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solar panel feasibility on individual buildings. This collaboration has led to on-the-
ground decision-making in the design and construction of cooler, green parking
lots as a heat island mitigation measure, centered on Pearson International Airport;
and partnering with the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) to
leverage the solar and heat mapping work for their Sustainable Neighbourhood
retrofit Action Plan (SNAP) sites.
Local climate change visioning as an applied research program has thus con-
tributed to longer-term outcomes on climate change awareness, policy, and action
in several Canadian communities. Early evidence suggests that it may have con-
tributed to a culture of change in thinking about and planning for climate change
among the practitioners and policy-makers involved. The next section discusses
the implications for practice and further research, within and beyond Canada.
7.4 Implications for the Use of Visualization in Responding
to Climate Change
Participatory, iterative processes, involving stakeholders throughout, have led to
credible outputs (Moser
2009
), based both on underlying science, local knowledge
(Rantanen and Kahila
2009
), and trust relationships with the research team. Par-
ticipatory processes have also provided local capacity on the local impacts and
response options related to climate change (Shaw et al.
2009
). However, evalua-
tion has shown that participatory processes which systematically incorporate vi-
sualisations can effectively convey salient information, and help to encourage
discussion and informed consideration of local climate change issues, risks, trends,
and response/policy options (Schroth
2007
; Sheppard et al.
2008
; Tatebe et al.
2010
; Burch et al.
2010
). The process and the tools taken together have had
measurable impacts on participants, including increased awareness, understanding,
and motivation to support policy change (Sheppard et al.
2008
; Schroth et al.
2009
;
Cohen et al.
2011
).
Experience to date with Local Climate Change Visioning processes in Canada
suggests a hunger among communities for more detailed and salient information
on climate change impacts and response options, a void not being filled at present
by any one discipline or conventional planning processes. There are few actual
climate change scientists available to communities, and very few if any local
governments are using visual learning tools to accelerate awareness and build
capacity on climate change among practitioners, policy-makers, or the public.
Local planners and engineers are increasingly tasked with forging a response on
climate change, but in North America at least there are as yet very few roadmaps
and no proven planning processes in place enabling communities to address,
holistically and practically, multiple climate change issues at the local level.
Adaptation and mitigation responses are often dealt with separately in silos within
responsible agencies. How then will these challenges and associated climate
change targets be met?
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