"Wisdom begins in wonder" – Socrates
Tag: Policy
Hail Resilience
12/05/19
“How can we protect ourselves against hail?”
Hail is very intrusive. It damages car windows, roofs, and transmission lines. As a result, we need to build Hail Resilience in some form. Whether it be bulletproof glass in windows or shielding on electricity poles, this can be accomplished.
Image credit dmn-dallas-news-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com
Short-Term Climate Refugees
12/04/19
“How are people temporarily displaces from their homes because of climate change?”
Climate change is making environmental disasters larger and stronger than ever before. Whether it be the fires raging in Northern California or the Hurricanes blasting Puerto Rico, things are definitely not what they used to be. This can cause locations to be temporarily uninhabitable, and only after infrastructure reaches a certain level of repair can these Short-Term Climate Refugees return to their home. An example of this can be found in Hurricane Katrina, where numerous families from New Orleans had to spend extended time outside of the city before returning.
Image credit static01.nyt.com
Wildfire Fuels Management
11/29/19
“How can we manage the amount of burnable fuels found in wildfires?”
Wildfires are becoming an increasingly difficult problem in dense, forested, dry regions as a result of climate change. One of the most critical vulnerabilities in these areas are the fuel, or material that can ignite wildfires on the ground. Through Wildfire Fuels Management, we can look at what might be igniting these fires and ensure that proper mitigation is achieved.
Image credit http://people.forestry.oregonstate.edu/
How a Circular Economy Enhances Societal Resilience
11/28/19
“How can a circular economy enhance climate change resilience?”
The circular economy is touted as a strong pathway to curb emissions and material waste. But since it also reduces the amount of materials that a society needs to consume, it also ends up increasing societal resilience as there are less choke points that can harm it. For example, a community with a localized supply-chain for critical items such as food can keep themselves stable in case of a natural disaster and an economy that can recycle some of the rare-earth minerals it uses will not need to rely as much on suppliers which may act against their interest given conflict. This is How a Circular Economy Enhances Societal Resilience.
Disaster Recovery
11/25/19
“How can communities and institutions recover from disasters?”
Disasters happen all the time, particularly with the rise of climate change. As a result, when they strike, communities and institutions will need to be prepared with Disaster Recovery methods, whether it be codified plans or asset resilience prioritization.
Why Too Much Wildfire Suppression Can Lead to More Fires
11/24/19
“Why should we calm down on wildfire suppression so more fires can be prevented?”
Wildfires can be quite scary. Their uncontrollable, deadly nature makes it inconvenient for municipal governments and damaging to nearby communities. For this reason, the wildfire emergency management programs in the United States, Canada, and Australia usually put out such disasters at first notice. However, this leads to a large amount of flammable material being present, making future wildfires bolder and even more deadly. To prevent this, controlled burns need to be instituted to ensure that regenerative processes can occur. This is Why Too Much Wildfire Suppression Can Lead to More Fires.
Wildfire Evacuations
11/23/19
“Why might people need to temporarily evacuate from wildfires?”
Wildfires are incredibly dangerous natural disasters. When a single tree sparks, it can cascade into threatening the livelihood of entire communities. When this happens, people may need to evacuate from their homes to safer areas further away from these damages. These Wildfire Evacuations are an important tool for wildfire emergency management.
Image credit cdn1.thr.com
Wildfire Emergency Management
11/18/19
“How can we manage wildfire emergencies?”
The increasingly dry and hot weather in Mediterranean climates brought about by global warming is causing wildfires to exponentially increase exponentially in intensity and size. To combat this, WIldfire Emergency Management, or response to thee events, needs to be revised and implemented across the board.
How to Build Resilience Against Fire-Inducing Winds
11/15/19
“How can we make our communities more resilient against fire-inducing winds?”
Strong winds have the potential to induce wildfires in hot dry climates. This threat will only be magnified by the transformed weather conditions induced by climate change. So how can we make our communities more resilient against these fire-inducing winds? Well, there are multiple ways of accomplishing this. First, more accurate weather prediction services can be developed so people can have a better sense of when strong winds are present. Another way is to develop microgrids connected to distributed energy resources to ensure a steady flow of electricity when the main grid has been shut down by the utility. Utilities can also underground transmission lines to insulate them against the effects of strong winds. These are only a few ways that we can think about How to Build Resilience Against Fire-Inducing Winds.
Image credit images.newscientist.com
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