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UNDP and Climate ChangeRecent reports released by the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2007 state unequivocally that the world is warming
and that human activity – rather than just natural variations – has contributed
to current levels of warming. The reports provide a comprehensive analysis of how climate
change is affecting natural and human systems. The findings underscore that fact that climate
change is a key development concern. The people most at risk from climate change live in
countries that have contributed the least to the atmospheric build up of carbon dioxide
and other greenhouse gases linked to the recent warming of the planet. Further, those most
affected are also least able to cope, making it an issue of inequality and insecurity.
Human beings have traditionally adapted to changes in environment including climate change and climate variability and therefore to realigning means for living and livelihoods, often referred to as coping strategies. However such changes to a large extent were evolutionary that required gradual and at times spontaneous adaptation. Consequently social systems were able to draw upon their intrinsic resilience and allow for changes in environmental conditions. However, climate change as we understand today is different; the likely changes are expected to be rapid, more intense and randomly frequent thereby making the risks to the quality of life of the poorest higher and more complex. The larger the changes and rate of change in climate, the greater will be the adverse effects. Potential changes in the frequency, intensity, duration and persistency of climate extremes (e.g. heat waves, heavy precipitation, and drought) and in climate variability would result in increasing risk and enhancing vulnerability to the livelihoods of the poor. Furthermore, some impacts of climate change may be slow to become apparent and several could be irreversible. Projected climate changes during the 21st century will likely exacerbate the north-south divide by worsening poverty in developing countries. The adverse impacts of climate change will be most striking in the developing nations because of their geographical and climatic conditions, high dependence on natural resources, and lack of capacities to adapt to a changing climate1. These conditions contribute to disproportionate risk and high vulnerability of these countries, particularly for the least developed countries (LDCs) to damaging effects of climate change. Among the changes to which developing countries will have to adapt are an increase in the frequency and intensity of severe weather including the frequency and intensity of droughts and natural disasters, higher temperatures, and rising sea levels. Such changes will greatly increase the vulnerability of the poorest to natural disasters, imperil food and water security, adversely effect human health, speed ecosystem destruction, and jeopardize livelihoods. |
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