Adaptation, adaptive capacity and vulnerability

Smit, Barry; Wandel, Johanna

doi:10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2006.03.008

Cited by 3,989 publications

(2,580 citation statements)

References 76 publications

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“…33 Participants experienced impacts of stressors differently between the two towns where the capacity to respond was influenced by factors such as access to capital, knowledge base (education level) and alternative skill sets. 35,36 Strategies employed by this group fell into the following categories: diversification outside the fishery, riding out the storm and decreasing effort (Table 4). Fishers were faced with infrastructure constraints when considering alternative options in terms of diversification within the fishery.…”

Section: Still Bay and Melkhoutfontein: The Coping Fishersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whilst the presence of resilience can lead to the creation of opportunities and innovation within a system, too much resilience may have negative consequences as systems continually return to the original (and at times unsustainable) state once stressors abate. 19,36 The business-oriented group had already adapted over the long term and any resilience displayed by them was in the context of strategies implemented. While this group displayed resilience, these large and permanent diversification measures that had already been implemented may make it very difficult for these fishers to respond dynamically to further stressors and/or shocks.…”

Section: Comparison Between Groupsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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case study from the southern Cape linefishery 2: Considering one’s options when the fish leave

Gammage¹,

Jarre²,

Mather³

2017

S. Afr. J. Sci.

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Fishers in the small-scale, commercial linefishery in the southern Cape, South Africa, are exposed to variability and change in the marine social-ecological system of which they are a part. Faced with multi-scalar changes within this complex system, fishers employ a wide range of strategies in reaction to change. As part of a broader study of stressors that bring about change in these systems, this contribution examines the fishers’ responses to these changes and is based on a participant-led, semi-structured interview process of skippers/boat owners, crew, processors and spouses/partners, in six communities in the southern Cape region, and has been supplemented with appropriate secondary data. The results are discussed using a resilience framework. The data were initially considered thematically by stressor, but results identified that a place-based analysis was equally important. Three major groupings were identified: (1) fishers who adapt and show clear business-orientation, (2) fishers who cope, and (3) fishers who react and are thus caught in a poverty trap. In addition to place-specific history, local feedback loops and indirect effects need to be better accounted for to understand these responses to change at various scales. The results of this study are expected to contribute to the basis of scenario planning in the region.

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Section: Still Bay and Melkhoutfontein: The Coping Fishersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Comparison Between Groupsmentioning

confidence: 99%

case study from the southern Cape linefishery 2: Considering one’s options when the fish leave

Gammage¹,

Jarre²,

Mather³

2017

S. Afr. J. Sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Vulnerability assessment theory and practice literature postulate that improving bottom-up approaches to adaptation can help in building resilience in vulnerable populations and reducing the negative effects from extreme weather events caused by climate change. 15,16,53 As presented in this paper, the community members that make up Red Hook had comprehensive knowledge about its strengths and weaknesses during an extreme weather event. Future adaptation efforts should stem from this foundation.…”

Section: Conclusion and Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…14 Indeed, some suggested vulnerability assessment strategies use a local-level approach (that is, a bottom-up, rather than top-down, planning system), which in turn informs adaptation strategies and may build resilience at multiple community levels through early anticipation and response to problems. [15][16][17][18] A key feature in the field of vulnerability assessment is "how the adaptive capacity of individuals, households and communities is shaped and constrained by social, political, and economic processes at higher levels." 16 This interaction between local and "higher" levels is thought to be important in developing realistic adaptation plans that serve multifaceted needs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[15][16][17][18] A key feature in the field of vulnerability assessment is "how the adaptive capacity of individuals, households and communities is shaped and constrained by social, political, and economic processes at higher levels." 16 This interaction between local and "higher" levels is thought to be important in developing realistic adaptation plans that serve multifaceted needs. Vulnerability assessments provide the evidence and build the political will necessary to design, fund, and implement adaptive measures that reduce the costs of interventions and responses, [19][20][21] protect vulnerable populations, and save lives during extreme weather events.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Lessons from Hurricane Sandy: a Community Response in Brooklyn, New York

et al. 2013

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The frequency and intensity of extreme weather events have increased in recent decades; one example is Hurricane Sandy. If the frequency and severity continue or increase, adaptation and mitigation efforts are needed to protect vulnerable populations and improve daily life under changed weather conditions. This field report examines the devastation due to Hurricane Sandy experienced in Red Hook, Brooklyn, New York, a neighborhood consisting of geographically isolated low-lying commercial and residential units, with a concentration of low-income housing, and disproportionate rates of poverty and poor health outcomes largely experienced by Black and Latino residents. Multiple sources of data were reviewed, including street canvasses, governmental reports, community flyers, and meeting transcripts, as well as firsthand observations by a local nonprofit Red Hook Initiative (RHI) and community members, and social media accounts of the effects of Sandy and the response to daily needs. These data are considered within existing theory, evidence, and practice on protecting public health during extreme weather events. Firsthand observations show that a community-based organization in Red Hook, RHI, was at the center of the response to disaster relief, despite the lack of staff training in response to events such as Hurricane Sandy. Review of these data underscores that adaptation and response to climate change and likely resultant extreme weather is a dynamic process requiring an official coordinated governmental response along with on-the-ground volunteer community responders.

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Irrigation, risk aversion, and water right priority under water supply uncertainty

Rosegrant

2017

Water Resources Research

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This paper explores the impacts of a water right's allocative priority—as an indicator of farmers' risk‐bearing ability—on land irrigation under water supply uncertainty. We develop and use an economic model to simulate farmers' land irrigation decision and associated economic returns in eastern Idaho. Results indicate that the optimal acreage of land irrigated increases with water right priority when hydroclimate risk exhibits a negatively skewed or right‐truncated distribution. Simulation results suggest that prior appropriation enables senior water rights holders to allocate a higher proportion of their land to irrigation, 6 times as much as junior rights holders do, creating a gap in the annual expected net revenue reaching up to $141.4 acre−1 or $55,800 per farm between the two groups. The optimal irrigated acreage, expected net revenue, and shadow value of a water right's priority are subject to substantial changes under a changing climate in the future, where temporal variation in water supply risks significantly affects the profitability of agricultural land use under the priority‐based water sharing mechanism.

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Adaptation, adaptive capacity and vulnerability

Cited by 3,989 publications

References 76 publications

case study from the southern Cape linefishery 2: Considering one’s options when the fish leave

case study from the southern Cape linefishery 2: Considering one’s options when the fish leave

Lessons from Hurricane Sandy: a Community Response in Brooklyn, New York

Irrigation, risk aversion, and water right priority under water supply uncertainty

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