Society is increasingly affected by climate impacts, from prolonged water shortages to damaging coastal floods and wildfires. Scientists studying climate variations are eager to have their knowledge used in adaptive decision making. To achieve this, science and society must engage productively around complex management and policy challenges. For over 20 years, the science-society interface has been fertile ground for the Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments (RISA) programs sponsored by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Climate in Context describes what it takes to help scientists and stakeholders work together to “co-produce” climate science knowledge, policy, and action. This state-of-the art synthesis reflects on lessons learned by RISA programs, and provides a sober assessment of the challenges ahead. Through case studies from various US regions, this book provides lessons and guidance for organizations and individuals who want to work at the science-society interface on a range of climate challenges.

In many places in the world, forests dominate landscapes and provide various products. Future climate change could profoundly alter the productivity of forest ecosystems and species composition. Until now, climate impact research has primarily focused on the likely impacts of rise in temperature, increased atmospheric CO2 concentration, and varying precipitation on unmanaged forests. The issue that now needs to be addressed is how to sustainably manage climate change for timber production and biomass. Though climate change is a global issue, impacts on forests depend on local environmental conditions and management methods, so this book will look at the issue under varying local contexts.

Assessing migration in the context of climate change, Nash draws on empirical research to offer a unique analysis of policy-making in the field. This detailed account is a vital step in understanding the links between global discourses on human mobilities, climate change and specific policy responses. An important contribution to several ongoing debates in academia and beyond.

Heat Exposure and Human Health in the Context of Climate Change introduces the effects of heat on human health, especially in the context of climate change. The book utilizes case studies in addition to foundational knowledge and theory to demonstrate the epidemiological impact of heat, also presenting solutions for addressing this important public health issue. It is clearly organized to aid in understanding key questions such as why and how heat exposure impacts health, who are most vulnerable to heat exposure, and how to reduce the impacts of heat exposure. Providing guidance on public policy development as well as individual protection, this book is an interdisciplinary resource for researchers and policymakers in both public health and environmental science fields. - Presents the most up-to-date knowledge on an important public health topic in the context of climate change - Provides guidance to government, public agencies, health workers, community organizers and environmental agencies to reduce the health impacts of heat exposure - Covers theory, epidemiology, environmental considerations and public health, utilizing foundational knowledge, literature reviews and case studies

Nearly two-thirds of the world's population live in Asia, and many countries in that region are currently undergoing very rapid industrial, agricultural and economic development. The Framework Convention on Climate Change constrains developed countries with regard to their future emissions of greenhouse gases, but recognizes the special needs of developing countries. There is growing appreciation of the ways in which developing countries in the Asian region both contribute to global changes (by altering biogeochemical pathways and cycles) and are themselves affected by those changes. This volume uses the intellectual efforts and findings of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) community to provide the first integrated analysis of the interactions between global change and Asian change, giving particular attention to China's role. The book will be of interest to readers in a wide range of academic disciplines (natural sciences and socio-economic) and for those involved in national and international policy development relevant to global change.

As climate has warmed over recent years, a new pattern of more frequent and more intense weather events has unfolded across the globe. Climate models simulate such changes in extreme events, and some of the reasons for the changes are well understood. Warming increases the likelihood of extremely hot days and nights, favors increased atmospheric moisture that may result in more frequent heavy rainfall and snowfall, and leads to evaporation that can exacerbate droughts. Even with evidence of these broad trends, scientists cautioned in the past that individual weather events couldn't be attributed to climate change. Now, with advances in understanding the climate science behind extreme events and the science of extreme event attribution, such blanket statements may not be accurate. The relatively young science of extreme event attribution seeks to tease out the influence of human-cause climate change from other factors, such as natural sources of variability like El Niño, as contributors to individual extreme events. Event attribution can answer questions about how much climate change influenced the probability or intensity of a specific type of weather event. As event attribution capabilities improve, they could help inform choices about assessing and managing risk, and in guiding climate adaptation strategies. This report examines the current state of science of extreme weather attribution, and identifies ways to move the science forward to improve attribution capabilities.

Landslides in cold regions have different mechanisms from those in other areas, and comparatively few research efforts have been made in this field. Recently, because of climate change, some new trends concerning landslide occurrence and motion have appeared, severely impacting economic development and communities. This book collects key case studies from the cold regions all over the world, providing an overview of the general situation.

Reconstruction of the climate variability of the past 500 years is a topic of great scientific interest not only in global terms, but also at regional and local levels. This period is interesting on account of the increasing influence of anthropogenic forcing and its overlap with natural factors. The Polish Climate in the European Context: An Historical Overview summarises the results of research into climate variability based on a combination of instrumental, documentary, dendrochronological and borehole data from Poland. The first part of the book provides a Central European perspective of research in these fields, which forms the general background for a presentation of the state of the art of climatic change studies in Poland during the past 500 years (Part 2). This is followed by a selection of papers dealing mainly with different aspects of climate variability in Poland and Central Europe (Part 3). "This book is a valuable tool integrating Polish, Central and Eastern European climate research into the global context. It is, as such, a must for climate researchers worldwide." (Gaston Demarée, Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium) "This volume marks a significant step forward in our understanding of European climatic history." (Christian Pfister, University of Bern)

The past two decades have seen a remarkable broadening of interest in global warming from a research concern on the part of a limited number of scientists to a political problem on a worldwide scale. The nature of this transformation would itself be a fruitful study for a mixed team of social scientists and natural scientists. It would be valuable to assess the differing nature of the staging posts along this road: the First World Climate Conference in 1979, which was a meeting of scientists talking to scientists; the Villach Assessment of 1985, which was a meeting of scientists whose report was given attention by the policy advisers of a number of governments; the Second World Climate Conference of 1990, which consisted of a scientific meeting followed by a Ministerial Meeting; and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change of 1992 signed by 158 countries at the UN Conference on Environment and Development in June 1992. The present publication is a welcome contribution of the followup to UNCED. By focusing on a specific problem, it avoids the pitfall of undue generalization and provides the basis for fruitful discussion between natural scientists, social scientists, and policymakers. To choose as the area of concentration a particular scale also helped to produce meaningful discussion likely to lead to action.

This report provides a global assessment and outlook on wildfire risk in the context of climate change. It discusses the drivers behind the growing incidence of extreme wildfires and the attribution effect of climate change.