Public perception of climate change in the cold regions of Russia: an example of Yakutia

Abstract

SummaryThe rate of climate change in the Russian cold regions is nearly twice larger than the global-mean rate. Besides climate risks, such changes lead to new possibilities, which require scientifically based regional adaptation strategies. Climate could be viewed as an inexhaustible public resource that creates opportunities for sustainable development. Long-term trends show that climate as a resource is becoming more readily available in the cold regions, notwithstanding the general perception that globally climate change is one of the challenges of the 21st century. Adaptation strategies are required for balancing the risks and potential benefits resulting from the changing climate. Success of such strategies depends on the public perception of climate change. This study compares the observational data on climate and environmental changes with the results of the public survey conducted in Yakutia in the period 2012-2017. The survey involved nearly 2000 respondents in several cities and 2 villages (Ust-Maja, Saskhulakh) representing different economical, sociological, permafrost, vegetation, and climatic conditions. Results indicated that public perception of the climatic and environmental changes is not univocal, and depends on many factors. Low probability extreme events, such as unusual weather patterns or abrupt landscape changes may have greater effect than the long-term climate trends. Currently less than half of the population in Yakutia consider climate change as an established fact, and are ready to take actions in this regard. Meanwhile, Yakutia is a region where observational records demonstrate the most pronounced changes in climatic regime compared to other Russian regions. The contrast between the actual changes and public perception of such changes has important implication for developing adaptation strategies. To be effective, such strategies should combine knowledge coming from instrumental-and model-based analysis of the climatic and environmental changes with the public perception of such changes. Ключевые слова: адаптация, изменение климата, общественное восприятие, социологический опрос. В статье исследуется вопрос о том, насколько население холодных регионов информировано об изменении климата и готово адаптироваться к нему. Анализируются результаты социоло-гических опросов, проводившихся в Якутии в 2012-2017 гг. Ответы почти 2 тыс. респондентов показали, что общественное восприятие климатических изменений не всегда объективно и зависит от многих факторов. Респонденты отмечают объективный характер современных изме-нений климата и их начавшееся воздействие на некоторые виды деятельности, условия труда и отдыха населения.

When Ice Turns to Water: Forest Fires and Indigenous Settlements in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

“…Temperature changes noted over the past few decades throughout the territory of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) were emphasized by many researchers [4][5][6][7]. The temperature increase has many global and local consequences.…”

“…In the last few years, in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), as many sources indicate, temperatures have increased throughout the whole territory [4][5][6][7]. In 2019, heat records hit the Arctic regions.…”

Resilience in a changing world: Indigenous sharing networks in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

“…Its temperatures are the coldest of any inhabited territory of Earthnearly the entire republic is covered in continuous permafrost (Fondahl, Crate, & Filippova 2014). The region is experiencing rapid environmental changes triggered by climate change; its temperature is increasing more than two times faster than that of the rest of the world (Anisimov, Ziltcova, & Zhegusov, 2017;Grigoriev & Fedorov, 2011;IPCC, 2013). Floods have concomitantly increased in recent years and permanently threaten 14.9% of settlements (Filippova, 2011;Vinokurova et al, 2016).…”