streams of water from the glaciers and rainfall patterns become more erratic.
Terrestrial, marine and freshwater species have started to alter their geographical
range and migration patterns, and their abundance has started to be affected. IPCC
projections indicate that climate change will in the future undermine food production through changed weather patterns and ecosystem impacts. Notably, production
of three main crops that sustain humanity – wheat, rice and maize – is projected to
be negatively affected. Similarly, fisheries productivity will likely be challenged,
adding to the problems caused by overfishing. A large proportion of both animal
and plant species will face extinction thus exacerbating the loss of biological
diversity. Human health may also be affected negatively, as a warmer climate
will facilitate the spread of vector borne and tropical diseases to higher latitudes.
Extreme weather and climate events are on the rise. These include increased
frequency and intensity of storms, as well as climatic variability. While rainfall
will increase in some areas, others will face more frequent and prolonged droughts.
Climate risk and vulnerability vary considerably between different regions and
groups. Coastal areas are generally the most vulnerable due to storms and sea level rise
and associated saline intrusions to coastal ecosystems and aquifers. More and more
people are concentrated in coastal areas: it is estimated that more than 40 % of the
world’s people live within 100 km from the coast and over the past decade more than
60 % of disaster losses have occurred in coastal areas (DasGupta and Shaw 2016).
Despite these losses, concentration of the world population on coasts continues. The
worst affected are low-lying coastal countries, which are exposed to rising seas and
increasing storms. Small island developing states and poor countries, such as
Bangladesh, face challenges of survival, but also rich countries like the Netherlands
must invest increasing resources to deal with coastal hazards. A large proportion of
major cities are located in the coastal areas and, thus, exposed to climate related
hazards. Cities, such as London, New York and Tokyo are all coastal, but so are
megacities in the poorer regions of the world: Lagos, Kolkata, Dhaka, Jakarta and
others. Their ability to cope with and adapt to climate related disasters and rising sea
levels is much lower. Similarly, mountain and highland areas experience the risk of
climate change acutely. They are the water towers of the world and home to some of
the poorest people in the world (FAO 2015). They are doubly vulnerable in terms of
global freshwater availability and local food security. Adaptive capacity and vulnerability have deep social, economic and political determinants (Pelling 2011). Risk is
defined as a function of hazard exposure and vulnerability to it (Wisner et al. 2004).
Apart from direct physical factors, vulnerability has a strong social dimension: people
with fewer economic means and political power have less ability to cope with and
recover from disasters. In addition, they are often confined to living in the most
hazardous places, such as informal settlements on denuded slopes (Surjan et al. 2016).
It is incumbent upon us to deal with climate change in a comprehensive manner.
There is a need to address the root causes of climate change to mitigate it. IPCC
links anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions to key drivers that include: population size, economic activity, lifestyle, energy use, land use patterns, technology and
climate policy. All are directly related to virtually all aspects of human activity and
aspirations. As societies get richer, their energy use and emissions tend to increase.
There is therefore a compelling need for decoupling economic growth from
1 Evaluating Climate Change Action for Sustainable Development: Introduction
3
Terrestrial, marine and freshwater species have started to alter their geographical
range and migration patterns, and their abundance has started to be affected. IPCC
projections indicate that climate change will in the future undermine food production through changed weather patterns and ecosystem impacts. Notably, production
of three main crops that sustain humanity – wheat, rice and maize – is projected to
be negatively affected. Similarly, fisheries productivity will likely be challenged,
adding to the problems caused by overfishing. A large proportion of both animal
and plant species will face extinction thus exacerbating the loss of biological
diversity. Human health may also be affected negatively, as a warmer climate
will facilitate the spread of vector borne and tropical diseases to higher latitudes.
Extreme weather and climate events are on the rise. These include increased
frequency and intensity of storms, as well as climatic variability. While rainfall
will increase in some areas, others will face more frequent and prolonged droughts.
Climate risk and vulnerability vary considerably between different regions and
groups. Coastal areas are generally the most vulnerable due to storms and sea level rise
and associated saline intrusions to coastal ecosystems and aquifers. More and more
people are concentrated in coastal areas: it is estimated that more than 40 % of the
world’s people live within 100 km from the coast and over the past decade more than
60 % of disaster losses have occurred in coastal areas (DasGupta and Shaw 2016).
Despite these losses, concentration of the world population on coasts continues. The
worst affected are low-lying coastal countries, which are exposed to rising seas and
increasing storms. Small island developing states and poor countries, such as
Bangladesh, face challenges of survival, but also rich countries like the Netherlands
must invest increasing resources to deal with coastal hazards. A large proportion of
major cities are located in the coastal areas and, thus, exposed to climate related
hazards. Cities, such as London, New York and Tokyo are all coastal, but so are
megacities in the poorer regions of the world: Lagos, Kolkata, Dhaka, Jakarta and
others. Their ability to cope with and adapt to climate related disasters and rising sea
levels is much lower. Similarly, mountain and highland areas experience the risk of
climate change acutely. They are the water towers of the world and home to some of
the poorest people in the world (FAO 2015). They are doubly vulnerable in terms of
global freshwater availability and local food security. Adaptive capacity and vulnerability have deep social, economic and political determinants (Pelling 2011). Risk is
defined as a function of hazard exposure and vulnerability to it (Wisner et al. 2004).
Apart from direct physical factors, vulnerability has a strong social dimension: people
with fewer economic means and political power have less ability to cope with and
recover from disasters. In addition, they are often confined to living in the most
hazardous places, such as informal settlements on denuded slopes (Surjan et al. 2016).
It is incumbent upon us to deal with climate change in a comprehensive manner.
There is a need to address the root causes of climate change to mitigate it. IPCC
links anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions to key drivers that include: population size, economic activity, lifestyle, energy use, land use patterns, technology and
climate policy. All are directly related to virtually all aspects of human activity and
aspirations. As societies get richer, their energy use and emissions tend to increase.
There is therefore a compelling need for decoupling economic growth from
1 Evaluating Climate Change Action for Sustainable Development: Introduction
3