Indigenous communities in the Arctic have become increasingly characterized as "vulnerable" in the context of climate change research. We question the use and application of this term in light of the potential consequences it may bring for indigenous peoples.
Aim Widespread reports of disappearing tree species and senescing savanna parklands in the Sahel have generated a vigorous debate over whether climate change or severe human and livestock pressure is principally responsible.
The relationship between climate and society has been dynamic throughout human history and pre history, a relationship that has been variously elemental, creative and fearful. The relationship has now taken a more intimate turn. Human actions, globally aggregated, are changing the composition of the atmosphere, which alters the functioning of the climate system.
The relationship between climate and society has been dynamic throughout human history and pre history, a relationship that has been variously elemental, creative and fearful. The relationship has now taken a more intimate turn. Human actions, globally aggregated, are changing the composition of the atmosphere, which alters the functioning of the climate system.
Climate variability acutely affects rural livelihoods and agricultural productivity, yet it is just one of many stresses that vulnerable rural households have to cope with. A livelihood approach is used to assess the potential role that seasonal climate forecasts might play in increasing adaptive capacity in response to climate variability, using Lesotho as a case study.
Many commentators attest to a paradigm shift in biodiversity conservation, away from exclusive protected areas towards more people-centred or community-based conservation. This has been referred to as ‘new conservation’. However, new conservation could be thought of as an attempt to re-label and re-package conservation and to ‘get people on board’ existing strategies.
Climate change is widely acknowledged as foremost among the formidable challenges facing the international community in the 21st century. It poses challenges to fundamental elements of our understanding of appropriate goals for social and economic policy, such as the connection of prosperity, growth, equity, and sustainable development.
We address the issue of how to develop credible indicators of vulnerability to climate change that can be used to guide the development of adaptation policies. We compare the indicators and measures that five past national-level studies have used and examine how and why their approaches have differed.
We describe the nature of recent (50 year) rainfall variability in the summer rainfall zone, South Africa, and how variability is recognised and responded to on the ground by farmers. Using daily rainfall data and self-organising mapping (SOM) we identify 12 internally homogeneous rainfall regions displaying differing parameters of precipitation change.
This paper develops a conceptual model to examine the vulnerability of Inuit food systems to food insecurity as a consequence of climate change. The model illustrates that food system vulnerability is determined by the exposure and sensitivity of the food system to climaterelated risks and its adaptive capacity to deal with those risks.