International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management

vLex
Publisher:
Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Publication date:
2021-02-01
ISBN:
1756-8692

Issue Number

Latest documents

  • Integrated risk analyses as part of national climate risk assessments: lessons learnt from the climate risk assessment of Germany

    Purpose: Climate risk assessments (CRAs) become more and more necessary to prepare and prioritise adaptation action. On a policy level, the results of CRAs offer the foundation for national adaptation strategies. However, existing CRAs oftentimes do not exploit their full potential by means of an integrated assessment, i.e. to illustrate the complexity of cascading risks, provide cross-sectoral results, integrate adaptive capacity and demonstrate spatial patterns. This paper seeks to fill this gap by dissecting integrated assessment approaches of national CRAs. Design/methodology/approach: The paper focuses on the integrated analyses of the results of CRAs. Based on a review of selected national, multi-sectoral CRAs, the authors explore the application of such analyses. Additionally, drawing on the latest climate impact and risk assessment for Germany, the authors highlight latest approaches and their implications. Findings: The authors show that even though progress in establishing integrated assessment methods has been made, no common framework exists so far and only few national CRAs include extensive integrated analyses. Nevertheless, the German example demonstrates that integrated analyses can provide a comprehensive overview over risk dynamics, (spatial) patterns and needs for action thus providing practical advice for decision-making on a national adaptation policy level. Originality/value: While it is common knowledge that CRAs in general provide better results, if the models applied are integrated (i.e. combining climate, geo-physical, economic, etc. factors), little attention has been given to the integrated analyses of their results. This paper provides valuable new insight on this aspect which will become far more important in the future.

  • Retraction notice: Farmer’s environmental orientation as an antecedent to the intention for adopting conservational agriculture practices: the moderation analysis
  • Retraction notice: Impact of climate change on agricultural productivity: a combination of spatial Durbin model and entropy approaches
  • Retraction notice: Exploring the role of environmental literacy and social norms in farmers’ LMTT adoption: evidence from China
  • Retraction notice: Exploring the influencing factors of environmental deterioration: evidence from China employing ARDL–VECM method with structural breaks
  • Adaptation to climate change in pastoral communities: a systematic review through a social-ecological lens

    Purpose: This paper aims to apply a socio-ecological systems framework to demonstrate that pastoral adaptation to climate change necessitates a comprehensive approach. Design/methodology/approach: The authors evaluated the depth of knowledge regarding pastoral adaptation in Africa using bibliometric and content-based analyses. Findings: The analysis of 40 eligible articles, conducted through R Studio, revealed a significant emphasis on climate change adaptation measures. However, there was a noticeable scarcity of research on the role of governance, policy and institutional interventions. Research limitations/implications: The scope of the research is limited to the African continent. Practical implications: This research shed light on how inadequate governance structures and insufficient institutional support, particularly in terms of skills and capacity-building, hinder pastoral communities’ resilience. These limitations may potentially affect pastoral livelihoods adversely, with severe consequences for food security and poverty levels in Africa. Social implications: A comprehensive understanding of the challenges pastoralists face in Africa to adapt to climate change will assist in defining high-level policies and interventions to improve pastoral communities’ adaptation actions. Originality/value: The study used the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses approach to ensure a thorough and systematic investigation. Furthermore, using an established framework and clearly defined methods will greatly aid in replicating the research.

  • EU climate countdown: economic risks, adaptation and smart policies

    Purpose: This paper aims to analyse the impact of various climate change indicators on economic growth while further scrutinising the overall efficiency of environmental policies adopted at the European Union (EU) level. The paper considers the European Green Deal policy framework as a prism for assessing whether an increase in environmental expenditure mitigates climate change. Design/methodology/approach: Given the duality of the study, this paper examines the immediate impact of climate change on economic growth by using multiple linear regression and evaluates the effectiveness of environmental policies through a multiple indicators multiple cause (MIMIC) Model. As the paper assesses the policy efficiency in EU countries, this paper has used various climate and economic-related indicators from all 27 EU member states for a period of 12 years (2010–2021). Findings: The results suggest that the macroeconomic environment is indeed impacted by climate change mechanisms, particularly through industrial activity that leads to pollution and resource depletion. Furthermore, through the MIMIC model approach, the results display that environmental expenditures have also diminished the risks associated with climate change indicators, especially in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Originality/value: This paper provides a clear overview of the manner in which climate change risks affect economic growth and, in turn, how EU countries are mitigating such risks. It proposes a traditional yet controversial method for assessing the correlation between indicators and corresponding causes whilst also considering various indicators to explain the means through which the EU Commission had applied its adopted environmental policies to mitigate environmental risks.

  • Narratives of change: how climate change narratives have evolved since the 1970s

    Purpose: The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, we map the emerging climate narratives from the 1970s. Second, we examine how these narratives have shaped climate governance in addressing the consequences of climate change. Our analysis is based on a set of 12 interviews with climate change experts from various fields, including climate science, environmental policy, and environmental sustainability. The theoretical framework primarily draws from narrative analysis (Bruner, 1991; Riessman, 2005; Freeman, 2015), with a specific emphasis on its application within climate change studies (Bottici, 2010; Bushell et al., 2015; Fløttum and Gjerstad, 2017). Design/methodology/approach: The period of analysis starts from the 1970s. A period marked by growing concern and the creation of national and global organizations to address the effects of climate change. Semistructured interviews were conducted with a sample of 12 experts in the field using narrative analysis. We adopted an inductive approach, allowing climate narratives to emerge organically from the interview data, and facilitating the emergence of new topics and perspectives. Findings: Through interviews with climate experts, this study identifies three key narratives and critical shortcomings related to climate governance. The dominant climate narratives identified are apocalyptic environmentalism, greening capitalism and degrowth. Notably, greening capitalism and degrowth emerge as a dichotomous framework for understanding and interpreting climate change. By exploring these climate narratives, we highlight five critical shortcomings related to climate governance: increasing citizen participation through a bottom-up governance model, reforming the environmental subsidy framework, strengthening the science-policy interface, decoupling economic growth from energy dependence and developing innovative technological models beyond traditional green growth approaches. As a result, climate governance remains confined to these binary frameworks, and the challenges that were promised to be addressed decades ago largely remain unresolved. Originality/value: The value of this study lies in the fact that, on the one hand, it uses narrative analysis to investigate climate governance, and on the other hand, it does so through interviews with different actors. All this facilitates a holistic approach, and from a 50-year historical perspective, this study traces an evolutionary line of narratives and identifies the critical points of climate governance.

  • Even climate change is not fair: the impact of climate change on economic outcomes

    Purpose: From generation to generation, the poor and less developed have always borne the negative consequences of the extravagant lifestyles of the rich. The climate seems to perpetuate this injustice by punishing the good people with the consequences of the irresponsible acts of the wealthy. Therefore, this paper aims to establish the relationship between climate risk and carbon emissions. Then, this paper investigates the economic consequences of climate risk in both developed and developing countries. Design/methodology/approach: This paper uses robust econometrics, including fixed effect and the two-step system generalised method of moments, on a large sample of 175 countries from 2008 to 2019. Findings: Unsurprisingly, this paper found that climate risks are negatively associated with carbon emissions, indicating that countries with lower emissions are more exposed to frequent and severe climate-related disasters than those with higher emissions. Additionally, this paper discovered that climate risk has a negative impact on economic development, which is more pronounced in developing countries. The results are robust to alternative measurement and econometric modelling, including the system-generalized method of moments. Originality/value: These findings suggest that developing countries, the least contributors to climate change, unfairly suffer from the environmentally irresponsible actions of high-emitting developed countries.

  • Framework for collaborative local climate adaptation scenario development- nexus between climate resilience, public health service and spatial planning

    Purpose: The interaction between urban development and climate change significantly impacts local public health services. Unfortunately, cities and involved institutions often fail to prioritize and integrate spatial planning when dealing with these unprecedented future challenges. This study aims to offer Health Integrative Climate Resilience and Adaptation Future (HICRAF), an innovative planning framework that systematically operationalizes future climate risks and their impact on local public health services. Design/methodology/approach: HICRAF is developed based on the intermix of explorative and normative scenario planning approaches. Mixed methods of quantitative and qualitative techniques were applied to develop and operationalize the local climate adaptation scenarios through stakeholder participation. The framework demonstrates how different methods and scales (spatial and temporal) can be linked to exhibit climate risk outcomes of different future pathways. Findings: The practicality of HICRAF was demonstrated in Khon Kaen city, where it bridged the gaps between global climate trajectories and local climate adaptation scenarios. It also highlights the need to consider intertwining spatial and systemic risks in local infrastructure operations. Although HICRAF has gained political buy-in and fostered the establishment of stakeholder discourse on climate-resilient futures, further research is needed to enhance its robustness and replicability. Originality/value: This paper proposes a novel planning framework, HICRAF, that can systematically operationalize the future challenges of unprecedented climate change and urban development changes for the local public health service. The demonstration of HICRAF in Khon Kaen city provides empirical evidence of its implementability and upscaling potential.

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