Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
At the same time, more availability of CO
2
would help in improved yield
of root crops and increased temperature may shorten the period.
Conventional approaches to understanding climate change were lim-
ited to identifying and quantifying the potential long-term climate im-
pacts on different ecosystems and economic sectors. While useful in de-
picting general trends and dynamic interactions between the atmosphere,
biosphere, land, oceans and ice, this top-down, science-driven approach
failed to address the regional and local impacts of climate change and the
local abilities to adapt to climate-induced changes. This impact-driven ap-
proach (Adger et al., 1999) gave way to a new generation of scholarship,
whichutilized bottom-up or vulnerability-driven approaches that assessed
past and present current vulnerability, existing adaptation strategies, and
how these might be modified with climate change. Vulnerability in this
context is defined as, “the degree to which a system issusceptible to, or un-
able to cope with, the adverse effects of climate change, including climate
variability and extremes” and adaptation as, “adjustmentsin ecological,
social or economic systems in response to actual or expectedstimuli and
their effects or impacts. This term refers to changes in processes, practices
and structures to moderate potential damages or to benefit fromopportuni-
ties associated with climate change” (IPCC, 2001).
The international community is continuing to grapple with the likely
socioeconomic and environmental impacts that shall result from climate
change. Adaptation to climate change is a new process for both developed
and developing nations, and concrete experience in applying an integrated
approach to adaptation is limited. The adaptation line of inquiry reflects
the international community's escalating need to prepare for and adapt to
climate change and to ensure that any future climate change regime will
bestow on the issue its legitimate recognition. It also recognizes growing
international awareness of the need to integrate adaptation issues into core
policy and decision-making processes. The question that needs to be ad-
dress is how adaptation to climate variability and change can be more fully
integrated into development policies and what are the funding instruments
for adaptation?
The rationale for integrating adaptation into development strategies and
practices is underlined by the fact that interventions required to increase
resilience to climate variability and change generally further development
objectives. Adaptation calls for natural resource management, buttressing
food security, development of social and human capital and strengthen-
