Hotspots 2.0: Toward an integrated understanding of stressors and response options

Khan, Ahmed S.; Cundill, Georgina

doi:10.1007/s13280-018-1120-1

Cited by 6 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…Finally, given that one of the objectives of conducting vulnerability assessments is to inform policy and decision makers, especially because vulnerability is context specific (O'Brien et al 2007), we adopted a local-level approach (Hinkel 2011). At the local level, the chances of having enough data on the ecology of species and on the synergism of interactions between humans and the environment are also higher, and, therefore, there is less room for misrepresentation of the system's vulnerability (Tschakert et al 2013, Khan andCundill 2019). Our intention is to determine how to most effectively support and enable local and regional efforts to conserve coastal areas and sustainably manage the provision of fisheries ecosystem services.…”

Section: A Brief Review Of Vulnerability Assessmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Social vulnerability, specifically, can be evaluated through indicators of the factors that influence a community's ability to sustain itself against changes to the SES (Liu et al 2007). In addition to environmental fluctuations, these communities are exposed to other changes, such as economic, social, demographic, and governance-related changes (Bennet et al 2015, Khan andCundill 2019). Governance, specifically, which is defined as a continuous process of negotiation on how to manage ecosystems, is considered to be a critical element to solving the problems identified in fisheries (Basurto et al 2017, Bennett et al 2019) and needs to be adaptable given that changes to SESs are inevitable (Bennett and Satterfield 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Social-ecological trends: managing the vulnerability of coastal fishing communities

Silva¹,

Pennino²,

Lopes³

2019

E&S

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The loss of biodiversity, including the collapse of fish stocks, affects the vulnerability of social-ecological systems (SESs) and threatens local livelihoods. Incorporating community-centered indicators and SES drivers and exposures of change into coastal management can help anticipate and mitigate human and/or coastal vulnerability. We have proposed a new index to measure the socialecological vulnerability of coastal fishing communities (Index of Coastal Vulnerability [ICV]) based on species, ecosystem, and social indicators. The ICV varies from 0 (no vulnerability) to 1 (very high vulnerability) and is composed of 3 components: species vulnerability, i.e., fish biological traits; ecosystem vulnerability, i.e., environmental indicators of ecosystem health; and adaptive capacity, i.e., human ability to cope with changes. We tested the ICV of Brazil's 17 coastal states. The average ICV for the Brazilian coast was 0.77, and variation was low among states. More than half of the coastal states revealed very high vulnerability (> 0.8). The ecosystem vulnerability values were worse than the adaptive capacity and species vulnerability values, and the North and Northeast regions were revealed to be vulnerable hot spots. Additionally, we investigated how the ICV related to specific anthropogenic risks, i.e., fish landing richness, fishery instability, market, coastal extension, and coastal population, and found that states with fewer species landings and higher coastal populations presented higher ICVs. At a time when human impacts are overtaking natural processes, understanding how these impacts lead to coastal vulnerability can help improve conservation policies. For this case study, we suggest both fisheries management measures and restoration of sensitive habitats to protect species and decrease vulnerability. The integrated evaluation developed here could be used as a baseline for coastal monitoring and conservation planning and be applied to coastal regions in which governments evaluate both social and biological aspects.

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Section: A Brief Review Of Vulnerability Assessmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social-ecological trends: managing the vulnerability of coastal fishing communities

Silva¹,

Pennino²,

Lopes³

2019

E&S

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“…Globally, regions experiencing pronounced impacts of the twenty-first century anthropogenic warming are also some of those experiencing economic stress and social upheavals 1 – 3 ; particularly vulnerable are agricultural societies in semi-arid regions (SARs) of emerging economies 3 – 5 . Over the past few decades, SARs of peninsular India, which are marked by significant variability in temperature and precipitation 6 , 7 , have been experiencing frequent meteorological droughts 6 , 7 ; the magnitudes and spatial extent of these droughts have increased due to accelerating climate change 6 , 7 that have contributed towards growing socioeconomic disruptions and human impacts in the region 7 – 12 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…13 – 17 ), which demonstrates that a long-term analysis of climate and human history provides the much-needed context required for a comprehensive assessment of socieoeceonmic disruptions and human impacts arising from climate variability 18 , 19 . In order to achieve a comprehensive understanding of climate risks in SARs societies 1 – 21 , especially those in the sub-continent, we assess the role of climate variability in colonial-era famines (extreme food shortages and associated socioeconomic disruptions and human impacts caused by ‘rain failures’) that affected southern India 20 , 21 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Extreme rainfall deficits were not the cause of recurring colonial era famines of southern Indian semi-arid regions

Ray

Bhattacharya

Arora

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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Using information contained in the eighteenth to twentieth century British administrative documents, preserved in the National Archives of India (NAI), we present a 218-year (1729–1947 AD) record of socioeconomic disruptions and human impacts (famines) associated with ‘rain failures’ that affected the semi-arid regions (SARs) of southern India. By mapping the southern Indian famine record onto long-term spatiotemporal measures of regional rainfall variability, we demonstrate that the SARs of southern India repeatedly experienced famines when annual rainfall reduced by ~ one standard deviation (1 SD), or more, from long-term averages. In other words, ‘rain failures’ listed in the colonial documents as causes of extreme socioeconomic disruptions, food shortages and human distress (famines) in the southern Indian SARs were fluctuations in precipitation well within the normal range of regional rainfall variability and not extreme rainfall deficits (≥ 3 SD). Our study demonstrates that extreme climate events were not necessary conditions for extreme socioeconomic disruptions and human impacts rendered by the colonial era famines in peninsular India. Based on our findings, we suggest that climate change risk assessement should consider the potential impacts of more frequent low-level anomalies (e.g. 1 SD) in drought prone semi-arid regions.

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“…climate hotspots there is recognition that risk is related not only to climatic parameters but also socially-differentiated and multi-scalar vulnerability [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

A qualitative comparative analysis of women’s agency and adaptive capacity in climate change hotspots in Asia and Africa

Rao

Mishra

Prakash³

et al. 2019

Nat. Clim. Chang.

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There is growing concern about sustainable and equitable adaptation in climate change hotspots, commonly understood as locations that concentrate high climatic variability, societal vulnerability, and negative impacts on livelihood systems. Emphasizing gender within these debates highlights how demographic, socio-economic and agro-ecological contexts mediate the experiences and outcomes of climate change. Drawing on data from 25 qualitative case studies across three hotspots in Africa and Asia, analysed using Qualitative Comparative Analysis, we show how and in what ways women's agency, or the ability to make meaningful choices and strategic decisions, contributes to adaptation responses. We find that environmental stress is a key depressor of women's agency even when household structures and social norms are supportive, or legal entitlements available. These findings have implications for the effective implementation of multilateral agreements such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction, and the Sustainable Development Goals.Sustainable, equitable, and effective adaptation is critical in climate change hotspots, locations where climatic shifts, social structures, and livelihood sensitivity converge to exacerbate vulnerability 1,2 . Entrenched social structures create power relations that shape women's and men's experiences of vulnerability through access to resources, divisions of work, and cultural norms around mobility and decision-making, all of which determine adaptive capacity 6,10-21 . Involving trade-offs at every level 12,[22][23][24] , these contextual factors not only shape vulnerabilities but also create possibilities for adaptation 25 .When examining gendered vulnerability and the way in which it is manifest in unequal patriarchal systems, women's agency has emerged as key to realising adaptive capacity, but remains understudied 11 . Drawing on feminist arguments to move beyond simplistic framings of actors in terms of active or passive, victims or perpetrators 7,26,27 , we conceptualise agency as the ability to make meaningful choices and strategic decisions 28 . It can take multiple forms, from bargaining and negotiation to subversion and resistance 29 , varying across institutional sites and scales, and drawing differentially on available material or social resources 28 . Institutions, ranging from the micro (household) and meso (community) level, to the more macro-levels of markets and states 30 , interact and intersect with each other, often intensifying or reproducing inequalities. The rules and norms they establish, can be formal or informal, complementary or competing 31 , giving specific meaning to particular activities, resources and relationships. In the context of climate action, while some research explores the role of social capital, especially women's groups, for instance, in supporting women's agency 32,33 , a nuanced institutional analysis, linking women's agency and its implications for adaptive capacity remains miss...

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Hotspots 2.0: Toward an integrated understanding of stressors and response options

Cited by 6 publications

References 52 publications

Social-ecological trends: managing the vulnerability of coastal fishing communities

Social-ecological trends: managing the vulnerability of coastal fishing communities

Extreme rainfall deficits were not the cause of recurring colonial era famines of southern Indian semi-arid regions

A qualitative comparative analysis of women’s agency and adaptive capacity in climate change hotspots in Asia and Africa

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