W1 Flashcards
What is meant by the concept of the anthropocene?
Idea that humans have altered the world so much it is visible on geological timescales - new geological epoch
there is only 7% of the world that is not used by humans in any way - all others are used extensively and intensively
What are some examples of human impact?
Co2 concentration - not just increased bu increased at a greater and greater rate
Atmospheric ozone depleation
overexploitation of fisheries - exploitation since the 1950s
Land use change
When did the Anthropocene begin?
Many different conceptulisations
- beginning of fire and meat eating
- spread of farming
- industrial revolution
- great acceleration
What is the concept of a planetary boundary?
Idea that there is a limit to how much we can change the planet
At what scale does adaptation sit and why?
Local level - looking after global human rights at a global scale ei smuch more difficult
What is climate change?
a change in the state of the climate that can be identified eg. by using statistical tests by changes in the mean and/or variability of its properties, and that persists for an extended period, typically decades or longer
due to natural internal processes or external forcings
- modulations of the solar cycles
- volcanic erruptions
-anthropogenic impacts on the atmosphere or in land use
How does the UNFCCC describe cliamte change?
a change in climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods
What is an impact?
effect on natural and human systems
- the effects on natural and human systems of extreme weather and climate events and of cc
- effects on lives, livelihoods, health, ecosystems, economies, societies, cultures, services and infrastructure
- due to the interaction of climate changes of hazardous climate events occurring within a specific time period and the vulnerability of an exposed society or system
What are physical impacts
a subset of cc impacts on geophysical systems
including floods, droughts, and sea level rise
What is a hazard?
the potential occurance of an event or trend or impact that may…
- cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts
- damage and loss to property, infrastructure, livelihoods, service provision, ecosystems and environmental resources
What is exposure?
The presence of something e.g. people, livelihoods, species, ecosystems, environmental functions, services, and resources, infrastructure, or economic,social or cultural assets
in places and settings that could be adversely affected
= measured in pop density - biggest determinant in disaster to catastrophe
What is vulnerability?
The propensity or predisposition to be adversely affected
- sensitivity or susceptibility to harm
- lack of capacity to cope and adapt
What is risk?
the potential for consequences where something of value is at stake and where the outcome is uncertain recognizing the diversity of values
how are risks often represented?
probability of occurence of hazardous events or trends multiplied by the impacts if these events or trends occur
How do risks occur?
Result from the interaction of vulnerability, exposure and hazard
vulnerability and exposure - have some natural elements but are also impacted by socio-economic process
governance is key here - determines the extent to which adaptation is successful or not
What are the four wings for the determinants of risk diagram?
- Hazard
-Vulnerability
-Exposure
- Response
What are reasons for concern?
Elements of a classification framework - first developed in the IPCC 3rd assessment report
aim to facilitate judgements about what level of cc may be dangerous by aggregating risks from various sectors, considering hazards, exposures, vulnerabilities, capacities to adapt and the resulting hazards
different colours are linked to different means of requirement
What is adaptation?
process of adjustment to actual or expected climate and its effects
- seeks to moderate or avoid harm or exploit beneficial opportunities
- may facilitate adjustment to expected climate and its effects
What is incremental adaptation?
Adaptation actions where the central aim is to maintain the essence and integrity of a system at a given scale
e.g. city is already secured by a dyke can you increase the height of that
What is transformative adaptation?
Adaptation that changes the fundamental attributes of a human or natural system
eg. get rid of the dyke and re-build the city on houses on stilts or relocate the city
What is adaptive capacity?
The ability of systems, institutions, humans and other organisms to adjust to potential damage, to take advantage of opportunities, or to respond to the consequences
What is maladaption
Actions that may lead to increased risk of adverse climate-related outcomes, including:
- via increased ghg emissions
- increased vulnerability to cc
- diminished welfare - now or in the future
Maladaption is usually an unintended consequence
What are the limits to adaptation?
The point at which an actors objective or system need cannot be secured from intolerable risk through adaptive actions.
- hard adaptation limit = no adaptive actions are possible to avoid intolerable risks
- soft adaptation limit = options are currently not available to avoid intolerable risks through adaptive action
What is resilience?
The capacity of social, economic and environmental systems to cope with a hazardous event or trend or disturbance, responding or reorganizing in ways that maintain their essential function, identity and structure while also maintaining the capacity for adaptation, learning and transformation.
Increasing resilience is the main aim of adaptation
What is climate change mitigation?
practical action to reduce emissions of anthropogenic ghg into the atmosphere in order to prevent global temperature increase and its consequent impacts
What are the interactions between mitigation and adaptation?
There is deep interaction between mitigation, adaption, and sustainable development goals - which affects their outcomes.
- Politics - a and m and politics –> international negotiations, political trade-offs, historical/current perspectives
- Variety - different treatment of a and m in different part of the world –> front runners, or UK vs Bangladesh and small island states
- Interrelationships between a and m in ecosystems –> how mich ecosystems by impacted by m or a activities
- Success–> levels of m activity/sucess and impact on a priorities
- Impacts –> overlap on a perspectives
- Investments –> overlap
- Communication about cc –> eg. government or scientists to the public and how this differs for a and m and how messages might emphasis or avoid the interrelationships between each
How does evidence of cc differ globally?
There is a global discreapency in acaademic literature produced
How does attribution work?
Identify what you want to evaluate- observed change or event - consider its framing
gather evidence
develop hypothesis and plausible causes
system or method to test the hypothesis
apply process understanding, counterfactual, evaluate methods and models and consider constraints
attribution assessment
remains limited attribution studies and meta-analysis linking biological and physical responses to anthropogenic cc
