Even if the world manages to keep to the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global mean temperatures to 2C above pre-industrial levels, climate change is coming. The best way to protect ourselves from its effects is to drastically cut our emissions by deploying renewables, electrification, and energy-efficiency measures. But well also need to adapt to the changes that are coming.
Doing so will save money, and it will save lives. Thats the message from a new report from the Global Commission on Adaptation, led by Ban Ki-Moon, Bill Gates, and World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva. The report estimates that investing $1.8 trillion worldwide in five areas of climate adaptation during the next decadefor scale, this is what humans spend on efforts to kill each other every yearwill yield $7.1 trillion in benefits.
Beyond cold, hard economics, though, the number of lives that could be improved or saved by adaptation is immense. Over this century, sea level rise and storm surges could force millions from coastal homes; another hundred million people in the developing world could be pushed into poverty as crop yields stall; water security will be threatened for more than a billion people across the world; and extreme weather events will disproportionately impact the poorest and most vulnerable.
Here are the ways we can alleviate that impact.
Early warning systems for extreme weather events such as cyclones, droughts, floods, heat waves, and wildfires need to be improved.
A striking example of the effectiveness of these systems is found in Bangladesh. In 1970, the Bhola cyclone struck the low-lying nation with devastating results: at least 300,000 were killed. Since then, Bangladesh has launched a Cyclone Preparedness Program, constructed thousands of shelters, and invested in an early warning system. When Cyclone Mora hit in 2017, the Bangladeshi authorities evacuated hundreds of thousands of people, resulting in a death toll of around 10.
While funding emergency services and having rapid response available for natural disasters is crucial, planning for disasters in advance is also important. Advances in climate and weather models allow for scenario planning; finance, information, and other resources can be directed to the communities that are most likely to be hit.
Infrastructure requires investment. In the US alone, trillions of dollars may need to be spent just in order to preserve existing infrastructure. In developing nations, vast building projects and rapid urbanization are constantly accelerating.
If we want to tackle the causes and effects of climate change, this needs to be done well. Building houses to high energy-efficiency standards can prevent billions of tons of carbon dioxide being emitted into the atmosphere. Similarly, building infrastructure that takes into account the likely effects of climate changewarmer temperatures and more extreme weather eventsreduces the probability of large-scale failures.
Bridges, coastal airports, and ports must be resilient to flooding and sea level rise. As the world electrifies, power lines and power plants, often forced to close by heatwaves, must be ready. When infrastructure fails, particularly after natural disasters, food or medical shortages can follow; much of the economic damage arises from these knock-on effects. The report estimates that $4 trillion in savings and benefits could arise from careful infrastructure planning. Yet only 5 out of the 35 OECD developed nations have changed their regulatory standards to account for these climate risks.
We have a choice: lock in infrastructure thats vulnerable to a changing climate and that contributes to the problem by wasting energy, or build and repair our infrastructure with climate in mind.
Climate change is already reducing crop yields in vulnerable regions like sub-Saharan Africa. Higher temperatures reduce water availability and allow pests and diseases to spread across new regions. Extreme weather events can destroy crops and prevent food from being distributed properly. All of this occurs against the backdrop of ever-increasing population and demand for foodas much as 50 percent by 2050.
The scientific innovations of the first Green Revolution headed off the most dire predictions about food availability in the 1950s and 60s, boosting agricultural productivity. Now investment needs to take place in new strains of climate-resistant crops. Diversifying strains and diets will help improve resilience to pests, diseases, and changing climatesand farms with more diverse sources of income are less likely to experience extreme poverty when climate shocks hit. Better agricultural technology and training needs to be shared with the small farmers in developing nations who live off the land.
Agriculture is at the forefront of climate vulnerability, and also plays its part in contributing to emissions, as rainforests are cleared for cattle and rice paddies emit methane. Its crucial that better land management, informed by scientific and technological developments, form part of the solution to climate change. Engagement and investment in this now will save lives.
In vulnerable regions, the length and severity of droughts are expected to grow under climate change. At the same time, flooding can jeopardize supplies of clean water. Competition for water between regions can fuel conflicts.
Rejuvenating the drainage basins that supply rivers and cities through restoration of wetlands and forests that are crucial to preventing runoff is important, as are planning for droughts and ensuring that reserves exist. But as with energy, so much can be achieved if we are smarter in the way we use our resources. Wastewater treatment and desalination can reclaim water thats not usable today. Authorities in large cities should allocate water for the most urgent uses, and repair leaky infrastructure to preserve the supply. Since 70 percent of freshwater is used in agriculture, improving irrigation techniques and using crop varieties that require less water can both help in this.
We might like to think that our technological prowess has made us masters of the natural world, and when you live in a large city, it can often feel like this is the case. But natural processes evolve on huge scales and often provide critical services to people.
Mangrove forests, which thrive in coastal regions, are an excellent example. They protect low-lying coastal communities from storm surges, acting as natural flood defenses. They lock in carbon dioxideup to ten times more than other terrestrial ecosystems. They provide natural habitats for many rare species. But 35 percent of the worlds mangroves have already been destroyed.Careful management of these and other vital ecosystems is necessary to help us adapt to climate change.
We have many of the tools we need to adapt to a changing climate. But whats worth emphasizing is that all of these adaptation tasks are worth completing anyway. Billions of lives could be improved by taking action that preserves natural ecosystems, enhances food and water security, protects us from natural disasters, and ensures resilient infrastructure for the coming decades.
In an increasingly interconnected world, these are everyones problems. There are few better ways to spend moneybut, as the report makes clear, investing now will save trillions in the future. What are we waiting for?
Image Credit: Roxanne Desgagns / Unsplash
Link:
5 Areas We Should Invest in Now to Survive Climate Change Later - Singularity Hub
- Downloads - Singularity Viewer - December 25th, 2016 [December 25th, 2016]
- What is Singularity (the)? - Definition from WhatIs.com - January 5th, 2017 [January 5th, 2017]
- When Electronic Witnesses Are Everywhere, No Secret's Safe - Singularity Hub - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Report: AMD Ryzen Performance in Ashes of the Singularity Benchmark - PC Perspective - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Do you believe in the Singularity? - Patheos (blog) - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Editorial Note From the Singularity Hub Team - Singularity Hub - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Discover the Most Advanced Industrial Technologies at Exponential Manufacturing - Singularity Hub - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- 10th Letter looks at nature in the time of the Singularity - Creative Loafing Atlanta - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Donald Trump Is the Singularity - Bloomberg View - Bloomberg.com - Bloomberg - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Wearable Devices Can Actually Tell When You're About to Get Sick - Singularity Hub - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- AMD 8-core Ryzen benchmark show up on Ashes Of The Singularity ... - VR-Zone - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Robot Cars Can Teach Themselves How to Drive in Virtual Worlds - Singularity Hub - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Physicists Unveil Blueprint for a Quantum Computer the Size of a Soccer Field - Singularity Hub - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- How Robots Helped Create 100000 Jobs at Amazon - Singularity Hub - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- Ready to Change the World? Apply Now for Singularity University's 2017 Global Solutions Program - Singularity Hub - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- Singularity Containers for Science, Reproducibility, and HPC - Linux.com (blog) - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- Families Finally Hear From Completely Paralyzed Patients Via New Mind-Reading Device - Singularity Hub - February 12th, 2017 [February 12th, 2017]
- artificial intelligence: the fear of a technological singularity ... - ETtech.com - February 13th, 2017 [February 13th, 2017]
- Holograms Aren't The Stuff of Science Fiction Anymore - Singularity Hub - February 15th, 2017 [February 15th, 2017]
- How the World Has Changed From 1917 to 2017 - Singularity Hub - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Preparing for the Singularity - Inverse - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Our Health Data Can Save Lives, But We Have to Be Willing to Share - Singularity Hub - February 17th, 2017 [February 17th, 2017]
- Ashes of the Singularity merges with standalone expansion Escalation, no upgrade fee - PCGamesN - February 17th, 2017 [February 17th, 2017]
- Just Stand Inside this Room and it Will Wirelessly Charge Your Phone - Singularity Hub - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- AMD bundles Ashes of the Singularity with FX processors ahead of Ryzen's launch - PCWorld - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation being merged with the original game - PC Invasion (blog) - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- Singularity - GameSpot - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- The roots of technological singularity can be traced backed to the Stone Age - Wired.co.uk - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- Jide's new OS is like an Android version of Windows 10's Continuum - The Verge - February 22nd, 2017 [February 22nd, 2017]
- Jide Announces Remix Singularity: The Continuum Alternative for Android - XDA Developers (blog) - February 22nd, 2017 [February 22nd, 2017]
- New Tech Makes Brain Implants Safer and Super Precise - Singularity Hub - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- One Android company wants to use smartphones to make PCs truly dead - BGR - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Remix tries its hand at the mobile-desktop hybrid OS with Singularity - Android Police - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Financial Leaders: Make Your Mark on the Future at Exponential Finance - Singularity Hub - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Remix Singularity is Jide's Android answer to Windows Continuum - SlashGear - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- AMD Radeon RX 580 Ashes of the Singularity Benchmarks Leaked 4K, Ryzen Combo, CrossFire and More! - Wccftech - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Damon Wayans Jr. Joins FX Sci-Fi Comedy Singularity - Den of Geek US - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- After Man? From Singularity to Specificity - Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) (press release) (blog) - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Why the Potential of Augmented Reality Is Greater Than You Think - Singularity Hub - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Damon Wayans Jr In Evan Goldberg & Seth Rogen AI comedy - /FILM - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Ashes of Singularity: Escalation Gets an Update - CGMagazine - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Google Updates: Scuba, Singularity, SMS and suing - The INQUIRER - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Singularity Art Show Tonight In San Francisco! - February 25th, 2017 [February 25th, 2017]
- Stardock celebrate v2.1 of Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation with a ... - PCGamesN - February 27th, 2017 [February 27th, 2017]
- Video: AI Is Getting Smarter, Says Singularity University's Neil ... - Wall Street Journal (subscription) (blog) - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- This Neural Probe Is So Thin, The Brain Doesn't Know It's There - Singularity Hub - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- Citizen Science Means Anyone Could Discover Planet NineEven You - Singularity Hub - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- Singularity University establishes new organisation in Denmark - Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- Singularity University opening organisation in Denmark - The Copenhagen Post - Danish news in english - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- Does Zapping Your Brain Actually Help You Learn Faster? - Singularity Hub - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- What You Need to Know About Elon Musk's Plan to Fly People to the Moon - Singularity Hub - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Singularity: Explain It to Me Like I'm 5-Years-Old - Futurism - Futurism - March 3rd, 2017 [March 3rd, 2017]
- Singularity for PC Reviews - Metacritic - March 4th, 2017 [March 4th, 2017]
- Singularity (mathematics) - Wikipedia - March 4th, 2017 [March 4th, 2017]
- See How This House Was 3D Printed in Just 24 Hours - Singularity Hub - March 6th, 2017 [March 6th, 2017]
- NYC's Metrograph theater is running a sci-fi film series featuring Blade Runner, Ex Machina, and Metropolis - The Verge - March 8th, 2017 [March 8th, 2017]
- 3 Exciting Biotech Trends to Watch Closely in 2017 - Singularity Hub - March 9th, 2017 [March 9th, 2017]
- New Burger Robot Will Take Command of the Grill in 50 Fast Food Restaurants - Singularity Hub - March 9th, 2017 [March 9th, 2017]
- Are These Giant Neurons the Seat Of Consciousness in the Brain? - Singularity Hub - March 10th, 2017 [March 10th, 2017]
- How Fully Synthetic Complex Life Just Got a Lot Closer - Singularity Hub - March 12th, 2017 [March 12th, 2017]
- Singularity University launches inaugural Canada Summit | BetaKit - BetaKit - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Singularity - Everything2.com - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Singularity (Game) - Giant Bomb - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation on Steam - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Approaching the World of Collaboration Singularity - CommsTrader - June 6th, 2017 [June 6th, 2017]
- Berkeley Lab's Open-Source Spinoff Serves Science | Berkeley Lab - Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Beyond Politics: Innovating for a Sustainable Future - Singularity Hub - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Tune Into the Future of Fintech at Exponential Finance This Week - Singularity Hub - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Experts Weigh in on AI and the Singularity - Futurism - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Singularity | Mass Effect Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Quantum Computers Will Analyze Every Financial Model at Once - Singularity Hub - June 8th, 2017 [June 8th, 2017]
- Deloitte and Singularity University Extend Their Relationship To ... - PR Newswire (press release) - June 8th, 2017 [June 8th, 2017]
- Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation 2.3 update adds a new campaign today - PC Gamer - June 8th, 2017 [June 8th, 2017]
- Singularity and Docker | Singularity - June 8th, 2017 [June 8th, 2017]
- Ashes of the Singularity gets a new fully-voiced campaign - PCGamesN - June 9th, 2017 [June 9th, 2017]
- At Exponential Finance, the Singularity University Explores Visionary Applications of Blockchains - Crypto Insider (press release) (blog) - June 9th, 2017 [June 9th, 2017]
- Get It While It's Hot: Why Fintech Is a Goldmine for Investors - Singularity Hub - June 10th, 2017 [June 10th, 2017]
- Forget Police Sketches: Researchers Perfectly Reconstruct Faces by Reading Brainwaves - Singularity Hub - June 14th, 2017 [June 14th, 2017]
- Singularity Summit comes to SA | IT-Online - IT-Online - June 16th, 2017 [June 16th, 2017]
- These 7 Disruptive Technologies Could Be Worth Trillions of Dollars - Singularity Hub - June 17th, 2017 [June 17th, 2017]