Adaptnet for 28 August 2007

Recommended Citation

"Adaptnet for 28 August 2007", ADAPTNet English Edition, August 28, 2007, https://nautilus.org/adaptnet/adaptnet-for-28-august-2007/

  1. Climate Change Adaptation – What Australia Can Do?
  2. Alaska-Climate Change and Future Costs for Infrastructure
  3. China Starts Addressing Climate Change
  4. Linkages between Climate Change Adaptation and Development
  5. Climate Change, Flooding and Communities – Africa
  6. Local Dialogues – Impacts and Solutions to Climate Change

1.    Climate Change Adaptation – What Australia Can Do?

The report summarises three climate change indicators (temperature, rainfall, snow) and highlights their impacts on Australian economy and society. It identifies potential adaptation responses for six key sectors (cities and coastal communities; water; health; agriculture, forestry and fisheries; infrastructure; and natural systems) in Australia.

Climate Change in Australia: Regional Impacts and Adaptation – Managing the Risk for Australia, Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council (PMSEIC)-Independent Working Group, Canberra, June 2007 [PDF]

2.    Alaska-Climate Change and Future Costs for Infrastructure

The study (based on modelling in net present value) estimates how climate change might add to future costs for public (federal, state and local) infrastructure in Alaska. It expects Alaska’s changing climate could make it 10% to 20% more expen¬sive to build/maintain public infrastructure between now and 2030 and 10% more expensive between now and 2080.

Estimating Future Costs for Alaska Public Infrastructure at Risk from Climate Change, Peter Larsen et al., Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Alaska Anchorage (ISER-UAA), June 2007 [PDF]

3.    China Starts Addressing Climate Change

China’s first national climate change plan outlines objectives, basic principles, key areas of actions, as well as policies and measures to address climate change for the period up to 2010. It addresses climate change through national programs aimed at mitigation, adaptation, science and technology research, and increasing public awareness.

China’s National Climate Change Programme, National Development and Reform Commission, People’s Republic of China, June 2007 [PDF]

4.    Linkages between Climate Change Adaptation and Development

The paper argues that work on adaptation so far focuses on responding to the impacts of climate change, rather than sufficiently addressing the underlying factors causing vulnerability. It examines options for reshuffling the current understanding to ensure that ‘climate-proof’ development involves reducing vulnerability, and not simply identifying responses to the impacts of climate change.

Climate Change Adaptation and Development: Exploring the Linkages, E. Lisa F. Schipper, Tyndall Centre Working Paper 107, Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, July 2007 [PDF]

5.    Climate Change, Flooding and Communities – Africa

The paper, based on participatory vulnerability analysis, focuses on slum dwellers in the six African cities: Nairobi, Kampala, West Africa Lagos, Accra, Freetown and Southern Africa Maputo. It explores the impact that climate-induced flooding is having on urban poor and stresses that urgent action is needed to help people cope with this problem.

Unjust Waters – Climate Change, Flooding and the Protection of Poor Urban Communities: Experiences from Six African Cities, Ian Douglas et al., ActionAid International, ActionAid International Secretariat, Johannesburg, South Africa, 2007 [PDF]

6.    Local Dialogues – Impacts and Solutions to Climate Change

Local dialogues (convened and organized by local government leaders) will take place in cities across the United States on 04 October 2007. These conversations will highlight and catalyze local efforts to address global warming, build local awareness and facilitate community engagement. To learn more and get involved, please visit the address given below.

Local Dialogues – National Conversation on Climate Action, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability U.S.A., Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies and the Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC), U.S.A., October 04, 2007

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AdaptNet is a free weekly report produced by RMIT University Global Cities Institute’s Climate Change Adaptation Working Group in partnership with the Australian Centre for Science, Innovation and Societyat Melbourne University, Australia.

For further information, please contact the editor, Saleem Janjua.