Download Climate change: Vulnerability, Impacts Adaptation

Course title: Climate Change: Vulnerability, Impacts, Adaptation and Resilience
Course code: NRC 182
No. of credits: 3
L-T-P: 28-0714
Learning
hours: 42
Pre-requisite course code and title (if any):
Department: Department of Natural Resources
Course coordinator: Dr Chubamenla Jamir
Course instructor: Dr Chubamenla Jamir
Contact details:
Course type: Elective
Course offered in: Semester 2
Course Description
This course is an introduction to the vulnerability of climate change, potential adaptation and
resilience options for natural as well as social systems with particular reference to developing
countries. The topics include the basics of climate change, the sensitivity (qualitative in general)
and impacts on various sectors and regions throughout the world, the state of science with
respect to tipping points in the Earth System, mitigation and potential adaptation options.
A critical view will be laid on the ‘attribution problem’, the prioritization of adaptation means,
mal-adaptations, the implementation problem, ethical views and conflicts with development
goals. Win-win-situations and trade-offs between the latter and climate change adaptation is
part of the course too.
Next to the vulnerabilities, impacts and adaptation possibilities for various sectors and regions
(e.g. urban areas and developing countries), one section of the course will deal with methods
and concepts.
The course is separated into a theoretical part and a seminar part. Whereas the first part
consists of lectures, the second part trains students to unearth perceived impacts of climate
change and adaptation options from stakeholders. They should interact with planners,
architects, officials from the Government authorities and locals.
Course objectives
1. A profound view about climate vulnerability and the impacts of advancing climate change
2. Understanding of different adaptation and resilience possibilities, and
3. Learn various challenges and conflicts of implementation
Course content
SNo
Topic
L
T
P
1.
6
Introduction to the impacts of climate change
Introduction to extreme events and gradual changes of the climate;
impacts on different natural and managed systems/ sectors
(ecosystem, agricultural, freshwater, urban infrastructure and
society) and regions.
2.
6
2
Vulnerability
Introduction to the concept of vulnerability.
Focused discussion on the vulnerabilities of different ecological and
social systems, coastal vulnerability, particular issues for
developing countries, refer to tipping points in the Earth System.
Qualitative to semi-quantitative methods to evaluate vulnerabilities
and impacts.
Discussion on prioritization of different adaptation options, to
qualitative measures of decision support, and connections between
adaptation and mitigation: trade-offs and mal-adaptation.
3.
8
Adaptation
Introduction to the concept, indicators of adaptation, problems of
its operationalization.
Potential adaptation options for issues of food security, energy
security, and transport in developing and developed countries, and
the limits of adaptation.
Factors influencing adaptation strategies (technical, institutional,
financial) and constraints to developing strategies; consequences of
adaptation strategies.
Resilience to climate change possibilities.
4.
2
2
Seminar
Explanation of exercise, how the system’s perception of impacts can
be developed with/unearth from stakeholders.
Stakeholder dialogue on a case study – students will be divided
into different stakeholder group and have a multi-stakeholder
dialogue on a case study to decide on adaptation measures.
5.
6
3
14
Practical/ Field work
Interaction with planners, architects, officials from the Delhi & NCR
authorities, locals, etc. and make their investigations and collect
data, draw concept maps, etc. Later analyze results with different
evaluation methods (network analysis, including a software
solution), and to derive and test various adaptation means.
Total
28
7
14
Evaluation criteria
 Minor test:
20%
 Assignments
20%
 Seminar paper:
20%
 Major test (end semester):
40%
Learning outcomes
1. After this course, students should have a profound view about climate vulnerability, the
impacts of advancing climate change, different adaptation and resilience possibilities and
conflicts of implementation
Pedagogical approach
Materials
Required text
1. Adger N., Paavola J., Huq S. and Mace M.J. (2006) Fairness in Adaptation to Climate
Change, Cambridge, MA, MIT Press.
2. Bicknell J., Dodman D. and SatterthwaiteD. (eds.) (2009) Adapting Cities to Climate
Change, London,Earthscan.
3. Birkmann J. ( ) Measuring Vulnerability to Natural Hazards: Towards Disaster Resilient
Societies, New Delhi, TERI Press, United Nations University.
4. Hagen P. and Horary F.(1983) Structural Models in Anthropology, Oxford University Press,
New York
5. Horary F., Norman R.Z. and Cartwright D.(1965) Structural Models: An Introduction to the
Theory of Directed Graphs, John Wiley & Sons,Inc, New York, London, Sydney.
Suggested readings
1. Patt A.G., Schröter D., Klein R.J.T. and De la Vega-Leinert A.C. (eds.) (2009) Assessing
Vulnerability to Global Environmental Change–Making Research Useful for Adaptation
Decision Making and Policy, Earthscan.
2. Parikh J.K. and Parikh K. (2002) Climate Change: India’s Perceptions, Positions, Policies and
Possibilities, Paris, OECD.
3. Roaf S., Crichton D. andNicol F. (2005) Adapting Buildings and Cities for Climate Change,
Oxford: Architectural Press.
4. Shukla P.R., Sharma S.K.,Ravindranath N.H., Garg A. and Bhattacharya S. (Eds.) (2003)
Climate Change and India, Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation, Hyderabad,
Universities Press.
Case studies
Websites
Journals
Additional information (if any)
Reports
1. IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) (20072014) Climate Change, the
SynthesisReportWG II Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, Geneva, IPCC. http://ipccwg2.gov/AR5/http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessmentreport/ar4/syr/ar4_syr.pdf
2. Climate Change (2001) Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability-Contribution of Working
Group II to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change, Cambridge.
3. Kelkar U. andBhadwal S. (2007) South Asian Regional Study on Climate Change Impacts
and Adaptation: Implications for Human Development, Human Development Report
2007/2008, Fighting Climate Change: Human Solidarity in a Divided World, Human
Development Report Office, Occasional Paper.
4. McMichael A.J., Campbell-Lendrum D.H., Corvalan C.F., Ebi K.L., Githeko A.K., Scheraga
J.D. and Woodward A. (Eds.) (2003) Climate Change and Human Health- Risks and
Responses, Geneva, World Health Organization.
5. Reckien D., Eisenack K. and Hoffmann E. (2008) Adaptation to Climate Change in the
Transport Sector: The Constraining Effect of Actor-interdependencies, Paper presented at
the ISEE (International Society for Ecological Economics) Conference, 9th August 2008,
Nairobi.
6. Reckien D. andGrothmann T. (2009)Klimafolgen und Anpassungsmaßnahmen in Verkehr
und Mobilität, in: Grothmann T, Krömker D, Hornburg A, Siebenhüner B (eds):‚ KyotoPlusNavigator-PraxisleitfadenzurFörderung von Klimaschutz und Anpassungan den
Klimawandel–Erfolgsfaktoren, Instrumente, Strategie’; Downloadversion April 2009, pp
283-334; http://www.erklim.de
7. Reckien D., Hofmann S. and Kit O. (2009) Qualiatative Climate Change Impact Networks
for Hyderabad/India, Report from the Project: Hyderabad as a Megacity of Tomorrow:
Climate and Energy in a Complex Transition towards Sustainable Hyderabad–Mitigation
and Adaptation Strategies by Changing Institutions, Governance Structures, Lifestyles and
Consumption Patterns, Berlin/Potsdam: Humboldt University Berlin/Potsdam Institute for
Climate Impact Research, Mai 2009.
8. Roy J. (2006) The Economics of Climate Change, A Review of Studies in the Context of
South Asia with a Special Focus on India. Report Submitted to The Stern Review on the
Economics of Climate Change, Kolkata,http://www.hmtreasury.gov.uk/d/roy.pdf
9. Yedla S. andShrestha R.M. (2007) Prioritization of Strategies to Overcome Barriers for
Cleaner and Energy Efficient Alternatives in Urban Transportation–Multi-criteria
Approach, Mumbai: Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, WP-2007-012
List of important research papers relevant for teaching
1. Eden C., Ackermann F. and Cropper S. (1992) The Analysis of Cause Maps, Journal of
Management Studies, 29(4), pp. 309-324.
2. Jerneck A. and Olsson L. (2008) Adaptation and the Poor: Development, Resilience and
Transition, Climate Policy, 8, 170-182.
3. Kovats S. and Akhtar R. (2008) Climate, Climate Change and Human Health in Asian
Cities,Environment and Urbanization, 29(1), 165-175, 4, O’Brien, K. (2004) Mapping
Vulnerability to Multiple Stressors: Climate Change and Globalization in India,Global
Environmental Change, 14, 303–313.
4. Reimann S. (1998) On the Design of Artificial Auto-associative Neural Networks, Neural
Networks, 11, pp. 611–621.
5. Revi A. (2008) Climate Change Risk: An Adaptation and Mitigation Agenda for Indian
Cities, Environment and Urbanization, 20: 207-229.
6. Schröter D., Polsky C. and Patt A.G. (2005) Assessing Vulnerabilities to the Effects of Global
Change: An Eight Step Approach, Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change,
10(4), 573-595.
7. Sivak M. (2009) Potential Energy Demand for Cooling in the 50 Largest Metropolitan Areas
of the World: Implications for Developing Countries, Energy Policy, 37(4), 1382-1384.
8. Özesmi U. and Özesmi S.L. (2004) Ecological Models based on People's Knowledge: a
Multi-step Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping Approach, Ecological Modelling, 176, 1-2, 43-64.
Student responsibilities
Attendance, feedback, discipline, guest faculty etc