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Growing concerns for the rapidly expanding material consumption and rising greenhouse gas emissions have necessitated the United Nation's inclusion of Goal 12 (sustainable consumption) and Goal 13 (climate change) into sustainable development goals. These inclusions call for more ambitious plans, accelerated actions, and policies that will improve resource efficiency, reduce waste, and mainstream sustainability practices across multiple sectors of the economy. While the focus has been on several sectors (such as manufacturing, mining, agriculture, etc.), the education sector has received less attention in terms of its contribution to climate change. Hence, this study seeks to connect the dots between academic activities and climate change. Using the Vaal University of Technology in South Africa as a case study, the research addresses environmental issues by investigating students' attitudes toward paper consumption and reuse or recycling. The findings from the study show a high paper consumption and low recovery rate on campus. Hence, the study employed the incentive theory of motivation to develop a strategic response called the Sustainable Printing Workflow (SPW), which could help increase the paper recovery rate and mainstream sustainability practices in the education sector by reducing waste and enhancing efficient paper consumption and recycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change is adversely affecting food production, thereby putting the livelihoods of many farmers in jeopardy. Without appropriate responses, climate change is likely to disrupt the development and poverty reduction efforts of many nations. In response to a changing climate, adaptation is becoming an urgent priority. Adaptation is a key factor that will determine the future severity of climate change impacts on agriculture because large reductions in the negative impacts are feasible when adaptation is fully implemented. Numerous investigations have been done on climate change adaptation, and many factors influencing farmers' adaptive responses have been identified. These factors are grouped into several categories: socioeconomic and demographic factors, institutional factors, technological factors, sociocultural factors, and cognitive factors. This paper attempts to appraise, classify, and support factors influencing farmers' adaptation in response to a changing climate in a complete manner to make a significant contribution to research. The paper revealed that studies on sociocultural and cognitive factors affecting farmers' adaptation measure has been limited in the sub-Saharan African context as opposed to the first three categories. However, the choice of the factors in investigating farmers' adaptation should be guided by the specific context and objectives of the research because of time and financial constraints. This review paper provides valuable knowledge for the advancement and extensive impending research on factors affecting farmers' adaptation to climate change in sub-Saharan Africa. The significance of several factors elucidating farmers' adaptive responses was highlighted and could be used to describe the factors influencing farmers' adaptation, therefore improving the effectiveness of adaptation strategies in the agricultural sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the links between climate-induced migration and urban challenges have been documented, there remains a paucity of research, policy, and action on different challenges of urban poverty compared with rural poverty in Bangladesh. However, the urban poor have continued to be overlooked in development and climate contexts. This paper reviews the underlying factors of climate-induced population migration and its connection with multi-pluralistic challenges for urban poor individuals in Bangladesh. It also explains multiple responses to urban hazards and revisits urban policies related to resilience and sustainability. A desk review of different existing resources, such as academic papers, organizational research reports, newspapers clippings, and documentaries, was conducted to achieve the overall purpose for this paper. Both theoretical and empirical evidence were identified and mainstreamed by categorizing them into specific domains to reinvestigate the groundbreaking factors associated with climate migration and thereby demonstrate the bridge between policies and practices related to urban challenges. Marx's conflict theory was applied to reiterate existing inequalities associated with urban problems and hazards and then contextualized to weigh and analyze newly generated urban disparities experienced at the individual to national level. Rising sea levels, natural hazards, sudden onset disasters were identified as the drivers of climate-induced migration that forcefully displace people from their homeland to nearby cities. Limited access to public healthcare services; huge population density; inadequate food, water, and sanitation overcrowding; lack of housing; limited coping mechanisms; and little adaptive capacity with climatic conditions seriously worsen the existing problems for urban poor in Bangladesh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides an educational tool to help the public better understand the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the food they choose to eat on a daily basis. Using balloons filled with the representative volume of GHGs emitted through the growth, harvest, production, and transportation of various food choices, participants are able to visualize the impact of their food choices without the burden of analyzing a graph or table. Additionally, displaying the typical GHG metric of equivalent kilograms of carbon dioxide (kg CO2e) in the volume this gas would occupy at standard pressure and temperature allows for greater clarity in these results. Distribution methods for this visualization tool described herein range from science classrooms to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) outreach events and to restaurants and grocery stores. Several tools are provided as part of this research, including a spreadsheet that incorporates these calculations, presentation slides, a worksheet for the in-class method, and poster images for eateries. For each method, participants are asked to select a protein, vegetable, and starch option to fill their plate and the resulting GHG volume is then calculated based on their selections. This provides context and allows for discussion and reshaping of our contributions to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper used correlational analysis to identify the influence of Total Solar Irradiance (TSI) in precipitation and temperature of the Philippines, representing the area in Manila, Cebu, and Davao from the year 1982 to 2019. The precipitation and temperature data were obtained from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), while the TSI data were downloaded from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) daily database. The research found that there is a significant correlation between TSI and precipitation in the three major areas. Interestingly, there is a low negative correlation between TSI and temperature in Davao and a low significant correlation in Cebu. On the other hand, there is no significant correlation between TSI and temperature in Manila. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on the results of research into the trends and nature of coverage of climate change issues in the Australian print media over the past ten years. Studies were undertaken at national, state and local levels, with a focus on Queensland (state) and the Townsville region (local) in northeastern Australia. At a national level there has been an almost exponential increase in coverage, with a decrease in the past year. Issues which have caused media coverage levels to surge are identified, showing a shift from international events/meetings to domestic policy issues as triggers. Interviews were conducted with decision-makers in print media to explore publication mechanisms. This is part of a wider study examining media coverage, public perception, and political/policy activities to inform judgement as to the likelihood of sustained levels of discussion and action on climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in consumer demand for 'green' or 'eco' products is becoming increasingly apparent, as global campaigns such as in regard to climate change gain traction, due to western and, increasingly the developing world's appetite for goods and services. The machine that created such concerns in the pioneering days of capitalism has turned to marketing and spin to cash in on this "ecocraze". Manzini has proposed that the ecological crisis we face is based on a crisis of the commons, a lack of contemplative time, and a proliferation of remedial goods (Manzini 2006). Seemingly, purchasing patterns are the same as the unsustainable buying behaviors that started the environmental crisis dominating world news. There lies the interplay between designing for consumers, and designing to the core principles of sustainability, where avoiding, reducing, reusing, recycling and regenerating are somewhat detached from a purely consumer driven market. Whether products are environmentally preferable or not is another story, but generally this could be verified with life cycle assessment (LCA), which unfortunately is often above and beyond the means of the designer. This paper explores case studies of contemporary design that do make large shifts to lower environmental impact, by analyzing them from an LCA perspective. The streamlined models were completed in the Simapro (TM) LCA software package, with data taken from current life cycle inventories, past studies and primary sources, and looks at the shifts that the products may have realized, which could have been verified at the design stage rather than retrospectively. The quantitative results are compared to a standard product default or orientation. The paper explores whether the products allow users to enact behaviors or decisions needed if environmental impacts are to be reined in. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New media enables open communication about climate change and natural hazards due to its increasing and widespread usage among its users. This article aims to investigate the use of new media for information and communication about climate change and natural hazards and examine women's perception of its role in creating awareness about climate change. Based on mixed methods, quantitative data was collected by administering 384 paper-based questionnaires to female university students in Pakistan. For qualitative data, in-depth interviews of experts in one or more of the relevant research areas were also conducted. The findings of the study reveal that new media is a widely used source by literate women to gather information. Reading online newspapers by the respondents for climate change and natural hazards ranked first, followed by social networking sites, YouTube, blogs, emails, and listening to podcast/online radio. Female respondents agreed that new media is playing a major role in providing updated information about climate change and its causes and consequences. The findings of the study also revealed that media is educating people in dealing with climate change. However, educating women was deemed lesser in importance than reporting on climate politics. INSET: 79. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change has attracted much political and media attention in recent years. While western media coverage of this issue has been well-documented, there is a paucity of media analysis for climate change coverage in developing economies. This paper examines the media discourse generated in India among three leading English-language dailies (with centrist and conservative news values) during globally prominent climate change events. A quantitative analysis shows a peak in coverage when the Fourth Assessment Report by the IPCC was released in February 2007, and when climate change crusaders won the Nobel Peace Prize in October 2007. A qualitative content analysis reveals that frames such as scientific certainty, energy challenge, social progress, public accountability and looming disaster are widely employed by the elite Indian press to raise relevant social, economic and political issues. Cross-cultural comparisons of media constructs, especially with Europe and America, help identify the further development of risk communication in this field. In a broader, global sense, this work can be tied in to the idea of the 'climatic turn' as suggested by European researchers with climate change evolving into a grand, transnational narrative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Union (EU) pursues a strict environmental policy to protect Europe's natural resources and preserve the health and well-being of EU citizens. A sound and adequate environmental policy contributes to making the EU economy more environmentally friendly. However, the EU is facing major challenges such as climate change, resource scarcity, unsustainable consumption and production, and the emission of polluting gases. In this article we review the economic policies that have been implemented in Europe to combat the problem of climate change. It also offers some solutions that could be adopted from the European institutions to promote sustainability among individuals and companies, and to contribute together to a reduction of polluting gases and the construction of a future free of harmful waste. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to understand the dynamics of climate change and to adopt mitigation technique against it, it is necessary to know its impact on rainfall, one of the worst affected meteorological elements. Weather radars and satellites—proven to be the most effective instruments to estimate rainfall—need to explore high frequencies, namely the millimeter wave frequency range, because of its higher rate of data transmission, and also due to overcrowding at the lower frequency region. However, with an increase in frequency, the attenuation of the signal by rainfall increases. Above 10 GHz, the attenuation can be so severe that the link transmission may be significantly interrupted. Moreover, modern satellites adopting frequency reuse technique to increase the channel capacity suffer from unwanted cross polarization, which is attributed to the oblate shape of rain drops. Knowledge of co-polar attenuation is necessary to estimate cross polarization. Thus, the study of attenuation is of immense importance for an accurate estimation of rainfall. In this paper, the authors aim to study the attenuation at the Tropical Microwave Imager (TMI) channels, viz. 10.65, 19.35, 21.3, 37, and 85.5 GHz onboard the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite over Salem, India by using the International Telecommunication Union (ITU-R) model. The TMI uses four of its channels in dual polarization mode, except the 21.3 GHz. The ITU-R model to estimate rainfall attenuation needs a one-minute rainfall interval. However, rainfall values are mostly available on hourly basis. This paper aims to seek a conversion formula between the two, if any, over Salem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For centuries, the Aboriginal Peoples of Australia have been confronted with major ecological, geological, and climate events, and had to adapt home shelters and settlements to seasonal variations. Many of these changes have been captured in the cultural traditions of the indigenous people of Australia reflecting a harsh coastal environment. Weather patterns and climate change phenomena were gauged by the occurrence of landscape changes and recurring weather events by the acknowledgement of six seasons. Community settlements were established and relocated to adapt to the patterns of nature. This paper investigates if this ancient knowledge can provide answers for adaptation of coastal settlements to a changing climate now and in the future. Drawing upon recent published literature on predicted coastal climate change impacts in the different regions of Australia, and the review of Indigenous knowledge on settlement planning according to a six season cycle, the author explores traditional knowledge as input to a potential Climate Change Adaptation Model that considers a proposed framework, for integrating indigenous knowledge into the contemporary climate change adaptation practice and discourse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The urgency of climate change is communicated profusely across governments, decision makers, scientific and research communities. In countries such as the UK, where the future impacts of climate change are hard to perceive, action does not reflect this urgency. Consequently there is a need for a tailored approach in terms of climate change communication, from information content and dissemination, audience targeting and considerations affecting its reception to maximise its impact on action. This paper addresses how climate change information can influence action by investigating opportunities for changes in travel behaviour. It presents results from a questionnaire survey of 903 householders and five focus group discussions conducted in Hampshire, South East UK, on the use of climate change messaging for behaviour change. It identifies three distinct awareness groups based on levels of understanding of the causes of climate change ('Human activities', 'Unsure' and 'Non-human') and demonstrates that individuals aged less than 25 years old and over 55 show a stronger likelihood of being unsure of the causes of climate change or thinking this is not related to human activities. In addition to identifying audiences to target, barriers to change are identified: low willingness to engage in sustainable travel behaviour was found to result from a perception that climate change is too forbidding to be tackled on a personal level. However environmental information was found to be a positive reinforcer of future behaviour rather than a direct driver of change. The paper concludes by presenting a framework on how to best deliver climate change information to influence lifestyle changes by clearly designing the information around behaviour, audience, messenger, content and delivery tools. It suggests that climate change information can be used directly to address perceived barriers to behaviour change and increase intention to change behaviours. Moving away from current models of linear and one-dimensional dissemination of climate information, the framework can be used for multiple audiences and behaviours allowing for comparison, monitoring, evaluation and transferability of results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores, with a particular focus on the Australian political context, how the ethical impacts of pursuing effective climate change policy have been diluted by the singular focus on economic implications. The paper uses critical discourse analysis to examine examples of political speeches and documents. It gives an historical overview of political problems of pursuing climate policy (Australia has had five prime ministers in six years, all of them whose political incumbency has pivoted around their positions on climate change.) The paper then discusses more generally, why economics has become the dominant narrative and the arguments for considering climate change as a moral or ethical issue, hence the title "the choice between progress or the planet." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International legal efforts to mitigate global climate change continue to face impediments in achieving effective reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions. A closer introspection of the international climate change regime reveals major short comings, which in turn creates the need to explore the viability of engaging alternative approaches and legal regimes to fill the lacuna. In this context, the relevance of international trade norms for addressing global climate change becomes crucial but faces potential conflicts. Although, the reconciliation of related conflicts is expected to benefit both regimes, the paper argues that the stakes for climate change regime are much higher and therefore require a conscious development of conciliatory efforts with international trade norms. However, given the stalemate in international climate change negotiations, the prospect of such conciliatory initiatives arising from within the climate change regime seems bleak. This ironically creates the necessity to promote such efforts from outside the climate change negotiations. The paper seeks to identify and analyze the conflict and compatibility between international trade and climate regimes. It investigates how far the international trade regime could hinder or facilitate the measures seeking to enforce global climate change goals. It examines how differentiated climate change regime responsibilities and efforts could give rise to diverse national measures causing potential conflicts with international trade norms. The position of BRICS cooperation and some of its individual member states with regard to climate change is examined next. It concludes with a discussion on the relevant findings and suggestions regarding how international climate and trade regimes could be fostered to fight climate change more pragmatically. The potential role of BRICS and its member states in enhancing global climate change cooperation is discussed towards the end. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bangladesh Government has already announced Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan 2009 (BCCSAP), publicly known as Climate Change Policy. By its own statement this is also part of the overall development initiatives of the country. The southern, coastal region of Bangladesh is considered the hardest hit due to rising sea levels as a result of climate change; it contains most of the Char (low lying Small Island, often described as raised riverbeds) community. But, the action plan doesn't have any specific program for the Char community; in addition it didn't count their knowledge and the root cause of vulnerability. In terms of local knowledge, this paper is going to focus on two Char communities of the Bhola district for various reasons; this community (1) is considered as extremely poor, usually deprived from land ownership and a conflict prone area over land resources, (2) is going to be the hardest hit due to rising sea levels and (3) has an extraordinary knowledge of coastal adaptation mechanisms. Besides these features, these communities seek social justice, which they think is the root cause of their vulnerability, not rising sea levels, and they do not believe that Char land will be drowned permanently. From this empirical study finding, I point out some local knowledge for BCCSAP, which has been overlooked but could be an influential factor in minimizing Char vulnerability to climate change and increasing the opportunity for successful policy action. Finally, this paper reveals it is 'Donor' whose knowledge has been considered in the climate change policy of Bangladesh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines a framework for calculating carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-e) emissions in urban developments, including emissions inherent in: materials, construction, operation, transport, water, and waste processes over the life cycle of a development. The paper takes a holistic approach to urban design, to include not only the CO2-e emissions inherent in the individual buildings but also in the infrastructure and service provision of the community as a whole metabolic system. A range of carbon assessment tools is examined to assess their capacity for measuring CO2-e emissions in terms of this framework. The tools are reviewed for their applicability to four case studies in Western Australia: Peri-urban development (greenfield), Urban redevelopment (brownfield), Mining camps, and Indigenous communities, which demonstrate the type of settlement patterns that carbon assessment tools must respond to. The case studies are also indicative of the challenges facing other urban developments around the world in cutting CO2-e emissions and enhancing sustainability. The results of the study show that two tools are currently available that can measure and model carbon emissions and carbon consequences of variations of design in urban developments. The tools CCAPPrecint and e- Tool are highlighted in this paper as outstanding examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australian households are throwing out more than $5 billion worth of food each year, with over 40% of household food wasted. This non-consumed food constitutes a waste of resources and energy that needlessly contribute to Australia's ecological and carbon footprints. To further complicate matters, the management, transport, and disposal of this non-consumed food is a problem that does not have a comprehensive federally legislated and governed solution. Instead, the collection and processing of municipal food waste is organised by local area councils with support and additional funding from state and federal governments. This has resulted in conflicting waste practices across Australia. This paper investigates the development of waste practices in South Australia, with the objective to understand how this particular state has developed a high level of political commitment to positive environmental action while other Australian states have taken a more conservative position. Opening with a broad discussion upon contemporary food waste policy in Australia, this paper will then delve into a historical discussion on the development of South Australia's municipal waste system in conjunction with an evaluation of the present municipal food waste disposal options that are available within South Australian homes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research into climate change is very much on the worldwide agenda and Flanders and Belgium are no different. Climate discourse in recent decades has mainly focused on the issue of mitigation. Through a better understanding and assessment of climate challenges, adaptation arises as a complementary strategy to mitigation. It is widely recognized that deltas worldwide, where high population densities, rich agricultural resources, high-value infrastructure, and large freshwater flows that converge at the sea, are potentially highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Belgium and the Netherlands are the two most vulnerable countries in the Northern Central Europe, as both are part of the Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt-delta (RMS-delta). In this paper the potential impacts for the structures of human activities (i.e. residential and economic) in relation to climate change are described for the Flanders region as part of the ongoing research project CcASPAR. This acronym stands for 'Climate change And Changes in SPAtial structures in Flanders-Research project' (2009-2012), funded by the Flanders Institute for Innovation through Science and Technology (IWT), the project is oriented towards preparing policy in the domain of adaptation possibilities in response to climate change. The aim of the research project is to formulate a spatial adaptation strategy for Flanders. The aim of this paper is to conclude on the one hand some of Flanders's sensitivities in relation to the expected primary effects of climate change. On the other hand a reflection is made on a methodology to formulate preconditions as a scientific basis for further research by design on integrated adaptation options for the future spatial developments in function to upgrade Flanders resilience in relation to climate change challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the Australian context of a significant expansion of early childhood education and the lead up to the Copenhagen Climate Summit, a story alleging environmental indoctrination in an Australian preschool was featured in two Australian newspapers. The story elicited considerable online responses. This paper uses Appraisal Theory (Martin & White, 2007) to examine the lexico-grammatical construction of the indoctrination debate in the newspaper article and the subsequent online responses. The paper then situates the debate within the broader the broader context of environmental values education theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change will impact the community of Greater Sudbury, particularly increasing pressures on water quality and quantity. This was one of the main conclusions of studies such as the Case Study on Climate Change Vulnerabilities and Potential Adaptations (2005-2007). This led to the development of the Climate Change Position Paper, "Positioning the Nickel District Conservation Authority (NDCA) within the City of Greater Sudbury in a Future Climate and the creation of a consortium which was officially endorsed by the City of Greater Sudbury in 2009. This paper examines the process (from the research to knowledge transfer and public engagement) and the steps that have been taken by this community to integrate climate change scenarios and impacts data to find responses to better adapt to climate change. I discuss some of the prerequisites that have been the basis for the use of this stakeholders approach to climate change adaptation in this community. To be successful, it is clear that communities should first assess the levels of awareness, social acceptability, governance structure and power relations before moving ahead. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses environmental evidence based decision-making with reference to two critical areas of concern for mankind in the 21st century, climate change and resource shortage. It is widely agreed that the evidence should be both scientific knowledge with the qualifications of honesty, relevance, accessible and neutral (as far as possible), and lay knowledge which provides valuable stakeholder insights and allows cultural and social factors to be discussed. Critically important in the decision-making process are the pivotal roles of interpreters who facilitated understanding between knowledge providers and decision-makers, and also the acquisition of power by groups and individuals. Evidence for environmental decisions is usually incomplete, complex, lacking certainty and multidisciplinary in nature. When this evidence base includes competing and opposing arguments and the use of discourse management may aid resolution between opposing groups. However if the gap between opposing arguments cannot be bridged then disputes arise, sometimes between environmental groups, 'Green vs. Green' disputes, for instance whether to install low carbon energy generation technology and how this effects wildlife, biodiversity and the landscape. Politicians then make Hard Choices based on assessment of evidence and power judgements of the arguments. This paper discusses the themes of evidence, role of interpreters, and acquisition of power in the decision-making process with reference to biofuels and low carbon energy generation (wind turbines). Despite the apocalyptic thinking associated with climate change, the behaviour of individuals has changed little, however resource shortage (energy-security) has become politically important and has changed the power dynamics in favour of renewable and low carbon technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The UN Security Council's approach to collective security has been ever evolving since the time of the organization's creation. While historically collective security was considered to concern the protection of states from external military attack, the Council has used its power to determine the existence of "threats to the peace" under Article 39 of the UN Charter to bring a broad range of situations and phenomena of international concern within its remit. Refugee flows, infectious epidemics, and challenges to democracy are just some of the threats to the peace identified by the Council in the post-Cold War era. This paper is concerned with the Council's approach to climate change as a "threat to the peace." Drawing upon Council debates and resolutions, it considers the manner in which climate changes and its effects have been conceptualized in such terms, and assesses the relationship between climate change and other recognized threats to the peace. It is demonstrated that considerable progress has been made in elevating climate change as an issue of the utmost international concern at the UN level, yet tensions between the foreign and domestic policy priorities of powerful states continue to hinder more proactive responses on the Council's part. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bangladesh is recognized as one of the world’s most climate-affected countries because of its geographical settings and monsoon pattern. In 2007 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) identified Bangladesh as a highly vulnerable country that will most likely face adverse impacts of climate change in coming decades. The social dimensions of climate change are also exacerbating socioeconomic challenges, particularly in developing countries dependent on natural resources that are vulnerable to climate change. Climate vulnerability in Bangladesh is strongly associated with poverty. As in many parts of the developing world, women not only make up a significant proportion of poor people, but are also responsible for activities such as agriculture, water supply, and food management, all activities that are affected by climate change. Although women’s vulnerability to climate change is a common phenomenon in many countries, evidence suggests that gendered experiences and knowledge offer significant benefits in how they respond to this challenge. In this context, the paper employs both theoretical and qualitative data to challenge the traditional assumptions of women’s place and role in climate change adaptation in countries like Bangladesh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global climate change is likely to have catastrophic results, with countless experts indicating impending economic collapse, rising social conflicts, and large-scale public health disasters. It is in the Hindu Kush-Himalayas that the humanitarian disaster caused by climate change has the potential to be particularly acute. In addition to the obvious economic and environmental impact that may befall this region, there are also major risks for social and cultural wellbeing of its inhabitants. In response to this combination of stresses and changes, indigenous communities and governments are undertaking measures toward sustainable adaptation. However, the effects of climate change will lead to both adverse and beneficial changes to the environmental, social, cultural, and economic well-being of the region, so too will the effects of these adaption measures. This paper employs the Mauri Model Decision Making Framework to investigate and assesses these adaptation measures and the effect they have on social, cultural, environmental, and economic factors. This technique is aimed at delivering a paradigm comparable to a cost-benefit analysis, whereby nonmonetary benefits may be fairly scrutinized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With roots in past injustice and a future of complex social-ecological-economic-political situations, climate change calls for innovative ways to understand the evolving issues in real time and to continue to mobilise action, resources, and community around this. We, as arts-based researchers, focus on the climate change related drought in Cape Town, the city that almost ran out of water in early 2018. We embarked on a praxis process of co-producing a socially-engaged podcast series. We harnessed this medium to facilitate a form of social learning about this water crisis and as a device for uncovering the contested narratives of lived experiences of this water crisis. Our overarching goal was to support a more just and sustainable relationship with water in and beyond the crisis. We took an arts-based, relational approach to inquiry, with inquiry being both research and learning. This paper constitutes an important critical reflection on the process thus far to inform how we take this podcast into the future. We provide some context to the Cape Town water crisis and describe the building of DayOne's foundational four episodes as our research methodology. We then analyse the podcast-building process with support from literature on the podcast genre, social movement learning, and relational pedagogy. We outline why we feel relational sensibilities can contribute to social and ecological justice and how social practice podcast-building might help to cultivate these. We conclude by presenting three tensions to explore the question: how do we build podcasts in and with Cape Town as a tool for relational researchcommunication- education-action around urban water while best utilising the unique strengths of the podcast genre? These tensions are: listener-host intimacy versus sufficient contextual information; the affective power of raw audio versus the mediating power of editing audio; and the disruption versus reproduction of dominant narratives through sharing personal stories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Floods are becoming increasingly common in Nepal resulting in a huge loss of life and damage to settlements, agriculture lands and infrastructures in various parts of the country. Most recent research findings suggest that climate change has accelerated the intensity and frequency of flood hazards in most parts of the country. Communities are however, making use of options that increase their preparedness for these flood hazards. This paper intends to assess the indigenous knowledge on flood forecasting and flood adaptation strategies at the community level in two districts of Western Terai of Nepal. Two focus group discussion and a total number of 240 households were interviewed during field visit. The collected information was scaled from least preferred- 1 to most preferred-5 based on their preferences. The research findings indicate that there are some very effective local flood forecasting practices such as identifying the position of clouds; monitoring the extent of rainfall in upper catchments; analyzing the mobility of ants; analyzing the magnitude of thunderstorms and wind blows; analyzing the magnitude of hotness; and hearing strange sounds from river/torrents. Synthesis and analysis of these indicators help communities prepare for potential flood events, through (1) preparation of search and rescue related materials; (2) creation of small drainage structures in each plot of land and storage of the valuable material; and (3) the psychologically preparation for floods. This paper argues that these indigenous flood forecasting and adaptation strategies could be particularly useful for migrants, who are in flood prone areas but are not familiar with those practices, in other parts of the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More than half of the Tokelau population has relocated to New Zealand, raising issues for cultural maintenance. The exhibition--a collaboration between the local community, museum, and university architecture students--took place in the community gallery of a suburban museum Pataka Art + Museum. The aim of the exhibition was not only to provide a space where Tokelauan people could think, talk, and reminisce about their culture, but also to provide input and ideas for a Tokelauan cultural centre that is being designed by students from the School of Architecture in collaboration with the Tokelauan community. The paper explores ways that museums can work with multiple groups and institutions to fulfill allied (but not necessarily the exact same) aims, and how exhibitions can be used as a method of research and engaging with a particular audience in an inclusive and emotive way. Community empowerment extended from arts and craft demonstrations to anti-violence campaigning, new parent campaigns, displays of children's books in the Tokelau language, youth talent competitions, and elders' game competitions. The inclusive exhibition was successful in attracting a large number of new visitors to the museum and eliciting an important set of new relationships that continued on after the exhibition had ended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate-induced migration presents a growing challenge with significant humanitarian, social, and policy implications. This article examines the complex relationship between climate change and migration, exploring environmental impacts, socioeconomic consequences, and the different types of climate-induced migration, including internal displacement and cross-border migration. The article also highlights the current challenges in managing climate-induced displacement, such as legal and policy gaps, human rights and protection concerns, capacity constraints, and social integration and cultural challenges. The article emphasizes the importance of developing comprehensive policies and strategies to address climate-induced migration. It outlines potential approaches, such as enhancing global and regional frameworks, legally recognizing climate migrants, expanding support for regional and international cooperation, integrating climate-induced migration into national climate change and development plans, and investing in climate-resilient infrastructure and livelihoods. It also discusses case studies of successful policy responses to climate-induced migration and offers lessons learned and best practices. In conclusion, the article underscores the significance of proactive policy development, collaboration, and ongoing research and monitoring of climate-induced migration trends. By adopting best practices and learning from existing successes, policymakers can develop robust strategies to manage the growing challenge of climate-induced displacement and support vulnerable communities in the face of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vietnam is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and impoverished ethnic minority groups in marginalized areas are more adversely affected. This article focuses on the Northern Mountainous Region (NMR) of Vietnam, which is the poorest region in the country. It employs a participatory case study approach in assessing the vulnerability of the three major ethnic minority groups in the region: (1) the Tay, (2) Dao, and (3) Hmong. The results show that each of the three groups is vulnerable to climate change in different ways. The Tay people are vulnerable to flooding, whereas the Hmong and Dao groups are vulnerable to droughts and cold snaps. This study provides valuable insights into the complex relationship between ethnicity and vulnerability. The vulnerability of specific communities in the study area to climate change impacts gets amplified due to their already existing vulnerabilities, which are accordingly determined by the complex links among culture, geography, poverty, marginalization, and the communities' lack of access to resources and capital. This underscores the importance of looking beyond simplistic technical response measures; instead, policy and decision-makers need to address both climatic and non-climatic conditions, including the drivers of social vulnerability. Only through this amalgamation of approaches can planners develop measures that are flexible enough to incorporate and mitigate the existing and many "new" vulnerabilities emerging from rapidly evolving human--environment systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world's population recently surpassed 7 billion and is predicted to reach 9.2 billion by 2050. Continued population growth will result in increased resource consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, enhancing the effects of climate change. Synergisms between population growth and climate change will therefore have substantial negative impacts on the environment. However, solutions to population growth are often absent within the context of climate change. To address this absence, we conducted a review of the primary scientific literature published between 1980 and 2011 using ISI Web of Knowledge to determine the major topics that have been discussed, the geographic scale at which these topics were addressed, what types of solutions were proposed, and whether or not these solutions were tractable. In particular, we quantified the portion of the literature that addressed population growth and climate change as synergistic issues. Of 1,438 papers addressing population growth and climate change, only 139 (∼10%) included solutions. Among these 139 papers, the most frequent topics and solutions addressed the societal aspects of population growth and climate change. Land use/land cover change and greenhouse gas emissions were also frequently discussed, while changes in policy, economics, and science and technology were the most frequently offered solutions to population growth and climate change. Education, energy, and health, were the least discussed topics and the least mentioned as solutions. In addition, while topics were discussed on a global scale, actionable solutions were often regionally dependent and tailored to address either population growth or climate change as separate, unrelated topics. Importantly, the number of papers offering solutions increased significantly over time, with 46% published since 2008. These results suggest that while solutions to human population growth have seldom been discussed in the context of climate change, they are beginning to be considered in the literature, perhaps indicating an increased awareness of the interrelatedness of these issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the last decade, the South West (SW) region of Bangladesh has been found to be already engaged in practicing floating garden, cage culture, crab culture, etc., as the adaptation strategies to overcome the adverse effects of climate change (CC). Considering both, without CC (1961-1990) and with CC (1981-2010), this paper analyzes the trends of spatial, temporal, and extreme event indices for both temperature and rainfall based on fifty years (1961-2010) of data. Data have been collected from five Bangladesh Meteorological Departments distributed over the SW region and Rclimdex software is used for quality control and calculation of indices of rainfall as well as of temperature. During the monsoon, rainfall has been found with higher variability in magnitude as well as in spatial distribution. Over the last decade, both the highest monthly maximum 1-day rainfall and the highest monthly maximum consecutive 5-day rainfall were observed at Jessor, where water logging is a severe problem. Year to year variation of maximum summer temperature is increasing whereas minimum winter temperature is found to be decreasing. Additionally, the decreasing trends of consecutive wet days indicate that duration of the extreme rainfalls have become shorter. In the case of daily temperature, the winter trend has been drastically changed from increasing to decreasing. But in the case of other seasons, increasing temperature trends are found to be increasing at a faster rate. This study identifies the locations that are already vulnerable to changing condition and will be further exacerbated in the upcoming decades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presentation illustrates the results of an interdisciplinary practice between the main author as art jeweller and engineering with materials science. The talk will be supported by a series of examples of surface marking of titanium by laser for the production of jewellery objects and the effects caused by heat delivered to the titanium substrate. The research demonstrates how laser controlled oxide growth on titanium can be used as an artistic tool by producing precisely defined colours according to different parameter settings. The overriding success of this work, however, is the pathway created from art practice into engineering research, taking advantage of methodologies from both cultures, resulting in an improved communication and understanding between these extreme disciplines. The paper is also concerned with the distance created between artist and technology, the importance of crossing boundaries and taking risks beyond normal personal practice in order to join in the investigation of global current debates, for example climate change. Through the collaboration with scientists and engineers and the production of art jewellery the author aims to bring new knowledge of science research and art practice to wider audiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is focused on developing a set of guidelines with regard to the major climatic regions and climatic cities form, useful for urban planners and designers as well as for managerial, policymaking and financial purpose. It could inform the owners of businesses and actors on what to anticipate from city planning and design and to encourage a low-carbon growth for urban areas. The research synopsizes the results of an extensive study on climate-conscious urban elements and principles for different climates, and the goal is to decrease greenhouse gases for developing and transition economies as well as developed countries. Suggestions are presented on the four habitable climatic zones, but in this paper, only the results of arid climate is presented as an example. They are the essence of investigation of many cases studies, and the results are for comparison and quick references and to be applied on cities to obtain a sustainable urban form. The study of the relationship between climate and urban morphology of human settlements in the past is relatively a new field, and many lessons could be learned from ancient to recent cities. The main issue such as spatial configuration and morphological elements that may have an effect on climate change is discussed. The three criteria that will define the entity of an urban centre are history, culture and climate. These criteria have been considered in the study in order to include fairly representative examples of urban design, in other words, to have a homogeneous and balanced distribution of the selected settlements. Such a method will help in achieving comprehensive results and in making recommendations. The main purpose is to observe the influence of climate on the urban form, which would be useful to apply for contemporary city form. Climate-conscious urban design is an effective and a straightforward way to fight against climate change. It is important to emphasize that indigenous styles are defined less by national frontiers and more by environmental considerations. Climate has played a significant role in determining the overall urban and architectural form and fabric of future sustainable urban areas and liveable living style. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the concept of 'lived experience of climate change', the complementary challenge it poses to scientific (natural and social science) knowledge, its potential to inform policy, and the methodological challenges of capturing it. We conceptualise lived experience of climate change as evolving knowledge gained over time by individuals and groups through their everyday practices, practices that are in turn framed by proximate impacts of climate-related processes and events, and by broader socio-economic circumstance. The potential of lived experience to complement the sciences and inform policy poses difficult epistemological questions regarding how climate change knowledge is constructed and used. A key further dimension concerns the challenges that confront those who seek to capture it and its integrated, multi-faceted dimensions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the beginning of this century, the purpose and extent of intentional climate change proposals seem to have surpassed its original concepts and been appropriated by the various competing interests that inform the climate change debate. Indeed, many of the problems and uncertainties that geoengineering schemes evoke are feeding environmental controversies, while discourses become more and more politicized. In this context, the study of geoengineering narratives not only helps to unveil the ethical issues surrounding climate engineering experimentation, regulation and deployment, but also suggests an alternative way of looking at the climate change issue and the 'scalar dislocations' that it introduces into modern systems of experience and understanding [1]. Assuming that geoengineering is an illustrative metaphor of a particular kind of technoscientific promises and "technological fix" narratives that are emerging in our society, this paper seeks to analyse the value disputes hidden in geoengineering debates by adopting expanded notions of narrative, which account for the particular ways of rendering the world in both visual and verbal forms. It is hoped that this paper will contribute to an understanding of the potential of visual narrative research, while also considering the ethical issues in scientific and technological developments. In particular, it tries to suggest possible ways of exploring the meaning-making practices of production (encoding) and interpretation (decoding) of geoengineering images in order to analyse the contributions that visual methodologies can provide to enable us to understand the nature and causes of scientific and technological developments, the benefits and the risks, the perils and the promises of recent advances in science and technology and, last but not the least, the limits of rational analytical methods when it comes to characterizing complex problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adapting to the impacts of climate change is a crucial challenge for Local Government Authorities (LGAs). LGAs provide essential services to the community including land use planning, infrastructure delivery and maintenance, public health and safety and disaster management. They therefore, have a vital role to play in identifying, planning and implementing effective and timely adaptation actions. However, little is being done by LGAs in Australia in regard to climate change adaptation planning and implementation of adaptation measures, despite the potentially severe consequences of procrastination. The issues that inhibit the local governments from taking action on climate change adaptation include lack of awareness about climate change risks and vulnerability, lack of sufficient resources, absence of a mechanism to facilitate cross-departmental planning and lack of ability to recognize climate change risks as corporate risks. Mainstreaming climate change risk assessment and adaptation planning within city planning and operation would help address many of these issues. This paper aims to provide an understanding of the issues that need to be considered in developing a framework to assist mainstreaming of climate change adaptation within local government operation and planning and increasing the resilience of the cities to climate change. Information from local governments across Australia has been collected through a survey questionnaire and face-to-face meetings. Responses from the local governments indicate that a general awareness about climate change exists but the capacity to estimate the severity of local impacts is absent. Climate change impacts often cross local government boundaries and become regional issues. Regional collaborations can help to build capacity to address climate risks and adaptation planning. The paper summarizes the responses and discusses the key elements of the design of an adaptation framework for local governments to help them mainstream climate change adaptation into their operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent times there has been a growing recognition amongst policy-makers of the role for community-based action in contributing to the broader aims of energy policy and climate change. In this paper, we will examine the potential for existing community groups to use their influence and elements of internal cohesion to encourage more widespread understanding and adoption of sustainable lifestyle habits; both amongst their members and within the broader communities of which they are a part. Findings are presented from recent empirical work with a range of well-established community groups for whom environmental issues are not their main priority. A central aspect of the research was to explore both the current status and potential role of groups that may have the capacity to reach and influence a broader sphere of the public than energy/environment specific initiatives of recent times have been able to achieve. Representing a diversity of interests, age groups and functionality, the results suggest that the potential for more effective 'bottom-up' engagement on climate change and sustainable living might be given fresh impetus by these types of established community groups and their networks. An assessment of what motivates participation and membership in the groups highlights a series of factors common to all groups and a smaller number that are significant for particular groups individually. It is argued that an appreciation of motivating factors can be useful in understanding more clearly how such groups are able to survive and maintain cohesion over time. The findings also suggest that climate change action means different things for different groups, with the diversity of the groups bringing with it the challenge of making sustainable living relevant to a range of interests and different shared values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change is a pressing concern for the agricultural sector of both developed and developing countries due to the heavy reliance of this primary sector on climate conditions. However, little research effort has gone into understanding underlying cognitive factors that implicitly and explicitly guide the climate change adaptation process of farmers and the combined influence of socioeconomic and psychological factors on their adaptive behaviour. Since the importance of psychological factors and the reinforcement of psychology and economics to each other in explaining human behaviour have been well recognised, this paper employs behavioural economic viewpoints, protection motivation theory, and the theory of planned behaviour as the foundation. An integrated conceptual framework has been developed that takes into account psychological as well as socio-economic factors and examines the interaction among those variables in explaining farmers' decision-making process regarding climate change adaptation. The framework aims to provide a better understanding of farmers' adaptive behaviour in response to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adapting existing buildings is a viable alternative to demolition and replacement in order to mitigate climate change and global warming. Australian cities with inherent cultural heritage fabric, like Melbourne and Sydney, are actively promoting building adaptive reuse as a strategy that supports their programme for developing carbon-neutral cities. Thus, designing for future buildings with embedded adaptive reuse potential is a useful criterion for sustainability. Building adaptive reuse entails less energy and waste, protects the buildings' heritage values- its socio-cultural and historic meanings; while giving them a new lease of life. This paper looks into urban conservation-- an interdisciplinary field that combines adaptive reuse, architecture and community development of the built heritage. It will further introduce the development of a new rating tool known as adaptSTAR, suitable for assessing the adaptive reuse potential of future buildings to lead and help promote the development of low to no carbon built environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approximately half the world's population now lives in urban areas, and about 70% will be city dwellers by 2050. The IEA's World Energy Outlook 2008 estimates the global energy and energy related carbon dioxide (CO2) emission contributions of cities are 67% and 71% respectively. They therefore represent a concentration of carbon dioxide-emitting activities, but equally provide substantial opportunities for effective mitigation. Although international action on climate change is essential, local mitigation will deliver many of the carbon savings, and consequently, cities will play an important role. However, closing the gap between 'where we are now' and 'where we need to be' can be problematic, given the all-encompassing nature of the problem and its cause, and the long timescales involved. Using the example of Bristol in south west England, this paper presents a methodology to overcome such a problem. By engaging local stakeholders through an innovative Delphi-like process, a number of low-carbon scenarios for the future city-region can be imagined. By subsequently using backcasting techniques, together with conventional forecasting, a robust pathway from the present to a future desirable low-emission city can be described. This will bring benefits to planning and policy making, by providing a low emission-pathway beyond the short term, and creates buy-in from key stakeholders through the Delphi-process, who have helped to define the city's future [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture is a priority sector in Saudi Arabia. During last three decades, the country achieved significant growth in agricultural production. Despite difficulties of scarce rain, meager subterranean water, limited local manpower and widely dispersed cultivatable lands, agriculture has been given priority with objectives of attaining self-sufficiency, enhancing food security and increasing rural income. Agricultural productivity heavily relies on spatial and temporal variation of climate parameters like temperature, rainfall and humidity. Crop production is particularly vulnerable to variations in temperature and water availability during grain maturing stage. This paper presents the result of research work on effects of fluctuations in maximum and minimum temperature, water availability and humidity at different stages of plant growth for few major crops of the country which include wheat, date, and vegetables. Parametric analysis is conducted using historical climate data integrated into crop production simulation model to assess relative impacts of variations of climate parameters. PRECIS model is used for predictions of future climate parameters up to the end of the century. Climate forecasts are fed into DSSAT crop production simulation model to investigate corresponding impacts. Results suggest that yield of wheat, barley, date and vegetables may reduce by more than 30 percent due to change of temperature and rainfall forecasted in SRES scenarios. Outputs of analysis may be utilized for climate change adaptation policy formulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a climate sensitive sector, tourism is highly vulnerable to climate change impacts. Indeed, the tourism sector has already been experiencing impacts rising from climate change such as warming temperatures, sea level rise, coral bleaching, and increase in frequency and intensity of tropical cyclones, etc. While China is a major source market for many destinations all over the world, it is rising in the ranking of the world's top tourism destinations by achieving the fourth position in terms of international tourist arrivals in 2004. It has been projected by the World Travel and Tourism Council that China is to become the second largest travel and tourism economy in the world over the next ten years. On the other hand, China is one of "climate-tourism hotspots" where climate change can have a major adverse effect on tourism. The projected impacts of climate change in China include more common heatwaves, change of precipitation and water availability, increase in frequency of tropical storms, sea level rise and coastal erosion. Although how these climate change projections would affect China's tourism has yet to be assessed, it will inevitably need to adapt to future impacts of climate change. Aware of this situation, Chinese government has been making efforts to develop policies to address adaptation issues. This paper aims to review China's recent policy development in tourism adaptation to climate change. Based on the understanding of the current policies, it concludes with recommendations for future policy development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reporting on the topic of climate change and the findings of climate scientists raises specific difficulties for journalists, because of the disjuncture between scientific precision, and its language of 'probability and percentages, significant difference and estimation of error' (Thwaites 2006), and the media's hunger for an easily communicable truth. This paper discusses the findings of a research project in which frame analysis was applied to a sample of Australian newspaper stories on climate change from 2006 and 2009. The sample was taken from these two key years because several events of special significance occurred: the release of the documentary film, An Inconvenient Truth, in which former US vice president, Al Gore presented the key evidence and arguments underlying anthropogenic climate change, and British economist, Sir Nicholas Sterne's report on the Review of the Economics of Climate Change which identified the high economic cost of global warming in 2006; and the international climate change summit in Copenhagen in 2009, which drew considerable discussion regarding an emissions trading scheme. Sampling stories from three Australian metropolitan daily newspapers - two broadsheets and a tabloid - this analysis compares and contrasts how anthropogenic climate change is being framed by the Australian print media sector. The paper argues that certain tenets of contemporary news media practice present obstacles to public communication on climate change (Thwaites 2006). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impacts of climate change are being felt all over the world. Himalayan Glaciers like Gangotri and Yamunotri are melting away at an unprecedented rate and effecting lives of many in the Indian subcontinent. According to the IPCC reports, India will have no drinkable water left in the next fifty years. Cities like Mumbai in India are under a constant threat of being submerged due to rising sea levels. The policy makers of the country realize the hardships the country may face under the scenario of climate change. The Indian economy depends heavily on agriculture which is also under constant threat from climate change. In this paper we analyze the effects of climate change on Indian agriculture in Punjab, which is also known as the food basket of India. Our results do not show any negative impact of climate change on agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper outlines the evolution of the concept of global environmental governance, and its expression within climate-change related problem-solving institutions. A number of institutions address climate change on a global level, with a variety of institutional structures and processes. This leads to difficulties for comparative analysis, particularly when it comes to assessing quality of governance. Governance performance is important, since it helps stakeholders determine whether a given institution is sufficiently legitimate to merit participation, or whether their efforts are better served in other forums. Using a set of principles, criteria and indicators of governance quality, the paper provides an analysis of the 'REDD-plus' process (United Nations Collaborative Programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries). It highlights REDDplus' strengths and weaknesses and provides a rating of institutional legitimacy. It concludes with some observations on the challenges facing REDD-plus, and calls for the development of standards to ensure institutional quality-of-governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review contributes to a project promoted by the cluster of excellence "Integrated Climate System Analysis and Prediction (CliSAP)" to evaluate the preservation potentials of freshwater wetlands in Europe under consideration of climate change. In Europe wetlands have been drained and converted for centuries. The remaining wetlands are fragmented and often in a degraded state. During the last years efforts have been made to restore and preserve wetlands for various purposes, because wetlands provide crucial services and functions. They affect the carbon, water, and nitrogen cycles, serve as habitat for many plant and animal species, and act both as sink and source of greenhouse gases. In this sense, wetlands, its functions, and spatial extension may also be of significance in global and regional climate modeling. A fully coupled wetland-climate model under consideration of land use has not yet been developed; and within earth system models, wetlands are included as static shape with fixed boundaries. Wetlands have also received little attention in large-scale economic models of land use. But with relatively high European political ambitions for climate change mitigation, biodiversity protection, energy, water, food, and civil security, the question arises how to optimally govern wetlands in order to maximize market and non-market benefits. Qualitative and quantitative data on wetland ecosystems, its functions and services are required as base input for such model approaches. But often these studies are hindered by a lack of knowledge on wetland ecosystem functions, processes, as well as its spatial and temporal distribution under changing conditions. This paper summarizes existing knowledge on European freshwater wetlands under changing climatic conditions and discusses research gaps needed to be filled. The paper further compares the results with research undertaken globally by indicating uncertainties and variations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bangladesh is a low-lying alluvial country with a population of some 150 million. Because of it's long (700km) coast line on the Bay of Bengal, Bagladesh is one of those countries which is likely to be a significant victim of climate change. Studies have shown that a large portion of coastal Bangladesh will be severely affected by the projected sea level rise associated with global warming. One major consequence of such a rise in sea level is salt water intrusion into the coastal regions. This is already occuring, with the result that thousands of traditional Bagladeshi farmers are now struggling to adapt as the increasing salinity impacts their drinking water, sanitation, and livelihoods. This paper focuses on how these people, who are engaged in agriculture and traditional livlihoods, respond to this salt water intrusion. It's findings are based on field work and observation in the field of Ecological Anthropology This paper seeks to contribute to the growing field in Anthropology known as 'Anthropology of Climate change'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in Brazil's climate have aggravated drought conditions, yet the government continues to favor populist policies over ensuring sustainable energy and water resources. This paper analyses the underlying environmental and policy conditions that have led to Brazil's current power and water crisis and argues in favor of an overhaul of the federal energy infrastructure to reduce political influence in a regulated market and to improve initiatives of reforestation to mitigate the effects of climate change. The effects of poor climate and energy policies so clearly manifested in the Brazilian crisis should serve as a warning to other countries that sustainability is a choice, not a causal eventuality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adaptation is the adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climatic stimuli or their effects, which moderates harm or exploits beneficial opportunities. Currently, there are many activities in Viet Nam aimed at adapting to climate change; it is therefore important to assess the effectiveness of those adaptive activities in order to see which activities are effective for continuation and replication. These indicators are based on the SMART principle but must also meet the requirements of the ADAPT rule. In addition, the indicators were developed on the basis of the Adaptation Monitoring and Assessment Tool (AMAT) and were divided into three subindicators: reducing vulnerability to negative impacts of climate change, increasing the likelihood of responding to the impacts of climate change, and promoting the transfer and application of adaptive technologies. In this study, Can Tho City, Viet Nam, was chosen as the pilot city to apply the indicators to assess the effectiveness of the adaptation measures. The results show that the set of indicators can provide a visual result on adaptation effectiveness and should be applied in other cities/provinces or at the regional level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]