Climate Risk and Resilience in China


Book Description

China has been subject to floods, droughts and heat waves for millennia; these hazards are not new. What is new is how rapidly climate risks are changing for different groups of people and sectors. This is due to the unprecedented rates of socio-economic development, migration, land-use change, pollution and urbanisation, all occurring alongside increasingly more intense and frequent weather hazards and shifting seasons. China’s leadership is facing a significant challenge – from conducting and integrating biophysical and social vulnerability and risk assessments and connecting the information from these to policy priorities and time frames, to developing and implementing policies and actions at a variety of scales. It is within this challenging context that China’s policy makers, businesses and citizens must manage climate risk and build resilience. This book provides a detailed study of how China has been working to understand and respond to climatic risk, such as droughts and desertification in the grasslands of Inner Mongolia to deadly typhoons in the mega-cities of the Pearl River Delta. Using research and data from a wide range of Chinese sources and the Adapting to Climate Change in China (ACCC) project, a research-to-policy project, this book provides a fascinating glimpse into how China is developing policies and approaches to manage the risks and opportunities presented by climate change. This book will be of interest to those studying global and Chinese climate change policy, regional food, water and climate risk, and to policy advisors.




Climate Risk and Resilience in China


Book Description

China has been subject to floods, droughts and heat waves for millennia; these hazards are not new. What is new is how rapidly climate risks are changing for different groups of people and sectors. This is due to the unprecedented rates of socio-economic development, migration, land-use change, pollution and urbanisation, all occurring alongside increasingly more intense and frequent weather hazards and shifting seasons. China’s leadership is facing a significant challenge – from conducting and integrating biophysical and social vulnerability and risk assessments and connecting the information from these to policy priorities and time frames, to developing and implementing policies and actions at a variety of scales. It is within this challenging context that China’s policy makers, businesses and citizens must manage climate risk and build resilience. This book provides a detailed study of how China has been working to understand and respond to climatic risk, such as droughts and desertification in the grasslands of Inner Mongolia to deadly typhoons in the mega-cities of the Pearl River Delta. Using research and data from a wide range of Chinese sources and the Adapting to Climate Change in China (ACCC) project, a research-to-policy project, this book provides a fascinating glimpse into how China is developing policies and approaches to manage the risks and opportunities presented by climate change. This book will be of interest to those studying global and Chinese climate change policy, regional food, water and climate risk, and to policy advisors.




Risk, Resilience, Inequality and Environmental Law


Book Description

This insightful book considers how the law has adapted to the environmental challenges of the 21st Century and the ways in which it might be used to cope with environmental risks and uncertainties whilst promoting resilience and greater equality. These issues are considered in social context by contributors from different disciplines who examine some of the experiments tried in different parts of the world to govern the environment, improve the available legal tools and give voice to more diverse groups.




Annual Report on China’s Response to Climate Change (2017)


Book Description

This book is written by experts from Institute of Urban and Environmental Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and National Climate Center, this book provides an overview of China’s effort to implement the Paris Agreement. In addition to measures put in place to reduce runoff in cities, improve flood risk management, promote decarbonization, and combat desertification, the book also addresses issues such as scientific assessment in relation to climate change, the implications of US domestic climate politics for China-US relations, and China’s emerging leadership role in the post-Paris age. The volume is a must-read for anybody who wants to understand how China’s aggressive climate adaptation policies help shape the country’s growing weight in global climate governance.




Climate Risk and Sustainable Water Management


Book Description

A comprehensive interdisciplinary exploration of climate risks to water security for students, researchers, civil and environmental engineers, and management professionals.




Climate Resilient Cities


Book Description

'Climate Resilient Cities: A Primer on Reducing Vulnerabilities to Disasters' provides city administrators with exactly what they need to know about the complex and compelling challenges of climate change. The book helps local governments create training, capacity building, and capital investment programs for building sustainable, resilient communities. A step-by-step self-assessment challenges policymakers to think about the resources needed to combat natural disasters through an innovative hot spot risk and vulnerability identifi cation tool. This primer is unique from other resources in its treatment of climate change using a dual-track approach that integrates both mitigation (lowering contributions to greenhouse gases) and adaptation (preparing for impacts of climate change) with disaster risk management. The book is relevant both to cities that are just beginning to think about climate change as well as those that already have well established policies, institutions, and strategies in place. By providing a range of city-level examples of sound practices around the world, the book demonstrates that there are many practical actions that cities can take to build resilience to climate change and natural disasters.




Increasing Resilience to Climate Variability and Change


Book Description

This book highlights the role that both infrastructure and governance play in the context of resilience and adaptation to climate variability and change. Eleven case studies analyze in-depth impacts of extreme events in projects, basins and regions in the Arid Americas (Unites States and Mexico), Australia, Brazil, China, Egypt, France, Nepal, Mexico, Pakistan, Turkey and South Africa. They discuss the importance of infrastructure (mainly reservoirs) in adaptation strategies, how planning and management aspects should improve in response to changing climatic, economic, social and environmental situations and what the management, institutional and financial challenges would be for their implementation. Governance aspects (policies, institutions and decision making) and technical and knowledge limitations are a substantial part of the analyses. The case studies argue that reservoirs are essential to build resilience contributing to adaptation to climate variability and change. However, that for them to be effective, they need to be planned and managed within a governance framework that considers long-term perspectives and multi-sector and multi-level actor needs and perspectives.




Nature-Based Solutions to Climate Change Adaptation in Urban Areas


Book Description

This open access book brings together research findings and experiences from science, policy and practice to highlight and debate the importance of nature-based solutions to climate change adaptation in urban areas. Emphasis is given to the potential of nature-based approaches to create multiple-benefits for society. The expert contributions present recommendations for creating synergies between ongoing policy processes, scientific programmes and practical implementation of climate change and nature conservation measures in global urban areas. Except where otherwise noted, this book is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/




Climate Change and Cities


Book Description

Climate Change and Cities bridges science-to-action for climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts in cities around the world.