AGU 2009 Joint Assembly: Exploring the vulnerabilities of populations to the manifestations of climate change

Session U09: Exploring the Vulnerabilities of Populations to the Manifestations of Climate Change

It is now understood that the climate change issue cannot be discussed in isolation and that one must consider it together with other issues such as food and water shortages, security problems, mass migrations, tensions over energy supplies, etc… At the same time, climate models show that specific populations are already committed to a certain degree of environmental change. While adaptation strategies to address the long-term and global problem of the greenhouse effect are being widely assessed, it is similarly important to investigate the regional socio-economic impacts of the observed and/or predicted environmental changes. The socio-economic environment strongly influences the resiliency of the affected population to the changes and, thus, either their response to the changes or their interest or ability to adopt a particular adaptation strategy. In consequence, we intend this session to be an interdisciplinary bridge between geosciences, economics and social sciences and invite submissions that advance the general understanding of the social, cultural or economic responses of populations to the manifestations of climate change; for instance studies that address the past or future role of weather and climate related phenomena on economic development, poverty reduction efforts, migration events and the onset of conflicts.