Resilient Development
The U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 2018 special report on global warming of 1.5 degrees Celsius concluded that the devastating effects of global warming, such as higher occurrence of severe storms, floods, wildfires and drought, are likely to appear more rapidly than previously assessed. These most destructive consequences of climate change will not escalate equally, with some regions of the world experiencing more severe effects than others. The IPCC assessment suggests that Arctic ecosystems, dryland regions, small island developing nations and least developed countries (LDCs) could be hardest hit by the early manifestations of climate change.
As governments, agencies, communities and individuals seek to respond to the challenge of climate change, ecological, social, and economic adjustments will be needed to prepare and respond to future impacts of climate change. Our research on climate adaptation and resilience focuses on the policy actions that can be taken to both manage emerging climate risks and to build new opportunities towards building a more sustainable future.
