Adaptations

Adaptation actions are key responses designed by countries, states, organizations and communities to address the challenges posed by global warming or climate change. Adaptation actions thus seek to reduce vulnerabilities, build resilience and enhance adaptive capacity against climate change induced shocks. While climate change is expected to create new opportunities in some parts of the world, it is also expected to cause considerable distress. The extent of the impact depends on the magnitude of climatic changes affecting a particular system (exposure), the characteristics of the system (sensitivity), and the ability of people and ecosystems to deal with the resulting effects (adaptive capacities of the system). These three factors determine the vulnerability of the system. Assessing vulnerability to climate change is important for defining the risks posed by climate change and provides information for identifying measures to adapt to climate change impacts. It enables practitioners and decision-makers to identify the most vulnerable areas, sectors and social groups. In turn, this means climate change adaptation options targeted at specified contexts can be developed and implemented.