It's a long term partnership with decision makers. Transcript. Wetlands filter toxins out of the water and are home to juveniles of many species. Heat waves are becoming more of a hazard in some areas. Some adaptations are fueled by changes in government policies. 2 This guide is only one of a number of guides to adaptation … CoastAdapt was developed by the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility and funded by the Australian Government. For example, healthy wetlands filter water, are home to juvenile fish and crustaceans, and buffer the coast during storms. Visit us on Instagram, A massive barrier is moved across the Thames River to prevent flooding during extremely high tides in London and the surrounding area, A desalination plant in Adelaide, Australia, creates fresh water from seawater in an arid climate, The green roof on Chicago City Hall insulates the building as it helps keep the surrounding area cool, addressing climate change and lowering the impact of urban heat islands. Climate change adaptation – building up countries’ and communities’ resilience in the face of climate change impacts – is a key pillar of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. A good drainage system? Due to climate change, some places are receiving more precipitation, while others are receiving less. Taking steps to adapt to climate change can make us more resilient, which means we’re more able to cope with the changes. One way to think about adaptation is to boil it down to a location's exposure and vulnerability. To reduce the risk, communities can map the hazards, put warning systems in place, and create evacuation routes and storm shelters. There are all kinds of smart, sensible ways that adaptation can help us today as well as in the future. Decentralize Energy Distribution. In face of gradual shifts in the climate, some people may choose to migrate as a way of adapting. Other adaptations occur because of technological advances. Coast… Adaptation to climate change is a strategy with the ultimate goal of avoiding harm and costs that can arise from doing business as usual without taking climate change into consideration. Scientists like Hayhoe think that building resilience to the challenges we already face today is how we adapt to a changing climate. Katharine Hayhoe: A heat wave, a drought, a flood, a hurricane, a storm, or more, what vulnerabilities are they concerned about? Environment Countries must 'urgently' adapt to climate change, UN warns. Even as communities attempt to adapt to climate change, many are also working to reduce the amount of heat-trapping carbon pollution they create in the first place. IV. However, both mitigation and adaptation are necessary as we respond to climate change. Both near coasts and inland, improving stormwater drainage can help keep communities from flooding as climate change increases the amount of precipitation during storms. For decades, IIED has worked to empower communities to adapt to climate change, and help share knowledge developed by local communities, academics and project managers so that communities can better cope with climate … Also, homes can be built in ways that reduce the chance of flooding. Climate change is … Despite stronger storms and hotter heat waves, world leaders have not spent enough money adapting to the 'new climate … Climate change’s effects are already being felt today, so adapting will be necessary—and it doesn't have to hurt. So as more and more people are exposed to a growing list of climate disasters, can we decrease our vulnerability? It’s also used to make ethanol and fed to farm animals.Credit: Wikimedia Commons. Extreme weather events could force people to move within their own country or flee across borders, … Climate change’s effects are already being felt today, so adapting will be necessary—and it doesn't have to hurt. REGIONAL IMPACTS OF AND VULNERABILITIES TO CLIMATE CHANGE 18 4.1 Africa 18 4.2 Asia 20 4.3 Latin America 22 4.4 Small island developing States 24 V. ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE 29 5.1 Adaptation strategies, plans and programmes 29 5.2 Local coping strategies 35 5.3 Funding for adaptation … Improved multi-sectoral engagement (environment, health, water, agriculture) to respond to the many challenges that climate change is already bringing to these vulnerable communities. Ok, now let’s consider vulnerability, which comes down to how prepared a city is for disaster. This is especially difficult in places that are also facing extreme climate impacts. For more information, view the Community based Adaptation to Climate Change Through Costal Afforestation Project Website. This monitoring station in Alexandria, Virginia, US, allows scientists to ensure that restored wetlands remain healthy. How Communities Can Adapt to Climate Change. How Communities Can Adapt to Climate Change. Globally coordinated efforts to adapt, which ensure that as many places as possible are livable, can help as climate change causes people to migrate to new places. Wetlands filter toxins out of the water and are home to juveniles of many species. Changes in the amount of precipitation are making farming a challenge. Explore how building resilience can have a silver lining. The plants also pull heat-trapping carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere through photosynthesis.Credit: Wikimedia Commons. Wetlands can be built to buffer a coast. > Classroom Activity: Mitigation vs Adaptation? The plants also pull heat-trapping carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere through photosynthesis. Adaptation can range from a farmer planting more drought-resistant crops to a coastal community evaluating how best to protect its infrastructure from rising sea level. The ability to adapt can help keep us safe. It might be economic resilience. Hayhoe: Building climate resilience can actually improve the quality of our lives. The sort of almost-disasters. It decreases our vulnerability. As these communities begin to grapple with a changing environment, strategic investments can increase resiliency and support adaptation while simultaneously advancing community … To help people bounce back after hazards, communities can build disaster funds, and individuals can make sure they have enough insurance. Managing fisheries and setting fishing quotas helps ensure that fish are not overharvested. Radley Horton: I work with the city to help them understand how climate risks are going to change. Adaptation to climate change vs development It has been argued by some that adaptation to climate change is just the same as development (or even sustainable development, or more recently climate"“resilient development). Asking them things like how have extreme weather events in the past impacted you? Research & Production: Haley Apicella, Sukee Bennett, Ari Daniel, Robin Kazmier, Christina Monnen, and Caitlin Saks, Footage: Storyblocks, Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, NASA Johnson Space Center. The better equipped a place is, the less vulnerable it is—even if it has a lot of exposure. But, if we need to adapt to climate change’s worst-case scenario, it will require an enormous shift in the world order. Climate change is increasing the risk of disasters. Keeping with the hurricane example, does Houston have accurate flood maps? The Paris … Hayhoe: And then, I as the climate scientist look at how these different events are changing. For many, the concept of “adapting” to climate change feels like admitting defeat. Major funding for NOVA is provided by the David H. Koch Fund for Science, the NOVA Science Trust, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and PBS viewers. As cities adapt to climate change, poor and marginalized populations are often pushed into more environmentally risky areas, ... A growing number of seed programs is atempting to connect Indigenous communities … Mitigation – reducing climate change – involves reducing the flow of heat-trapping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, either by reducing sources of these gases (for example, the burning of fossil fuels for electricity, heat or transport) or enhancing the “sinks” that accumulate and store these gases (such as the oceans, forests and soil). ways to better adapt to the future impacts of climate change. 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