"Wisdom begins in wonder" – Socrates
Category: Policy
Climate Trajectories
01/23/21
“What are the different climate trajectories that we may be headed towards?”
Depending on how much investment is put into climate mitigation, we may be headed on vastly different trajectories. A 2 degrees C rise in temperatures by mid-century is going to be catastrophically different than one that is 5 degrees c. This is why understanding Climate Trajectories is so important, especially for designing climate-adapted infrastructure.
Image credit theconversation.com
International Climate Disasters
01/22/21
“What happens when a climate disaster strikes multiple countries at once?”
Climate disasters are commonly thought of as harming only one country. However, this is not always the case. Multiple countries can be hit at once. Examples include wildfire smoke in 2020 that spread from Baja California Mexico through the Western U.S Coast Into Canadian British Columbia or hurricanes that strike a contingent of island nations in the West Indies. International Climate Disasters require cooperation between multiple countries and will deepen with the advent of climate change.
Climate Adaptation Funding Gap Analysis
01/21/21
“How can we find gaps in climate adaptation funding?”
Climate adaptation funding is the driver behind resilience projects. However, some items get underfunded when they shouldn’t be. This is particularly common for projects that actually assist front-line communities. To solve this, we can use Climate Adaptation Funding Gap Analysis such as statistics to look for these problems.
Why Open Borders Can Save Millions of Climate Refugee Lives
01/20/21
“How could open borders save the lives of millions of climate refugees?”
The advent of climate change is going to uproot millions of people. These climate refugees may have to leave their country entirely. If other nations do not accept them, then they may be left out to perish. However, if open borders are implemented, then these people will be able to move into safer lands where they can find support. This is Why Open Borders Can Save Millions of Climate Refugee Lives.
Green-Grey Infrastructure Planning
01/18/21
“How can we combine green and grey infrastructure planning together?”
Green infrastructure and grey infrastructure are often thought of as being in direct conflict with one another. However, given the ferocity of climate change, both will be needed to build disaster-adapted infrastructure. Therefore, Green-Grey Infrastructure Planning will need to be done. One example is restoring a mangrove forest on the outer banks of a delta while building a porous street to flush out extraneous water.
Environmental Pollution Burden Review
01/17/21
“How can we review the environmental pollution burden that a new project may bring to an already-polluted community?”
Certain infrastructure projects such as power plants and waste dumps are known to bring pollution along with them. Usually these are placed in communities that have little to no structural power to fight back. As a result, some states and countries are crafting Environmental Pollution Burden Review legislation that will force companies and municipalities to review if a community has been burdened by prior pollution and potentially deny the request to construct it. This will be vital for implementing environmental justice reforms and healing the world.
Why Climate Change Will Make People More Exhausted
01/16/21
“Why will climate change make people more exhausted?”
Climate Change is going to change the environment immensely. One of the things it will do is make things more unpleasant, such as hotter weather, more humidity or droughts, and destabilized economies. This will increase stress in and exhaust people, leading to even more problems in the world. This is Why Climate Change Will Make People More Exhausted.
Why Mass Deforestation Will Lead to More Global Pandemics
01/15/21
“Why will mass deforestation lead to more global pandemics?”
Mass deforestation is a worldwide phenomenon. As our resource demands grow, so does the area of nature shrink. This will put humans more in contact with various kinds of animals, leading to the increased likelihood that novel coronaviruses are to break out. This is Why Mass Deforestation Will Lead to More Global Pandemics.
Social-Physical Vulnerability Adaptation Index
01/12/21
“How can we combine social and physical vulnerability indexes into one metric for adaptation?”
In adaptation research and planning, social and physical vulnerability indexes are often used discretely from one another. However, this need not always be the case. Using the proper statistical methodologies, both of these can be combined into a single Social-Physical Vulnerability Adaptation Index. With this, we can get a complete picture of how vulnerable a geographic territory or population may be to climate events. For example, a wealthy city in the WUI may be highly physically vulnerable to wildfire but not socially, while the opposite may be true for a port town.
Isaac's Science Blog 