Adaptation and Risk Analysis

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) sixth assessment report (AR6) of working group 1 — ‘The Physical Science Basis’ has reinforced our worst fears about the state of climate. The signs of climate change have been visible for some time now. Extreme events in different parts of the world — heat waves in North America, floods in Europe and Asia, and droughts in Africa — have left a trail of destruction and death, challenging the disaster management systems in place.

This year’s World Environment Day urges us to heal our ecosystems — geographic areas where organisms live in conjunction with the surrounding environment, interacting as a system (like marine-ecosystem, forests, grasslands, and wetlands)­ — through a pledge to “Reimagine. Recreate. Restore.” It also kicks off the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021–2030).

The theme of the International Day for Biological Diversity 2021 is “We’re part of the solution”. This carries forward the momentum generated last year with the theme “Our solutions are in nature”. Nature-based solutions, comprising blue infrastructure such as wetlands, floodplains, rivers, canals, ponds, and water treatment facilities and green infrastructure such as forests, trees, lawns, parks, and fields have gained attention in recent years.

Changes in the timing and magnitude of rainfall can put a severe strain on agriculture. Additionally, an increase in extreme climate events such as heavy rainfall and dry spells can also affect agriculture. In Karnataka, agriculture is the key contributor to the state’s economy. However, agricultural productivity in the state is hampered by the availability of irrigation (only 31.2% of the land is irrigated) and variability in rainfall distribution.

Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme a large social security programme being implemented in India, with an average annual investment of US$ 7 billion. The bulk of the activities under this programme are focused on natural resources such as land, water and trees, which provide adaptation benefits. In this study an attempt is made to estimate the carbon sequestration achieved and future potential, as a co-benefit, from MGNREGS. 

Climate resilience is the ability to anticipate, absorb, accommodate, and recover from the effects of a potentially hazardous event. The benefits of resilient power infrastructure are much greater than the costs, considering growing climate change events. It is estimated that for every dollar invested in climate resilient infrastructure, six dollars can be saved. According to the World Bank, if the actions needed for resilience are delayed by ten years, the cost will almost double.

India is one of the few countries where environment education is compulsory at all levels of formal education. The concepts introduced at school are centred on the need to conserve for future generations, halt resource depletion, reduce pollution, and protect wildlife, with very limited focus on the effects of greenhouse gases, impacts of chlorofluorocarbons, and other topics of immediate concern.