Climate change

The Programme of Research on Climate Change Vulnerability, Impacts and Adaptation (PROVIA) is a global initiative by UNEP, UNESCO and WMO which aims to provide direction and coherence at the international level for research on vulnerability, impacts and adaptation (VIA). Launched with the support of leading scientists and decision-makers, PROVIA responds to the urgent call by the scientific community for a more cohesive and coordinated approach, and the critical need to harmonize, mobilize, and communicate the growing knowledge-base on VIA. To this end, PROVIA will act as a new and growing network of scientists, practitioners and decision-makers working towards identifying research gaps and meeting policy needs in climate change vulnerability, impact and adaptation research. Acknowledging emerging policy strategies, new scientific developments and lessons learnt from past programmes, PROVIA promises to deliver, in collaboration with its implementing partners, improved coordination of international research on the impacts of and responses to climate change, and provide the credible scientific information that is being increasingly requested by the world’s decision makers. 11/07/2012
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The International Energy Agency (IEA) Renewable Energy Technology Deployment (IEA-RETD) has published a study on renewable energies for remote areas and islands (REMOTE). Its objective is to provide policy perspectives for making remote areas and islands largely independent from fossil fuel imports and costly energy transmission infrastructures. It provides decision-makers with a better grasp of the technical, economic and energy issues facing remote areas, as well as to present a menu of policy options available to accelerate renewable energy development in these regions. The report aims to equip national, regional and local policymakers with perspective, context, and inspiration on how to develop sustainable energy strategies.(IICD SIDS, 27/04/2012) 31/05/2012
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There is now enough convincing scientific evidence from direct surface air and ocean temperatures, increases in average global sea levels and retreating glaciers that the global climate is warming, and that most of this warming can be attributed to human activities. Though greenhouse gases (GHGs) are crucial to maintain life in the atmosphere, the concentration of GHGs, especially carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide is rising well above pre-industrial levels. It has been reliably predicted that by 2010, if current trends continue, the average global surface temperature will increase between 1.4 and 5.8 °C above 1990 levels causing major economic and ecological disruptions. ACP countries, like other developing countries, with very low fossil fuel consumption contribute very little to these emissions but will bear the brunt of the consequences of climate change due to their inability to respond adequately to projected changes. Most ACP countries are lagging behind other developing regions and are expected to suffer the most adverse effects. Improving the situation in ACP countries and managing GHG emissions can be achieved by using more environmentally sound options which, however, might prove to be expensive. 01/01/2007
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The initiative, led by the Global Crop Diversity Trust, working in partnership with national agricultural research institutes, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), is the largest one ever undertaken with the tough wild relatives of today's main food crops. These wild plants contain essential traits that could be bred into crops to make them more hardy and versatile in the face of dramatically different climates expected in the coming years. The Global Crop Diversity Trust will draw in climate change experts, biodiversity conservationists and agricultural scientists. Scientists will work with national governments and local partners on the ground, and the species to be collected all fall under the auspices of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. All materials will be collected and be publicly available under the terms of that Treaty.(Source: ScienceDaily, 9 December 2010.) 14/02/2011
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An effective response to the challenges posed by climate change requires an evaluation of current and anticipated impacts. It is possible to simulate broad continental, regional and national impacts with different levels of probability. Several simulation models exist; however, the estimation of local impacts is much more problematic. At the global level, two different tools can be combined to evaluate climate change impacts on agriculture. A first step is to determine what the characteristics of regional climate patterns might be in the future, using the following three main parameters: changes in temperature; changes in precipitation patterns; and frequency and intensity of extreme events. A second step is to use these results and apply them to an agricultural production model, using the mechanisms through which climate shapes agricultural production patterns. For instance, water stress (drought or water excess) and thermal stress (heat or cold) might have large impacts on plant production by disrupting the phenology (foliation, flowering, life cycle, etc.), growth and yield (size, number and quality of fruits/grains) of plants and their spatial distribution. Animal production would also be disrupted through the disruption to feedstock production; the distribution and spread/propagation of emerging diseases could also impact both plant and animal production (Arzt et al., 2010). Recently, by coupling these two approaches, the International Food Policy Research Institute estimated the impact of climate change on sub-Saharan African agriculture and stated the following: “Crop yields will decline, production will be affected, crop and meat prices will increase, and consumption of cereals will fall, leading to reduced calorie intake and increased child malnutrition.” (Nelson et al., 2009). This dismal future calls for immediate and co-ordinated actions that combine mitigation and adaptation. 08/12/2010
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