Climate Adaptation Futures (ePub)

Adaptation is the poor cousin of the climate change challenge -
the glamour of international debate is around global mitigation
agreements, while the bottom-up activities of adaptation, carried
out in community halls and local government offices, are often
overlooked. Yet, as international forums fail to deliver reductions
in greenhouse gas emissions, the world is realising that effective
adaptation will be essential across all sectors to deal with the
unavoidable impacts of climate change. The need to understand how
to adapt effectively, and to develop appropriate adaptation options
and actions, is becoming increasingly urgent.

This book reports the current state of knowledge on climate
change adaptation, and seeks to expose and debate key issues in
adaptation research and practice. It is framed around a number of
critical areas of adaptation theory and practice, including:

* Advances in adaptation thinking,

* Enabling frameworks and policy for adaptation,

* Engaging and communicating with practitioners,

* Key challenges in adaptation and development,

* Management of natural systems and agriculture under climate
change,

* Ensuring water security under a changing climate,

* Urban infrastructure and livelihoods, and

* The nexus between extremes, disaster management and
adaptation.

It includes contributions from many of the leading thinkers and
practitioners in adaptation today. The book is based on key
contributions from the First International Conference on Climate
Change Adaptation 'Climate Adaptation Futures', held on
the Gold Coast, Australia, in June 2010. That three-day meeting of
over 1000 researchers and practitioners in adaptation from 50
countries was the first of its kind.

Readership: The book is essential reading for a wide
range of individuals involved in climate change adaptation,
including:

* Researchers,

* Communication specialists,

* Decision-makers and policy makers (e.g. government staff, local
council staff),

* On-ground adaptation practitioners (e.g. aid agencies,
government workers, NGOs),

* Postgraduate and graduate students, and

* Consultants.