climate change

photo: Alexander Steffler

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has released a special report intended to help communities around the world adapt to climate change. Chris Field (2000), a co-chair of one of the two working groups that produced it, describes the report as "unique because it emphasizes managing risks and how taking precautions can work" for managing extreme weather events such as intense rainfalls, droughts, and hurricanes, which are becoming increasingly common and severe. The report suggests “low-regret” strategies as starting points, including early warning systems, risk communication, sustainable land management, and infrastructure improvements.

photo: Sage Ross

In a time when climate change has become a deeply polarized issue, what would it take to bring people together to work on solutions? Andrew Hoffman (2011) and Peter Frumhoff of the Union of Concerned Scientists share answers to this question gathered from over 100 leaders from business, politics, religious organizations, climate science, and the social sciences.

photo: Pauline Eccles

A new study of ancient trees by Lisa Graumlich (1999) and her colleagues shows that snowpacks feeding the Columbia, Missouri, and Colorado rivers declined more in the late 20th and early 21st centuries than at any other time in the past 800 years. According to the researchers, the findings help confirm the role of greenhouse gas emissions in reducing snowpack. They also suggest that as temperature rises, the amount of flow in the three rivers -- major sources of water in the west -- will continue to shrink.

photo of Nairobi: Subhadip Mukherjee

Cities around the world should act to protect residents from worsening natural disasters that climate change will bring by effecting policies such as moving residents from high-risk areas, according to a paper co-authored by Patricia Romero Lankao (2008). The paper also suggests that cities, which contain half the worlds' population, could play a major role in reducing emissions.