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The politicization of climate change and the difficulty of achieving multi-level or sectoral stakeholder coordination are common institutional barriers to effective climate change adaptation governance outcomes. In the U.S., quasi-government organizations (QGOs) were designed to overcome such barriers, albeit traditionally for non-climatic purposes. This study’s objective is to illustrate how the design characteristics of QGOs may be useful for overcoming the above climate adaptation barriers. Methodologically, this paper analyzes six case studies, selected to illustrate the major characteristics of QGOs, of climate-focused and non climate-focused QGOs at the sub-national level in the U.S. Non climate-focused examples are included for comparison with, and to supplement, the limited number of QGOs currently working on climate efforts. For each case, this study focuses on eight design characteristics: seven that represent measures of political and financial independence, and one focused on board composition, to illustrate the extent to which QGOs enable multi-level and multi-sectoral stakeholder coordination. This study finds that among the assortment of existing QGO designs some are particularly well suited to overcoming either the politicization of climate adaptation policy or obstacles to enhancing policy coordination, while some reduce both, albeit to a lesser extent. Broadly, this paper concludes that QGOs can strengthen effective action by depoliticizing informational sources and fostering cross scale coordination of planning and implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, a major challenge for climate science is to overcome what is called the “usability gap” between the projections derived fromclimate models and the needs of the end-users. Regional Climate Models (RCMs) are expected to provide usable information concerning a variety of impacts and for a wide range of end-users. It is often assumed that the development of more accurate, more complex RCMs with higher spatial resolution should bring process understanding and better local projections, thus overcoming the usability gap. In this paper, I rather assume that the credibility of climate information should be pursued together with two other criteria of usability, which are salience and legitimacy. Based on the Swiss climate change scenarios, I study the attempts at meeting the needs of end-users and outline the trade-off modellers and users have to face with respect to the cascade of uncertainty. A conclusion of this paper is that the trade-off between salience and credibility sets the conditions under which RCMs can be deemed adequate for the purposes of addressing the needs of end-users and gearing the communication of the projections toward direct use and action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a methodology for developing a social Cumulative Effects Assessment (CEA) which analyses the impacts of climate change on maritime crime and maritime insecurities. The use of a CEA methodology, including the use of the Effect to Impact Pathway will enable mapping the relationships between certain ‘Activities’ (e.g. human-induced emissions of greenhouse gasses), the ‘Pressure’ engendered (e.g. warming sea temperatures) and their ‘Impacts’ (e.g. food shortages) via ‘Receptors’ (e.g. fishing communities) on specific sectors of society (in this case maritime migration and maritime crime, e.g. illegal fishing). This paper provides a Proof of Concept (PoC) for using such a methodology and shows the applicability of a multidisciplinary approach in understanding causal chains. In this PoC, the authors are generating a Non-Geographic Assessment Map that investigates the ‘Impacts’ that the human-induced greenhouse gas emissions have on maritime security. The proposed analytical tool can then be applied in further studies to assess the dependencies and synergies between climate change and the occurrence of maritime insecurity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the effectiveness of agriculture-led versus non-agriculture-led development strategies under climate-induced economic uncertainty. Utilizing Malawi as a case study, we introduce the application of Stochastic Dominance (SD) analysis, a tool from decision analysis theory, and compare the two strategies in the context of weather/climate-associated economic uncertainty. Our findings suggest that an agriculture-led development strategy consistently surpasses its non-agriculture-led antagonist in poverty and undernourishment outcomes across almost all possible weather/climate scenarios. This underscores that, despite increasing exposure of the entire economy to weather/climate uncertainty, agriculture-led development remains the optimal strategy for Malawi to reduce poverty and undernourishment. The study also endorses the broader use of SD analysis in policy planning studies, promoting its potential to integrate risk and uncertainty into policymaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Paris Agreement created an institutionalized role for non-state actors through voluntary cooperation. Many international NGOs (INGOs) are particularly active in these "Paris partnerships," often working with multinational corporations to reduce emissions and promote decarbonization. Though there is ample work on both the effectiveness of the Paris partnerships and on the role of INGOs in the global climate regime, much of this work focuses "outward" – on how INGOs contribute to climate mitigation and adaptation, or influence norms, discourse and policy. Yet, there is considerably less work that focuses "inward" – examining who INGOs work with in order to achieve their policy goals. This paper provides a descriptive analysis of key INGOs in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) process, as a first step in a larger research agenda to understand the incentives and opportunities that drive INGO behavior. Specifically, it uses network analysis to identify the "climate establishment" – which I define as the insider INGOs working within the multilateral process and with large corporations to influence rulemaking, soft law and firm behavior. Measures of network centrality demonstrate that two INGOs – WWF and the World Resources Institute – are by far, the most authoritative members of the climate establishment. They participate in the largest number of partnerships, and have "important" friends, as measured by eigenvector centrality. The data also indicate that the climate establishment sees carbon pricing as a key strategy, and it often cooperates with banks that are large funders of fossil fuel projects. The descriptive analysis of the climate establishment and its partners raises important questions for future research about why INGOs choose to partner with F100 companies, and how such cooperation might influence INGO behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During extreme heat events (EHEs) the public often learns about health protective actions through the media. Visual news coverage can act as a powerful tool to help convey complex health protective actions to the public. Despite the importance of images in helping the public understand the risk, there has been no systematic analysis to assess what images have been used by media outlets in Canada during EHEs. This paper helps to fill that gap by analyzing how the Canadian media visually communicated the risks of extreme heat to the public during the unprecedented 2021 Heat Dome. A review of thousands of online news media articles published about the 2021 Heat Dome in Canada was conducted on five subscription news databases. Overall, 845 images were coded to identify denotative, connotative, and ideological content. Only 16% of these published images implied that heat was dangerous, of which only 40% depicted people, and 46% implied human suffering. Our findings demonstrate that the majority of images used in Canadian news coverage on the 2021 Heat Dome are incompatible with, and frequently contradict, evidence-based heat protective actions. Governments, public health agencies, and other stakeholders engaged in distributing heat preparedness messaging (e.g., journalists) should prioritize improving the images of extreme heat in news coverage to align with evidence-based public health messages. With rising global temperatures due to climate change and the associated increases in the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events, prioritizing these actions is critically important to offset the threat posed to public health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graduate students can face difficulties collaborating across disciplines and outside of academia. Stakeholder-engaged research (i.e., research involving partners outside of academia) presents challenges for developing a project, finding collaborators, and co-creating knowledge. Past reflections on how to navigate stakeholder-engaged research assume a faculty member leads the project and do not often address implementation from a student-led approach. In this paper, we provide insight on our team science process from an applied, graduate student perspective. We reflect on the formation of our student team and the implementation of a tourism planning research project with community partners. We discuss challenges and focus on practical tips to overcome these challenges. Specifically, we include reflections on co-developing a research project, building authentic partnerships, negotiating power dynamics, and the role of institutional support. Lessons learned from this project can guide other graduate student teams working with stakeholders, as well as faculty seeking to train graduate students in stakeholder-engaged research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence of the health impact of climate change has been extensively documented in recent scholarly literature. In order to mitigate the adverse health effects induced by climate change, the need for conducting vulnerability assessments (VAs) has been emphasised. A higher vulnerability to climate change is often linked with substantial risks to human lives and built environment. Despite the potential of VAs in alleviating risks posed by climate change, only a limited amount of scholarly work in this domain has been conducted in the Indian context. The present research addresses this lacuna and contributes to the limited scholarship on climate change and health VAs in India. Drawing on the VA framework introduced by the fourth assessment report (AR4) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), this paper estimates district-level health vulnerabilities caused by climate change using multi-dimensional indices. The indices are multi-dimensional since they integrate 50 district-level indicators from 8 data sources for all 640 Census 2011 districts. The statistical technique of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) has been used for integrating the indicators. The findings of this paper indicate that nearly 56% of India’s population in 344 districts is highly vulnerable to the health impact of climate change. The results show that high vulnerability in certain districts is mediated by high adaptive capacity (AC). Since climate exposure varies across districts, the paper highlights the need for local-level responses and Complex Adaptive System (CAS) thinking to understand the implications of climate change and human health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the operationalization of climate-related indicators in violent conflict research. The climate-conflict narrative gained traction in recent decades and climate change is often referred to as a 'threat multiplier' by both policy makers and scholars. Yet, the relationships between climate-related phenomena and violent conflict are complex and context-specific. However, limited attention has been given to the climatic indicators applied in climate-conflict research. This paper addresses that gap by analyzing 32 studies published from 2004 to 2020 on the operationalization of climatic indicators and their relationship with violent conflict. It first categorizes climate indicators operationalization into five clusters: natural disasters, basic climate variability, advanced climate variability, freshwater availability, and the ENSO. The study evaluates the climate indicators for each cluster and shows that at an aggregate level these clusters examine 68 different climate representations. When paired with their respective conflict types, it finds a total of 113 climate-conflict combinations. Most operationalizations represent various forms of climate-related phenomena and variability rather than climate change. Some indicators are advancements over time, for example moving from changes in average rainfall to standardized precipitation indices. However, other indicators refer to various natural processes, making it challenging to determine whether climatic variability impacts conflict. The paper then demonstrates a discrepancy between the pathways through which climate may affect violent conflict and the representation of these pathways in the selected climate indicators. It discusses how the selection and operationalization of climate indicators requires careful consideration, and the phenomena researched should be well-specified in research findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines various studies on weather and climate extreme events (WCEE) to identify thematic trends and research gaps and suggest directions for further studies. The review identifies 14 subthemes and 23 research focuses, that address impacts and issues in the pre-, during-, and post-disaster phases. Using a matrix of WCEE dimensionality and content matrix analysis, we analyze the distribution and research focus of these studies, revealing areas with both extensive and limited research. While significant literature exists on certain WCEE subthemes, with a strong focus on damage assessment, spatial extent, losses, and disaster management approaches, only a limited number of studies have explored crucial areas such as risk prediction, urban planning, water quality, urban resilience, and public health dimensions. These areas are vital for effective disaster risk reduction. To bridge the knowledge gaps in these areas and other areas with multi-dimensional outlooks within the context of WCEE, we recommend prioritizing research in these subthemes. Our findings underscore the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration and the need for additional research to enhance our understanding of WCEE. Through evidence-based strategies, policymakers and practitioners can develop measures to enhance resilience and mitigate the impacts of WCEE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper attempts to analyze decoupling between CO2 emissions and income growth in the U.S. through the lens of Environmental Kuznets curve (EKC). Many states in the U.S. have achieved absolute decoupling in recent years, which means that CO2 emissions have decreased while the economy grows. This is partly due to the adoption of low-emission technologies, such as coal to gas switching, nuclear power, and economic restructuring towards a more sustainable economy. We argue that understanding decoupling is crucial to implement effective climate change policies. This study suggests that, after 2015, EKC has taken on the U-shaped form with many states currently located on the negatively sloped portion of the curve. It is not desirable as emissions may eventually begin to increase as the economy grows. To support this claim, we estimate panel fixed effects rolling-window EKCs using two-stage least square with two instrumental variables, unemployment rate and the trend variable. Empirical results show how the inverted U-shaped EKC has transformed into the U-shaped EKC in the U.S. This transformation is probably caused by the recent increases in emissions in transportation sector, strong electricity demand in recent years with cold winter seasons, reversals of eco-friendly energy policies, and manufacturers’ onshoring. Stakeholders should make efforts to transform the U-shaped EKC back to an inverted U-shaped EKC even in cases where absolute decoupling is observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher education institutions have a mandate to serve the public good, yet in many cases fail to adequately respond to the global climate crisis. The inability of academic institutions to commit to purposeful climate action through targeted research, education, outreach, and policy is due in large part to “capture” by special interests. Capture involves powerful minority interests that exert influence and derive benefits at the expense of a larger group or purpose. This paper makes a conceptual contribution to advance a framework of “academic capture” applied to the climate crisis in higher education institutions. Academic capture is the result of the three contributing factors of increasing financialization issues, influence of the fossil fuel industry, and reticence of university employees to challenge the status quo. The framework guides an empirical assessment evaluating eight activities and related indices of transparency and participation based on principles of climate justice and the growing democracy-climate nexus. The framework can be a helpful tool for citizens and academics to assess the potential for academic capture and capacity for more just and democratic methods of climate action in higher education. We conclude with a series of recommendations on how to refine and apply our framework and assessment in academic settings. Our goal is to further the discussion on academic capture and continue to develop tools that transform higher education institutions to places of deep democracy and innovative climate education, research, and outreach to meet the challenges of the Anthropocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scientific knowledge is at the heart of discussions about climate change. However, it has been proposed that the apparent predominance of climate science in the societal debate should be reconsidered and that a more inclusive approach is warranted. Further, the introduction of new communication technology has made the information environment more fragmented, possibly endangering the quality of societal deliberation on climate change concerns. Using focus group methodology, this paper explores how climate scientists, climate journalists, and citizens perceive scientific experts’ mandate when they communicate publicly, the role of experiential knowledge in discussions of climate-related issues, and who the three actors prefer to guard the quality of the climate information exchanged in the public sphere. The findings show that scientific experts are perceived to carry a high degree of legitimacy, but only within their own narrow specialty, while experiential knowledge was seen as more useful in applied domains of science than in arcane research fields. In the new media landscape, journalists are still generally preferred as gatekeepers by all three actor types. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The widespread demand for animal-sourced foods poses challenges in addressing climate change due to their significant greenhouse gas emissions. Alternative proteins like cultured meat show promise with lower greenhouse gas emissions, but have faced public resistance, posing substantial barriers to their broad development and adoption. This paper reports a survey that examined the perceived naturalness of protein sources as an important factor that predicts perceived risks, benefits, and support for consumption. A diverse sample from the United States considered six different protein technologies, including three newer alternative proteins such as cultured meat and three more conventional proteins. Newer alternative proteins were perceived as less natural and were less supported than conventional proteins. Additionally, the more participants perceived protein sources as natural, the less risky and more beneficial they perceived them to be, contributing to their support. These results suggest that perceived naturalness, and associated risks and benefits, could be an important factor in shaping public support for or opposition to new proteins. These findings have theoretical and broader implications for the development and adoption of sustainability technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The widespread demand for animal-sourced foods poses challenges in addressing climate change due to their significant greenhouse gas emissions. Alternative proteins like cultured meat show promise with lower greenhouse gas emissions, but have faced public resistance, posing substantial barriers to their broad development and adoption. This paper reports a survey that examined the perceived naturalness of protein sources as an important factor that predicts perceived risks, benefits, and support for consumption. A diverse sample from the United States considered six different protein technologies, including three newer alternative proteins such as cultured meat and three more conventional proteins. Newer alternative proteins were perceived as less natural and were less supported than conventional proteins. Additionally, the more participants perceived protein sources as natural, the less risky and more beneficial they perceived them to be, contributing to their support. These results suggest that perceived naturalness, and associated risks and benefits, could be an important factor in shaping public support for or opposition to new proteins. These findings have theoretical and broader implications for the development and adoption of sustainability technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change will push the planet worryingly close to its boundaries, across all latitudes and levels of development. One question therefore is the extent to which climate change does (and will) severely affect societies’ livelihoods, health, well-being, and cultures. This paper discusses the “severe climate risks” concept developed under Working Group II’s contribution to the Fifth and Sixth Assessment Reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, AR5, and AR6). Focusing on low-lying coastal socio-ecological systems (LCS) and acknowledging that attempts to define “severe” climate risk have been problematic at the level of global syntheses, we argue for a more place- and people-based framing relating to “habitability under a changing climate.” We summarize habitability in terms of five habitability pillars: land, freshwater, food, settlement and infrastructure, and economic and subsistence activities; we acknowledge social and cultural factors (including perceptions, values, governance arrangements, human agency, power structures) as critical underlying factors rather than as separate pillars. We further develop the habitability framing and examine climate risk to future human health and habitability for three climate “hotspot” archetypes (arctic coasts, atoll islands, densely populated urban areas). Building on the IPCC AR6 framing of severe climate risks, we discuss three key parameters describing severe climate risks in LCS: the point of irreversibility of changes, physical and socio-ecological thresholds, and cascading effects across various habitability dimensions. We also highlight the variability of severe risk conditions both between coastal archetypes and within each of them. Further work should consist of refining the case study framing to find the right balance between capturing context-specificities through real-world local case studies and commonalities derived from more generic archetypes. In addition, there is a need to identify appropriate methods to assess irreversibility, thresholds, and cascading effects, and thus severe climate risks to habitability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to its potential geo-political and environmental implications, climate migration is an increasing concern to the international community. However, while there is considerable attention devoted to migration in response to sea-level rise, there is a limited understanding of human mobility due to freshwater and inland hydroclimatic changes. Hence, the aim of this paper is to examine the existing evidence on migration as an adaptation strategy due to freshwater and inland hydroclimatic changes. A meta-review of papers published between 2014 and 2019 yielded 67 publications, the majority of which focus on a handful of countries in the Global South. Droughts, floods, extreme heat, and changes in seasonal precipitation patterns were singled out as the most common hazards triggering migration. Importantly, most of the papers discuss mobility as part of a portfolio of responses. Motivations to migrate at the household level range from survival to searching for better economic opportunities. The outcomes of migration are mixed — spanning from higher incomes to difficulties in finding employment after moving and struggles with a higher cost of living. While remittances can be beneficial, migration does not always have a positive outcome for those who are left behind. Furthermore, this meta-review shows that migration, even when desired, is not an option for some of the most vulnerable households. These multifaceted results suggest that, while climate mobility is certainly happening due to freshwater and inland hydroclimatic changes, studies reviewing it are limited and substantial gaps remain in terms of geographical coverage, implementation assessments, and outcomes evaluation. We argue that these gaps need to be filled to inform climate and migration policies that increasingly need to be intertwined rather than shaped in isolation from each other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Sweden’s Norrbotten County, a “green transition” driven by market demand and new normative structures is underway, creating a regional mega-project designed to put Sweden at the forefront of emerging green industries. These industries, such as carbon-neutral steel fabrication, battery production, and data center hosting, all require large amounts of energy, land, and minerals. This paper applies the regional environmental governance framework to Arctic data to examine which stakeholders have the capacity to impose their agenda on the Arctic environment and the points of conflict and collaboration during this period of accelerated growth. The paper tests the assumption that regional governance accommodates a plurality of interests. A case study examining Norrbotten County’s industrial mega-project centered around Luleå, Sweden, identifies a dominant coalition uniting government and industry that supports norms seeking to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in this region. However, the existing regional governance model does a poor job of integrating the local Indigenous Sámi preferences for land use. At the core of the difference between actors advancing the green economy and the local Sámi reindeer herders are divergent conceptions of nature and sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the results of a detailed review of the research literature on how nomadic pastoralists are being affected by climate change, how they are adapting, and challenges with using traditional knowledge in adaptation. It focuses on research that investigates local, and particularly traditional, knowledge of water, pasture, their variability, and livestock. This knowledge underpins nomadic livelihoods, so is a foundation for effective adaptation. Changes in the total amount of precipitation, and particularly shifts in its timing, and increases in the frequency and intensity of extreme events, are having the greatest impacts on herding livelihoods. Herders in drylands worldwide face common adaptation challenges: declining traditional water sources and pasture degradation. Herders' adaptation strategies fall into five major categories: movement to areas with better water and pasture, improving seasonal access to water, improving seasonal access to feed, shifts in herd composition, and livelihood diversification. Movement is central to nomads' adaptation, yet, as climate change takes hold, restrictions on movement are increasing for both socio-economic reasons and climate reasons. Many papers emphasised the importance of combining traditional knowledge and current science to guide adaptation decision-making at household, locality, and national levels. There is widespread concern about the decline in traditional knowledge. All the papers reviewed emphasised the need to support passing on traditional know-how. Herder women's know-how, in particular, is marginalised in the research literature, so their traditional knowledge should be a focus in further research. Herders' adaptations are mostly localised, incremental, and have a relatively short-term focus. As nomadic pastoralism moves further outside the range of historical experience, the possibility of more profound transformations looms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

If local governments reduce greenhouse gas emissions, they will not see effects unless a very large number of other actors do the same. However, reducing greenhouse gas emissions can have multiple local “co-benefits” (improved air quality, energy savings, even energy security), creating incentives for local governments to reduce emissions—if just for the local side-effects of doing so. Available empirical research yet shows a large gap between co-benefits as a rationale and an explanatory factor for climate mitigation by local governments: co-benefits are seemingly very large, but do not seem to drive local mitigation efforts. Relying on policy documents, available research, and other written sources, the present paper consists of a multiple case study addressing the link between co-benefits and climate mitigation in Moscow, Paris, and Montreal. Air quality plays a very different role in each case, ranging from a key driver of mitigation to a liability for local climate action. This heterogeneity of mechanisms in place emerges as a likely explanation for the lack of a clear empirical link between co-benefits and local mitigation in the literature. We finally discuss implications for urban climate action policy and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although dependency ratio (DR) significantly affects anthropogenic emissions and thus emission abatement, previous researchers usually neglected DR’s impact on climate policy implementation. In this paper, we attempt to narrow the research gap by studying how the DR is related to the emission trading scheme (ETS) in China. To achieve this research target, a Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model is employed to study the relation between DR and ETS. The CGE model results show that both DR and ETS negatively affect carbon emissions because they decrease labor employment and thus economic output. The DR is negatively related to emission abatement and the economic cost of the ETS, whereas the ETS relieves the negative DR impacts on the economy and emissions. These findings imply that characterized by rising DR, population aging helps achieve emission mitigation; as climate policy relieves the negative impacts of the rising DR on the economy and emissions, its implementation may be smoother in an aging society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate action-based assumptions and tradable characteristics underpinned the development of climate change futures contracts, which are related to carbon and climate markets. Therefore, this paper examines return and volatility spillover between climate change futures and carbon allowance futures using dynamic conditional correlation (DCC) and asymmetric dynamic conditional correlation (ADCC) models with daily and weekly frequency data. Considering the emergence of US market-based carbon futures and climate futures, this study explores bivariate optimal hedging strategies and optimal portfolio strategies. Using daily data, this study discovers unidirectional and positive return and volatility spillover from the carbon futures market to the climate change futures market, implying opportunities for diversification and hedging. The weekly analysis shows bidirectional and negative return spillover between the carbon futures market and the climate change futures market, implying opportunities for risk hedging. In addition, it also reveals unidirectional and positive volatility spillovers from the carbon futures market to the climate change futures market. The carbon market dominates the climate change futures market. The study also reveals that optimal portfolio strategies will be preferred over optimal hedging strategies. Therefore, this study offers practical implications for investors and portfolio managers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Critical scholars on power relations and climate change adaptation have highlighted the lack of community participation as a consequence of unbalanced power operations. Evidence about how unequal power relations and subject formation constrain public participation, however, is under-studied. In this paper, we utilised the intersection between community participation and the subjectivities lens to examine how a hierarchical political structure systematically operates to influence community engagement in adaptation and how and why local communities are included or excluded from adaptation as a result of subject-making, using Vietnam as a case study. Using 66 semi-structured interviews and ten focus group discussions involving policymakers, practitioners, local authorities, and communities, we examined how the key respondents stereotyped local roles and capacity in agricultural adaptation activities. Applying content analysis, we found that the general population in Vietnam is often framed as lacking knowledge and capacity to respond to climate impacts. Reflected through a traditional government-led model in two agricultural adaptation projects, the study showed that subtle but pervasive subjectivities and subject-making processes constrain community participation by affecting perceptions and, subsequently, actions of key stakeholders, undermining local roles and capacity in undertaking adaptation. These perpetuate the power imbalance between local communities and government entities. The findings contribute to the prevailing scholarship of climate change adaptation that, under an authoritarian regime, local capacity is undermined not only by powerholders but also by community members as they consent to government decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world is currently in the midst of an energy transition, in which renewable and low-carbon energy is replacing the use of fossil fuels. Along the way, however, planning for and adapting to impacts of climate change is urgently needed, as these are projected to intensify in the future, despite ambitious mitigation efforts. Since the low-carbon energy transition is likely to involve many international interdependencies and connections between countries and regions, assessments of cross-border impacts of climate change, i.e., consequences of climate change that occur remotely from the location of their initial impact, are of utmost importance to ensure the decarbonisation of society is safe and sustainable. This paper utilises expert interviews and a general morphological analysis with the shared socioeconomic pathways to situate national decarbonisation efforts within a global context and identify cross-border impacts of climate change that may affect the energy transition, using the Finnish energy sector as a case study. Interestingly, many of the global development trends that were found to have a boosting effect on the Finnish energy transition, also increased the risk from cross-border climate change impacts, stressing the importance of rigorous adaptation planning. The findings affirm the need for studying national energy transitions from a global perspective and highlight the tendency of climate change impacts to be transmitted across borders via complex pathways. The study offers valuable insights into the importance of cross-border impacts for adaptation planning pertinent to any country or region currently engaged, or planning to engage, in the global low-carbon transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Does land security matter in climate change adaptation strategies choice? To provide answers to this, the paper used a survey data collected from a random sample of 341 agricultural households in 2020 in Benin. Descriptive statistics and multivariate probit model were used to analyze the data. The main adaptations strategies identified are adjustment in sowing time, tree planting, crop and livestock integration, use of irrigation, use of improved variety, and endogenous beliefs, while family land, own land and rented land are the types of land tenure arrangements. Results from a multivariate probit model show that the use of family land increases the likelihood of planting tree, crop and livestock integration, use of improved variety, and endogenous beliefs. Farmers using own land are more likely to adopt tree planting and endogenous beliefs as adaptation strategies, while they are less likely to adopt irrigation. The use of rented land increases the likelihood of adjusting the sowing time, crop and livestock integration, use of irrigation, use of improved variety, and use of endogenous beliefs. These findings suggest that the choice of adaptation strategies to cope with climate change depends on the type of land tenure arrangements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moving beyond technocratic approaches to climate action, climate justice articulates a paradigm shift in how organizations think about their response to the climate crisis. This paper makes a conceptual contribution by exploring the potential of this paradigm shift in higher education. Through a commitment to advancing transformative climate justice, colleges and universities around the world could realign and redefine their priorities in teaching, research, and community engagement to shape a more just, stable, and healthy future. As inequitable climate vulnerabilities increase, higher education has multiple emerging opportunities to resist, reverse, and repair climate injustices and related socioeconomic and health disparities. Rather than continuing to perpetuate the concentration of wealth and power by promoting climate isolationism’s narrow focus on technological innovation and by prioritizing the financial success of alumni and the institution, colleges and universities have an opportunity to leverage their unique role as powerful anchor institutions to demonstrate climate justice innovations and catalyze social change toward a more equitable, renewable-based future. This paper explores how higher education can advance societal transformation toward climate justice, by teaching climate engagement, supporting impactful justice-centered research, embracing non-extractive hiring and purchasing practices, and integrating community-engaged climate justice innovations across campus operations. Two climate justice frameworks, Green New Deal-type policies and energy democracy, provide structure for reviewing a breadth of proposed transformational climate justice initiatives in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International cooperation in the Arctic is largely operationalised through environmental governance in a constellation of institutions that promote scientific knowledge of the Arctic region. While the Arctic Council is placed at the centre of this network for environmental protection and resource management across the region, other institutions play critical roles in facilitating scientific knowledge production that promotes the security and development of the region and its resources across national boundaries. Evaluating the role of environmental protection in Arctic governance within models of science diplomacy, this paper argues that the assumption of environmental responsibility should act as a normative operator for Arctic environmental governance, shaping the relations between actors in this regional network and legitimising decision-making by Arctic states as they socially construct the mechanisms and regional exceptionalism of Arctic governance. However, environmental responsibility falls short of acting as a normative operator for environmental protection that also prevents the impact of climate change on the Arctic environment, excluding its function as an overarching normative operator for the international system, reducing state legitimacy for regional decision-making in extra-territorial spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most national and international climate agendas promote energy efficiency and fossil to renewable energy substitution as key future policy directions. This paper surveys macro-energy-emission-output panel assessments and shows that previously estimated carbon response functions present diverging shapes with less evidence on the confounding role of development. This study applies a multivariate regression equation and both Pesaran (1995) and Pesaran (2006) mean group estimators with common correlated effects to illustrative samples of countries with data covering five decades. For all groups, long-run panel coefficients show that energy efficiency improvements associate with larger negative carbon responses than fossil-to-renewable energy shifts. Estimates derived from high-income economies are much smaller in magnitude and significance compared to those of developing countries, which is further corroborated by country-level parameters. This implies that least-energy efficient and -green economies can benefit from a wider set of carbon abatement policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing studies have shown that climate change has important implications for residential electricity consumption, yet how responses to climate vary between rural and urban residents, and more importantly, the roles of electricity pricing regimes in determining such responses remain largely unknown. In this paper, we explore these issues using monthly data in Anhui province in China. Our results suggest that on average rural residents are more sensitive to cooling degree days (CDD) than urban counterparts (0.19% vs 0.08% increase in electricity consumption per unit increase in CDD). Additionally, households who adopt the time of use (TOU) pricing regime tend to be less responsive to temperatures than households choosing tiered pricing regimes (TPHE). Substantial increases in electricity demand induced by climate change are expected in the future. With the pessimistic RCP8.5 scenario, our results suggest an increase of 35.5% and 77.1% in electricity demand respectively for the urban and rural residents in the 2080s relative to 2017. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human health in Odisha is directly vulnerable to climate change in the form of mortality as a result of climate-induced natural disasters (CINDs) and heatwaves. More frequent and intensified CIND has become an inevitable part of the state and its impact on human health has been detrimental. The magnitude of the impact of climate change on human health depends on the vulnerability and adaptation approaches of the state. The objectives of the paper are to study the changing pattern of climatic variability over 20 years in the state and to analyze the direct impact of climate change on human health in Odisha. Linear trend analysis is performed for annual average, pre-monsoon, monsoon, and post-monsoon rainfall as well as annual maximum and minimum temperature and for the heatwave period to show the changing pattern of climate in the state over 20 years. Regression analysis is performed between the indexed value of vulnerability and adaptation coefficients considered in the study as independent variables and mortality due to CIND as the dependent variable to analyze the impact of climate change on human health in the state. Also, correlation analysis is conducted to show the association between heatwave mortality and the maximum temperature of the heatwave period. The rainfall trend of the state for 20 years from 2000 to 2020 is found to increase in pre-monsoon and post-monsoon periods, while the annual average rainfall of the state for 20 years is slightly increasing and the monsoon period rainfall has remained consistent throughout the years. The annual maximum and minimum temperature and the heatwave period are found to be increasing. The regression analysis has shown a significant positive relationship between vulnerability coefficients and mortality as a direct impact of CIND on human health, whereas adaptation coefficients exhibit negative relation with it. Also, there is a moderate but significant association between the maximum temperature of the heatwave period with heatwave mortality. Odisha has been vulnerable to climate change during 2000–2020 as indicated by the high vulnerability score compared to the adaptation score for each year. However, years with better adaptive approaches, having high adaptive index scores, experienced less human mortality even with high vulnerability scores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contributes to academic and policy debates about climate leadership by illustrating an approach to examining national emission reduction targets focusing on Denmark. Widely recognized as a climate leader, Denmark is cherished for both its historical track record and its current climate targets. With a target of 70% emissions reduction by 2030 compared to 1990 stipulated in national law, central actors in Danish policymaking claim that domestic climate policy is aligned with the Paris temperature goals and present Denmark as a ‘green frontrunner.’ We examine the pledges and targets enshrined in the Danish Climate Act in reference to a 1.5 °C global greenhouse gas budget using five different approaches to burden sharing. For all five approaches, we find that the Danish climate target is inadequate given the 1.5 °C goal. Moreover, when only looking at equity approaches for distributive climate justice globally, the Danish target appears drastically insufficient. Denmark is, in this sense, not a green frontrunner but rather an indebted culprit, challenging the dominant narrative in Danish climate policy. Our results thus call into question the premise of the claim of Danish climate leadership, which works to legitimize existing policy and obscure the many dimensions of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research and development (R&D) investments foster green innovation, which is key to decarbonize the energy system and attain long-term climate goals. In this paper, we link three integrated assessment models that possess a macroeconomic framework—WITCH, MERGE-ETL, and GEM-E3—with the bottom-up technology-rich energy system model TIAM-ECN, in order to quantitatively explore how investments in R&D can support deep decarbonization pathways. We take advantage of the endogenous technological learning feature of the first three models to derive R&D-induced capital cost reductions for strategic clusters of low-carbon technologies: solar energy, on- and offshore wind energy, carbon capture and storage, advanced fuels, and batteries for electric vehicles. We examine scenarios with different assumptions on CO2 mitigation and R&D policy. These assumptions are harmonized among our four models, and capital cost reductions driven by R&D are exogenously incorporated in TIAM-ECN, which enables a detailed assessment of the required energy transition. Our results show that the stringency of climate change mitigation policy remains the key factor influencing the diffusion of low-carbon technologies, while R&D can support mitigation goals and influence the contribution of different types of technologies. If implemented effectively and without worldwide barriers to knowledge spill-overs, R&D facilitates the deployment of mature technologies such as solar, wind, and electric vehicles, and enables lower overall energy system costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how international organizations (IOs), national governments, and regional actors interact in the field of nature conservation in the European Arctic, focusing on Russia. I also reveal the unequal role of Indigenous communities, which are stakeholders in protected nature territories in the Arctic but receive limited attention in research. I present the case of the Pasvik-Inari Trilateral Park, which in 2008 received Europarc Certification as a result of long-term international cooperation dating back to the 1990s. The park consists of five protected natural areas: three in Norway, one in Russia and one in Finland. The areas have different organizational forms and restrictions on human activities, and the efforts of IOs such as the Europarc Federation to increase cooperation and coordination among them in conservation projects, research initiatives, and international travel for tourists, have had only partial success. I apply insights from regional analysis to discuss how governance at international, national, and local levels shape the practices and ideas of nature conservation in the different parts of Pasvik-Inari. The article also addresses the role of Indigenous environmental knowledge and nature use in protected natural territories in the Arctic. The paper contributes to the special issue on regional environmental governance by expanding the regional focus toward Russia and by stressing the significant relations between Indigenous communities and nature that should be taken into consideration in Arctic environmental governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Central American Dry Corridor (CADC) is among the most climate-vulnerable regions worldwide. Climate change, commonly referred to as a “threat multiplier” of pre-existing socioeconomic issues, already undermines rural livelihoods by reducing agricultural yields and income opportunities. This paper provides a review of climate-related migration in the CADC region while identifying the specific pathways by which climate change manifests itself as a threat multiplier to migration. Different forms of human mobility (seasonal/temporal/permanent and internal/international migration) are increasingly attempted as adaptation strategies by affected households to diversify incomes and offset climate impacts. Preferred intra-regional migrant destinations tend to be less climate-vulnerable and also less violent. Notably, climate change is not isolated from socioeconomic and political migration drivers. Erosion of rural livelihoods reduces the costs of engaging in illicit coping strategies (e.g., illegal crop production) and simultaneously favours rapid urbanisation, which is linked to (forced) gang recruitment, primarily affecting the youth. These processes contribute to extraordinarily high violence levels, which are a major push factor for migration on their own, ultimately challenging state authority. Moreover, as outmigration from the region is projected to increase, the observed securitisation of borders, particularly along the USA-Mexico border and the Mexico-Guatemala border, while unfit to limit migration attempts, make migration more desperate and dangerous, allowing organised crime to step in and exploit migration as an economic undertaking. Thus, for the CADC, the depoliticised and simplistic narrative of migration serving as adaptation must be questioned. Policy coherence and state capacity for addressing climate-security-migration nexus challenges are critical needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study centennial trends of climate and snow cover within the Ossola valley, in the Western Italian Alps. We pursue different tests (Mann Kendall MK, bulk, and sequential/progressive MKprog, Linear Regression, also with change point detection, and moving window average MW) on two datasets, namely (i) dataset1, daily temperature, precipitation, snow depth for 9 stations in the area, during 1930–2018, and (ii) dataset2, snow depth and density, measured twice a month (from February 1st to June 1st) for 47 stations during 2007–2023. We also verify correlation with glacier retreat nearby. In dataset1, we highlight a positive trend for minimum temperature with MK, and Linear Regression. Using MKprog/MW, a negative change of snow cover depth, and duration starting from the late 1980s is found. In dataset2, despite the annual variability in snow cover and 2022–2023 winter drought, we assess the maximum snow water equivalent (SWE) to be delayed with respect to maximum snow depth at high altitude (over a month above 2.700 m a.s.l.), highlighting the effect of settling in decreasing snow depth during spring. We also present a formula linking through Linear Regression the Day of the Year of SWE peak to altitude, relevant to assess the onset of thaw season. Due to the high altitude of the stations, and the paradigmatic nature of the Ossola Valley, hosting Toce River, a main contributor to the Lake Maggiore of Italy, our results are of interest, and can be used as a benchmark for the Italian Alps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study uses historical sources to extend the period of meteorological data in northeastern Nunavik (Quebec, Canada). Atmospheric temperature, wind strength and direction, and perception of temperature are extracted from instrumental, documentary, and narrative sources. Perceptions of temperature during the summer and winter months are sorted using a 5-point index based on climate and environmental observations. A confidence scale is elaborated based on the quality, density, and temporality of the sources. From 1880 to 1950, the climate normals of temperature remained similar; however, annual and decadal climatic variability is evident based on the mean monthly and seasonal temperature records and the temperature index. Compared to recent data (twenty-first century), the temperature was 1.5 °C colder. This paper also identifies a correlation between the historical data and the winter North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). Extremely positive phases of the NAO are associated with colder-than-normal periods along the Hudson Strait. Harsh winters are documented in 1883–1885, 1906–1907, and 1913–1914, with predominant west and north-west winds. From 1920 to 1925, the cold winters induced the persistence of sea ice during the summers. Winters appeared to be snowier (1916–1918) during the extremely negative phases of the NAO, while the last decade of the record showed mild and rainy summers. The correlation between temperature and NAO anomalies suggests that northeastern Nunavik is regionally influenced by the North Atlantic atmospheric circulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Achieving climate targets requires more stringent mitigation policies, including the participation of all economic sectors. However, in a fragmented global climate regime, unilateral mitigation policies affecting sectors’ production costs increase carbon leakage risk. Carbon leakage implies reducing the competitiveness of domestic sectors without achieving the full mitigation objectives. Under such circumstances, generating information about sectors’ vulnerability is essential to increase their acceptance of more stringent climate policies and design anti-leakage mechanisms. Our paper calculates and compares potential carbon leakage risk across sectors and OECD countries under varying climate policy scenarios covering GHG emissions along global supply chains. To measure this risk, we use the emission-intensity and trade-exposure metric and emission data including CO2 and non-CO2 gasses. Our results show that agri-food and transport sectors, usually lagging behind in countries’ national climate mitigation policies, could have an even higher carbon leakage risk than energy-intensive industries. Furthermore, we find that this risk can be higher in many downstream sectors compared to directly regulated sectors and is highly heterogenous across OECD countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing a better scientific understanding of anthropogenic climate change and climate variability, especially the prediction/projection of climate futures with useful temporal and geographical resolution and quantified uncertainties, and using that knowledge to inform adaptation planning and action will become crucially important in the coming years. Generating such policy-relevant knowledge may be particularly important for developing countries such as India. It is with this backdrop that, in this paper, we analyze future heat waves in India by using observations and a large number of model simulations of historical, + 1.5 °C, and + 2.0 °C warmer worlds. In both the future scenarios, there is an increased probability of heat waves during June and July when the Indian monsoon is in full swing and humidity is high, which makes the heat events even more of a health risk. While the highest temperatures in heat waves may not increase much in future climates, the duration and areal extent of the heat waves will most likely increase, leading to the emergence of new heat wave-prone zones in India. The results indicate that the joint frequencies of the longest duration and large area events could be nearly threefold greater in the + 1.5 °C and fivefold greater in the + 2.0 °C future scenarios compared to historical simulations. Thus, overall, the study indicates a substantial increase in the risk of heat events that typically elicit warnings from forecasters. The likely widespread and persistent nature of heat wave events in the future, as revealed by this study, will require planning and adaptation measures beyond the short-term disaster planning frameworks currently in place. Exploring what these measures might look like is beyond the scope of this study, but it underlines the importance of developing climate knowledge with high temporal and geographical resolution capable of informing adaptation policy and planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the dynamics of the underlying ethane (C2H6) trends has great significance in the context of climate change. The paper focuses on the time series of Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) solar spectra ethane column measurements conducted from the ground and recorded at 15 stations in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. In particular, it deals with assessing time trends in the presence of a strong and persistent annual seasonal component and a very large proportion of missing observations. Our approach proposes a structural model such that seasonality and trend evolve stochastically according to possibly nonstationary long memory models and can be estimated by linear state space methods. The results suggest the existence of a common pattern in the dynamics of ethane trends in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. In particular, we found that atmospheric ethane at the Northern Hempisphere stations increased on average by 2.7%yr - 1 in the period 2009-2015. On the other hand, we estimated an average increase of 1.4%yr - 1 at the Southern Hempisphere stations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the influence of democratic institutions on environmental policy stringency and the degree to which it is affected by membership in the Arctic Council. We hypothesize that, relative to countries with no Arctic presence, countries present in the Arctic given their territorial, trade, and touristic interests are more pro-environmentally inclined as they experience the effects of global warming first-hand, and the quality of democratic institutions may reinforce this effect. Our empirical analysis based on global macroeconomic data suggests that countries with democratic institutional environments are associated with more response to Arctic status and more stringent environmental policies. Moreover, the presence of democratic governments in the Arctic increases the stringency of both market- and non-market-based environmental regulations. The suggestive estimated monetary value associated with the impact of democratic institutions in the Arctic is about 101,000 international dollars per capita. These findings underscore that the development of democratic institutions may lead to strong welfare improvements and can be used in the design of international environmental agreements for Arctic area protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regional environmental governance has emerged as a viable alternative to supranational environmental solutions, using regional and local knowledge and actors to tailor more effective policies. This does not deny a role for supranational institutions, however, which can enable their members to effectively shift towards such a decentralized and polycentric approach. In specific regions such as the Arctic, with many national and local actors interested in environmental improvement, such impetus from meta-organizations (i.e., organizations comprised of organizations) could result in beneficial environmental outcomes. This paper examines an underutilized institution, the Eurasian Union (EaEU), and the role it currently plays in facilitating regional environmental governance. Focusing on its largest member, Russia—and the only member with an Arctic linkage—I explore the tension between supranational facilitation and interference in an area not directly affecting all members. Despite explicit Russian interest in this realm, the EaEU may be able to influence Russian environmental policy for the better via multilateral means and internal mechanisms. By challenging the Russian monopoly on Arctic policy in the EaEU, these additional voices may create space for environmental innovation in areas not central to Russia’s interests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Arctic region is one of the most exposed to the global climate change. Russia accounts for more than a half of the whole Arctic territory and population and allocates most of the economic activity of the region. From the Soviet time till now, the Arctic region also accounts for a substantial share of Russia’s wealth. The article analyzes often ambiguous knowledge on climate change implications for the long-term economic development of the Russian Arctic. Based on the review of the key policy documents issued in Russia and ongoing and planned development programs, the study aspires to contribute more clarity on Russia’s standing in the Arctic region. We aim to analyze the convergence of Russian climate and Arctic policies boosting the synergies between each other. The paper discovers, among other issues, the climate change adaptation priorities in policy areas aimed at minimizing net costs of climate change. While policies rhetorically aim at contributing to resilient and sustainable growth in the Russian North, they remain under-developed in accounting for multiple climate-related risks. Our analysis suggests that a comprehensive framework of Arctic policy measures should be centered around climate change as a core factor underlying the future of the region and should encompass two main policy dimensions: (a) strengthening the knowledge base on climate change, the adjunct risks, and emerging opportunities in the region and (b) developing the system for climate change risk management and resilience building ensuring that regional diversity and climatic and socioeconomic features of various locations are taken into serious account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid adaptation is necessary to maintain, let alone expand, access to reliable, safe drinking water in the face of climate change. Existing research focuses largely on the role, priorities, and incentives of local managers to pursue adaptation strategies while mostly neglecting the role of the broader public, despite the strong public support required to fund and implement many climate adaptation plans. In this paper, we interrogate the relationship between personal experiences of household water supply impacts from extreme weather events and hazard exposure with individual concern about future supply reliability among a statewide representative sample of California households. We find that more than one-third of Californians report experiencing impacts of climate change on their household water supplies and show that these reported impacts differently influence residents’ concern about future water supply reliability, depending on the type of event experienced. In contrast, residents’ concern about future water supplies is not significantly associated with hazard exposure. These findings emphasize the importance of local managers’ attending to not only how climate change is projected to affect their water resources, but how, and whether, residents perceive these risks. The critical role of personal experience in increasing concern highlights that post-extreme events with water supply impacts may offer a critical window to advance solutions. Managers should not assume, however, that all extreme events will promote concern in the same way or to the same degree. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tropical cyclones (TCs) are amongst the costliest natural hazards for southwest Pacific (SWP) Island nations. Extreme winds coupled with heavy rainfall and related coastal hazards, such as large waves and high seas, can have devastating consequences for life and property. Effects of anthropogenic climate change are likely to make TCs even more destructive in the SWP (as that observed particularly over Fiji) and elsewhere around the globe, yet TCs may occur less often. However, the underpinning science of quantifying future TC projections amid multiple uncertainties can be complex. The challenge for scientists is how to turn such technical knowledge framed around uncertainties into tangible products to inform decision-making in the disaster risk management (DRM) and disaster risk reduction (DRR) sector. Drawing on experiences from past TC events as analogies to what may happen in a warming climate can be useful. The role of science-based climate services tailored to the needs of the DRM and DRR sector is critical in this context. In the first part of this paper, we examine cases of historically severe TCs in the SWP and quantify their socio-economic impacts. The second part of this paper discusses a decision-support framework developed in collaboration with a number of agencies in the SWP, featuring science-based climate services that inform different stages of planning in national-level risk management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change adaptation inherently entails investment decision-making under the high levels of uncertainty. To address this issue, a single fixed large investment can be divided into two or more sequential investments. This reduces the initial investment cost and adds flexibility about the size and timing of subsequent investment decisions. This flexibility enables future investment decisions to be made when further information about the magnitude of climate change becomes available. This paper presents a real option analysis framework to evaluate adaptations including flexibility to reduce both the risk and uncertainty of climate change, against increasing coastal flooding due to sea-level rise as an example. The paper considers (i) how to design the sequence of adaptation options under growing risk of sea-level rise, and (ii) how to make the efficient use of flexibility included in adaptations for addressing uncertainty. A set of flexibilities (i.e. wait or future growth) are incorporated into single-stage investments (i.e. raising coastal defence from 2.5 mAOD to 3.5mAOD or 4.0 mAOD) in stages so that multiple-stage adaptations with different heights are created. The proposed method compares these sequentially growing adaptations in economic terms, including optimisation, providing additional information on the efficiency of flexible adaptation strategies given the uncertainty of climate change. The results from the evaluation enable decision-makers to identify long-lasting robust adaptation against the uncertainty of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Island communities are the targets for a wide range of interventions designed to help them adapt to climate change. A growing body of research explores the equity and justice implications of adaptation policies and programmes, revealing they often exacerbate, rather than alleviate, inequality within at-risk communities. This paper pushes beyond existing understandings of climate justice, which prioritise its distributive and procedural aspects. Through household surveys, interviews and participant observation, the paper presents a case study of a major adaptation project in a small island community in the Philippines, paying particular attention to its equity implications at the local level. It describes how local politics and power relations distorted the well-intentioned aims of the project and resulted in the project exacerbating, rather than alleviating, pre-existing inequality. Climate change adaptation is a deeply political process that is easily subverted by the interests of the powerful. To mitigate the influence of power and politics in future climate adaptation projects, we present an expanded multidimensional framework for assessing adaptative justice that incorporates the neglected aspects of recognition and structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change loss and damage (L&D) presents an existential threat to the Fiji Islands. This case study examines how rural Indo-Fijian sugarcane farming communities face challenges in minimising, averting, and addressing L&D from cyclones. In-depth semi-structured interviews (n = 68) were conducted with 40 sugarcane farmers in two Indo-Fijian sugarcane communities, Barotu and Toko settlements in Western Viti Levu, Fiji, and with 28 key stakeholders from government ministries, academia, and climate change response services. Despite implementing climate change adaptation measures, Fiji’s sugar industry has faced devastating L&D from frequent and severe cyclones. Much of the climate change L&D to crops, property, and income was irreversible and unavoidable. Non-economic loss and damage (NELD) was found insurmountable in both field sites, including the loss of homes and places of worship, cascading and flow-on effects as well as the heightening of uncertainty, fear, and trauma. Evidence suggests that L&D, including NELD, is highly context specific, and UNFCCC’s broad NELD categories do not fully capture L&D at the local level. The systematic documentation of L&D within vulnerable communities would improve understanding of L&D, including NELD, and assist to facilitate the mobilisation of immediate support and action to address L&D in countries that lack the capacities to respond independently. This paper recommends crucial policy interventions such as livelihood diversification, integration of disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation, land tenure policy reforms, and the operationalisation of the Santiago Network for Loss and Damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Negative emission technologies (NETs) for the removal and long-term storage of atmospheric carbon are increasingly essential to meeting climate targets. In order to meet the need for large-scale and durable removals with low land and water footprints, scientists and engineers are exploring systems that directly capture CO2 from the air and store it underground or under the seabed. Often, the social acceptability of these systems is presumed unlikely given the sheer complexity of their components, governance arrangements, perceived advantages and disadvantages, and the different moral and value positions at play. This paper explores public perceptions of a proposed direct air carbon capture with storage (DACCS) system that includes renewable-powered direct air capture of CO2 paired with sub-seafloor injection and CO2 storage as rock via mineralization). Using a representative survey of n=2120 US and Canadian residents located near to a proposed system pilot, analysis reveals two very different profiles of perceivers, pro and con. Rejection of the system as a whole is driven by concern regarding storage or below-sea components, physical risks (e.g., leakage), and belief that such a system constitutes a moral hazard, enabling continued fossil fuel dependence. Conversely, those who support such a system perceive it as economically, climatically, and ethically beneficial now and for future generations, express a strong sense of climate severity and urgency, and see themselves as responsible for natural systems. We close with cautions as to the social licence for negative emission technologies, the implications of these findings, and the fragility of hope as these possibilities unfold. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pacific Island countries are vulnerable to climate variability and change. Developing strategies for adaptation and planning processes in the Pacific requires new knowledge and updated information on climate science. In this paper, we review key climatic processes and drivers that operate in the Pacific, how they may change in the future and what the impact of these changes might be. In particular, our emphasis is on the two major atmospheric circulation patterns, namely the Hadley and Walker circulations. We also examine climatic features such as the South Pacific Convergence Zone and Intertropical Convergence Zone, as well as factors that modulate natural climate variability on different timescales. It is anticipated that our review of the main climate processes and drivers that operate in the Pacific, as well as how these processes and drivers are likely to change in the future under anthropogenic global warming, can help relevant national agencies (such as Meteorological Services and National Disaster Management Offices) clearly communicate new information to sector-specific stakeholders and the wider community through awareness raising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change is likely to have significant impacts on the forestry sector in New Zealand. However, an understanding of how forest growers are reducing their risks from climate change impacts is still in its infancy. This paper applies the protection motivation theory to identify socio-psychological factors influencing forest growers' adaptation to climate change. This study presents the survey results from 60 forest growers who have the combined responsibility for managing more than 70% of New Zealand's plantation forests. We investigated whether their perceived response efficacy, self-efficacy and their understanding of response costs are predictors of their protective or adaptive measures. Based on our survey, risk reduction and risk spreading are the two types of protective measure frequently reported by the respondents to deal with climate risks. Consistent with the protection motivation theory, our findings show that respondents who are more likely to implement protective or adaptive measures if they perceive the threat severity to be high have high self-efficacy and resource efficacy, and exhibit low maladaptive responses such as evading and postponing behaviours. Furthermore, our findings also suggest that there is a low self-efficacy belief with strong maladaptive behaviour among the respondents that negatively influence their motivation to implement adaptation measures. This result provides guidance to policy makers, researchers and forest companies on how to make climate change adaptation efforts effective by considering the forest growers motivation to adapt to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]