). Les interactions entre le climat et la COVID-19 varient considérablement entre et au sein des populations et des régions, et sont affectées par des interactions dynamiques et complexes avec les conditions socio-économiques, politiques, démographiques et culturelles sous-jacentes. Ces conditions peuvent entraîner la vulnérabilité, la résilience, la transformation ou l'effondrement des systèmes de santé, des communautés et des moyens de subsistance à différentes échelles de temps. Il est important que la réponse à la COVID-19 et les mesures de relèvement tiennent compte des risques climatiques, en particulier dans les endroits sensibles aux extrêmes climatiques, grâce à une planification intégrée qui comprend la santé publique, la préparation aux catastrophes, la gestion des urgences, le développement durable et la réponse humanitaire. En esta Visión personal, explicamos las formas en que los riesgos climáticos afectan la transmisión, la percepción, la respuesta y la experiencia vivida de COVID-19. En primer lugar, la temperatura, el viento y la humedad influyen en la transmisión de COVID-19 de maneras que no se comprenden completamente, aunque los factores no climáticos parecen más importantes que los factores climáticos para explicar la transmisión de la enfermedad. En segundo lugar, los extremos climáticos que coinciden con la COVID-19 han afectado la exposición a la enfermedad, aumentado la susceptibilidad de las personas a la COVID-19, comprometido las respuestas de emergencia y reducido la resiliencia del sistema de salud a múltiples tensiones. En tercer lugar, el cambio climático a largo plazo y las vulnerabilidades prepandémicas han aumentado el riesgo de COVID-19 para algunas poblaciones (por ejemplo, comunidades marginadas). Las formas en que el clima y el COVID-19 interactúan varían considerablemente entre y dentro de las poblaciones y regiones, y se ven afectadas por interacciones dinámicas y complejas con las condiciones socioeconómicas, políticas, demográficas y culturales subyacentes. Estas condiciones pueden conducir a la vulnerabilidad, la resiliencia, la transformación o el colapso de los sistemas de salud, las comunidades y los medios de vida en diferentes escalas de tiempo. Es importante que las medidas de respuesta y recuperación ante la COVID-19 consideren los riesgos climáticos, particularmente en lugares que son susceptibles a los extremos climáticos, a través de una planificación integrada que incluya la salud pública, la preparación para desastres, la gestión de emergencias, el desarrollo sostenible y la respuesta humanitaria. In this Personal View, we explain the ways that climatic risks affect the transmission, perception, response, and lived experience of COVID-19. First, temperature, wind, and humidity influence the transmission of COVID-19 in ways not fully understood, although non-climatic factors appear more important than climatic factors in explaining disease transmission. Second, climatic extremes coinciding with COVID-19 have affected disease exposure, increased susceptibility of people to COVID-19, compromised emergency responses, and reduced health system resilience to multiple stresses. Third, long-term climate change and prepandemic vulnerabilities have increased COVID-19 risk for some populations (eg, marginalised communities). The ways climate and COVID-19 interact vary considerably between and within populations and regions, and are affected by dynamic and complex interactions with underlying socioeconomic, political, demographic, and cultural conditions. These conditions can lead to vulnerability, resilience, transformation, or collapse of health systems, communities, and livelihoods throughout varying timescales. It is important that COVID-19 response and recovery measures consider climatic risks, particularly in locations that are susceptible to climate extremes, through integrated planning that includes public health, disaster preparedness, emergency management, sustainable development, and humanitarian response. في هذا العرض الشخصي، نشرح الطرق التي تؤثر بها المخاطر المناخية على انتقال كوفيد-19 وإدراكه واستجابته وتجربته الحية. أولاً، تؤثر درجة الحرارة والرياح والرطوبة على انتقال COVID -19 بطرق غير مفهومة تمامًا، على الرغم من أن العوامل غير المناخية تبدو أكثر أهمية من العوامل المناخية في تفسير انتقال المرض. ثانيًا، أثرت الظواهر المناخية المتطرفة المتزامنة مع COVID -19 على التعرض للأمراض، وزادت من تعرض الأشخاص لـ COVID -19، وعرضت استجابات الطوارئ للخطر، وقللت من قدرة النظام الصحي على التكيف مع الضغوط المتعددة. ثالثًا، أدى تغير المناخ على المدى الطويل ونقاط الضعف قبل الجائحة إلى زيادة مخاطر COVID -19 لبعض السكان (على سبيل المثال، المجتمعات المهمشة). تختلف طرق تفاعل المناخ و COVID -19 اختلافًا كبيرًا بين السكان والمناطق وداخلها، وتتأثر بالتفاعلات الديناميكية والمعقدة مع الظروف الاجتماعية والاقتصادية والسياسية والديموغرافية والثقافية الأساسية. يمكن أن تؤدي هذه الظروف إلى ضعف الأنظمة الصحية والمجتمعات وسبل العيش أو مرونتها أو تحولها أو انهيارها على مدار فترات زمنية مختلفة. من المهم أن تراعي تدابير الاستجابة والتعافي من كوفيد-19 المخاطر المناخية، لا سيما في المواقع المعرضة للظواهر المناخية المتطرفة، من خلال التخطيط المتكامل الذي يشمل الصحة العامة والتأهب للكوارث وإدارة الطوارئ والتنمية المستدامة والاستجابة الإنسانية.

Abstract: Integrated landscape approaches offer a means of integrating policy and practice to ensure equitable and sustainable use of land while strengthening measures to improve environmental conservation, production, and well-being outcomes. While traditionally practiced and increasingly adopted in many parts of Asia, there is no systematic assessment to date of the characteristics, outcomes, and limitations of integrated landscape initiatives (ILIs) in the region. We provide a review of 166 ILIs in South and Southeast Asia to complement previous assessments in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. We surveyed ILIs from 16 countries to characterize initiative contexts, motivations and objectives, stakeholders and participants, investments and outcomes, and major successes and shortcomings. Results demonstrated that ILIs are used to address multiple challenges across the region. Ecosystem conservation is the strongest driver behind ILI development and design, however, initiatives invested heavily across four identified domains: agriculture, conservation, livelihoods, and institutional coordination and planning. Investment in capacity building activities to improve agricultural practices, natural resource management and community participation, was strong. We found clear divisions in how stakeholders participate in ILIs: donors are more than twice as likely to design rather than implement ILIs, while other groups, such as women's associations, were frequently limited to implementation. Engagement of the private sector is comparatively low. Other challenges identified include concerns about the long-term sustainability of ILIs, lack of government and financial support, and agendas sidelined by powerful stakeholders. While integrated approaches are necessary to address landscape multifunctionality, many initiatives struggled to transition from planning to implementation.