Multi-level climate adaptation policy and causation narratives

Climate adaptation policies are meant to reduce the negative consequences of the impacts associated with anthropogenic climate change, and in turn their success often depends on causal relationships within natural and human systems. In this paper, I examine the use of narratives about these causal relationships and explore why narratives with little basis in observation can persist in guiding policy. I examine three case studies, one concerning a narrative of climate impacts, a second concerning the relationship between household wealth and vulnerability, and the third concerning the procedures and needs of policy-makers themselves. In each case, I find that the narrative that was needed to legitimize and continue the resource flow within an existing policy process continued, despite growing empirical and model-driven evidence to suggest that the narrative may not be correct. I compare these stories with theories from sociological and evolutionary theory and suggest the importance of correcting or improving policy processes to avoid this pathology.     

Adaptation models of mountain glacier tourism to climate change: a case study of Mt. Yulong Snow scenic area

Mountain glaciers have an obvious location advantage and tourist market condition over polar and high latitude glaciers. Due to the enormous economic benefit and heritage value, some mountain glaciers will always receive higher attention from commercial media, government departments and mountain tourists in China and abroad. At present, more than 100 glaciers have been developed successfully as famous tourist destinations all over the world. However, global climate change seriously affects mountain glaciers and its surrounding environment. According to the current accelerated retreat trend, natural and cultural landscapes of some glaciers will be weakened, even disappear in the future. Climate change will also inevitably affect mountain ecosystems, and tourism routes under ice and glacier experience activities in these ecosystems. Simultaneously, the disappearance of mountain glaciers will also lead to a clear reduction of tourism and local economic benefits. Based on these reasons, this paper took Mt. Yulong Snow scenic area as an example and analyzed the retreat trend of a typical glacier. We then put forward some scientific and rational response mechanisms and adaptation models based on climate change in order to help future sustainable development of mountain glacier tourism.     

A conceptual framework for analysing adaptive capacity and multi-level learning processes in resource governance regimes

Governance failures are at the origin of many resource management problems. In particular climate change and the concomitant increase of extreme weather events has exposed the inability of current governance regimes to deal with present and future challenges. Still our knowledge about resource governance regimes and how they change is quite limited. This paper develops a conceptual framework addressing the dynamics and adaptive capacity of resource governance regimes as multi-level learning processes. The influence of formal and informal institutions, the role of state and non-state actors, the nature of multi-level interactions and the relative importance of bureaucratic hierarchies, markets and networks are identified as major structural characteristics of governance regimes. Change is conceptualized as social and societal learning that proceeds in a stepwise fashion moving from single to double to triple loop learning. Informal networks are considered to play a crucial role in such learning processes. The framework supports flexible and context sensitive analysis without being case study specific.First empirical evidence from water governance supports the assumptions made on the dynamics of governance regimes and the usefulness of the chosen approach. More complex and diverse governance regimes have a higher adaptive capacity. However, it is still an open question how to overcome the state of single-loop learning that seem to characterize many attempts to adapt to climate change. Only further development and application of shared conceptual frameworks taking into account the real complexity of governance regimes can generate the knowledge base needed to advance current understanding to a state that allows giving meaningful policy advice.     

气候变化对中国水资源影响的适应性评估与管理框架

 通过论述气候变化对中国水资源影响的适应性评估与管理框架,提出一个气候变化影响决策评估工具,它包括：未来气候变化对中国水资源潜在影响的定性描述分析、半定量与定量分析以及适应性对策评估。由于不同气候区域所面临的水资源问题不同,选择中国4个典型案例区域,并确定不同的目标进行气候变化适应性管理综合研究,提出了甄别气候变化影响和适应性管理的新的思路、框架与方法论。该项研究为应对未来气候变化影响的水资源规划与风险管理提供了途径与方法。     

The history of environmental change and adaptation in eastern Saloum–Senegal—Driving forces and perceptions

Environmental change in the Sahel–Sudan zone of West Africa has been a major issue in development debates over the last decades. Using remote sensing based land cover change analysis, archival data, national and international statistical data, and household interviews, we analyze the drivers of environmental change in Eastern Saloum in Central East Senegal as well as the local perceptions of these changes and adaptation. Being part of the ground nut basin, Eastern Saloum has witnessed rapid environmental degradation caused by the conversion of forest and savanna areas to agricultural land during the last 20–30 years and by a combination of decline in precipitation, soil degradation, a diversity of policies with little concern for the environment, fluctuating markets and population pressure. Farmers perceive the environmental change mainly as land degradation and poor soil fertility, though recent extensification of agriculture counters this effect and has led to increased vegetation cover in marginal areas. They identified erratic climate, agricultural policies, insufficient food production and desire to increase income as the main drivers of change in the area. We conclude that while climate variability has influenced environmental change in the area, various types of State interventions in agriculture and global market fluctuations appear to have been the main underlying causes of environmental degradation.     

全球变化背景下暖水珊瑚礁生态系统的适应性与修复研究

暖水珊瑚礁生态系统是热带海域最具生物多样性和代表性的生态系统之一。本研究分析了全球变化背景下暖水珊瑚礁生态系统的变化和风险,开展了受损暖水珊瑚礁生态系统退化和消失的致灾因子归因分析,综述了暖水珊瑚礁生态系统的适应性与修复技术研究。分析表明:①过去几十年来,暖水珊瑚礁生态系统快速退化,包括大面积白化和死亡、多样性明显减少和生态功能显著衰退,主要归因于海洋升温与人类活动等致灾因子的影响;②在温室气体高排放浓度情景下(RCP 8.5),相比工业革命前,到本世纪中叶,南海升温将可能远超过2℃,这表明南海暖水珊瑚礁生态系统正在逼近其气候临界点,即全球升温高于2℃时,90%~99%以上的暖水珊瑚将消失;③1980年代以来,海洋升温、海洋热浪和强热带气旋等海洋气候变化致灾因子对南海暖水珊瑚的危害性(影响的强度、范围和时间)明显增加,对暖水珊瑚礁生态系统产生了严重的影响;与此同时,近岸海域的过度或破坏性捕捞、采挖和潜水等人类活动,对暖水珊瑚造成了严重损害,增加了暖水珊瑚的气候脆弱性,而这种人类活动既是局部的,也是全球性的现象,使得暖水珊瑚更难以适应全球变暖的影响。分析还表明,为了增强暖水珊瑚适应气候与环境变化的恢复力(韧性),人们开展了诸多受损珊瑚礁生态系统的适应性与修复研究,但主要是采用无性繁殖或结合人工基质的修复方式,而应用有性繁殖技术恢复受损珊瑚礁的方式仍较少;最近,暖水珊瑚耐热的基因适应性研究取得了重要进展,为暖水珊瑚适应全球变暖提供了一种新的途径。本研究最后探讨了中国受损珊瑚礁生态系统的修复问题与对策。     

气候变化与多维度可持续城市化

全球大规模城市化和气候变化已是不争的事实,这是全人类需要共同面对和关注的突出问题。当前对于两者之间的复杂关系以及城市化进程如何科学应对气候变化并不清晰,从科学、管理到实践都需要进一步加强探究,以实现全球和区域可持续发展。本文首先给出全球大规模城市化和气候变化发生的基本事实,综述归纳城市化与气候变化的相互影响以及可能机制,城市化导致热岛效应、降水分配不均以及极端天气,并具有局地—区域—全球多尺度叠加效应,加剧了全球气候变化问题;气候变化对城市化的影响主要表现为能源消费变化、死亡率与传染病传播、海平面上升、极端天气对基础设施的破坏、水资源短缺等方面。简要梳理相关的国际研究和行动联盟,从城市化的4个关键维度：人口、土地、经济和社会视角出发,提出适应与减缓气候变化的多维度可持续城市化的分析框架。呼吁加强自然与人文学科交叉,将城市化等人类活动纳入地—气系统,探究人—地—气复杂耦合过程,从城市化为代表的人类活动角度的适应与减缓,或许是应对气候变化的最关键和最现实的路径。     

人地系统适应性研究进展：概念、理论框架与方法

适应性研究旨在通过主体对外部环境变化的调整,以削减其负面影响并改善适应能力,是实现人地系统可持续发展的重要途径。鉴于目前对适应性理论体系缺乏统一认识和系统梳理,论文通过对国内外人地系统适应性研究文献总结,从概念内涵、理论框架和方法对适应性研究进展进行了总结,并提出了适应性研究的科学范式。研究发现：① 学术界对适应性概念的理解并未达成科学共识,阻碍了通用的适应性研究理论体系的构建。② 现有适应性分析框架多是基于全球变化领域理论框架基础的延伸和修订。③ 适应性研究缺乏具有代表性的方法,以借用脆弱性、恢复力评估方法和指标体系为主。因此,统一的适应性概念和理论体系的构建亟需加强,而国外既有积累的理论经验并不通用,中国化的适应性分析框架、方法是未来的重要研究方向。同时,应强化人类社会和自然环境“综合”的人地系统适应性研究,注重多尺度结合的适应性动态分析。     

A multi-level perspective on climate risks and drivers of entrepreneurial robustness – Findings from sectoral comparison in alpine Austria

Recent works on organizational adaptation to climate change have repeatedly stressed that – despite concerns about large-scale impacts of climate change on supply chain networks – studies on climate change adaptation in manufacturing industries are still surprisingly scarce. The following study develops a systemic analytical framework based on which climate risks for manufacturing industries are reviewed and drivers (defined as supportive factors) of entrepreneurial robustness are examined. The analysis builds upon a case study in the alpine Austrian state of Tyrol where an intense regional rise of average temperatures occurs, going along with increased risks of natural mountain hazards and exposed settlement structures. In this climate-sensitive setting the authors conducted a survey on risk perceptions among 102 managers from manufacturing firms. Based on a comparison of the sectors metal and engineering, timber products, and construction, the authors argue that drivers of entrepreneurial robustness can be subsumed under five major strategic principles: (a) the deployment of slack resources, (b) vertical supply chain integration, (c) manufacturing flexibility, (d) material efficiency, and (e) technological risk prevention. Departing from the empirical results, the authors argue that across these principles the development of drivers depends on an interplay of structural prerequisites and human decisions on the levels of the focal firm, the supply chain network, and the political, economic, and geographic environment. In this sense, the authors conceptualize different forms of contingencies – thus effects influencing the development of drivers – within an ontology which may support further system-oriented analysis of climate change adaptation in industry.