Regional Impacts - Climate Resilient Agriculture for Ensuring Food Security - page 104

not always shared by the islands of continental
countries. More recent studies have identifi ed
major areas of adaptation, including water
resources and watershed management, reef con-
servation, agricultural and forest management,
conservation of biodiversity, energy security,
increased development of renewable energy, and
optimized energy consumption. A framework
which considers current and future community
vulnerability and involves methodologies inte-
grating climate science, social science, and com-
munication provides the basis for building
adaptive capacity. This approach requires com-
munity members to identify climate conditions
relevant to them and to assess present and poten-
tial adaptive strategies. One such methodology
was tested in Samoa and results from one village.
In this case, local residents identifi ed several
adaptive measures including building a seawall, a
water-drainage system, water tanks, a ban on tree
clearing, some relocation, and renovation to
existing infrastructure.
The IPCC AR4 has identifi ed several key
areas and gaps that are underrepresented in con-
temporary research on the impacts of climate
change on small islands. These include:
• The role of coastal ecosystems such as man-
groves, coral reefs, and beaches in providing
natural defenses against sea-level rise and
storms.
• Establishing the response of terrestrial upland
and inland ecosystems to changes in mean
temperature and rainfall and in temperature
and rainfall extremes.
• Considering how commercial agriculture, for-
estry, and fi sheries, as well as subsistence
agriculture, artisanal fi shing, and food secu-
rity, will be impacted by the combination of
climate change and non-climate-related
forces.
• Expanding knowledge of climate-sensitive
diseases in small islands through national and
regional research - not only for vector-borne
diseases but for skin, respiratory, and water-
borne diseases.

In contrast to the other regions in this
assessment, there is also an absence of reliable
demographic and socioeconomic scenarios and
projections for small islands. The result is that
future changes in socioeconomic conditions on
small islands have not been well presented in
the existing assessments. For example, without
either adaptation or mitigation, the impacts of
sea-level rise, more intense storms, and other
climate change will be substantial, suggesting
that some islands and low-lying areas may
become unlivable by 2100.

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• Given the diversity of “island types” and loca-

tions, identifying the most vulnerable systems
and sectors, according to island types.