Environment Focus
An environmental lens on policies for better lives
Category: Adaptation
COP26: Big steps forward on adaptation and resilience
By Michael Mullan, OECD Environment Directorate While I was at COP26 in Glasgow, one of the speakers said that hope was not the same as optimism; rather it was about being able to see the possibility of a better future. In that sense, I… Continue Reading “COP26: Big steps forward on adaptation and resilience”
Building it “right” in African cities — not back better
By Brilé Anderson, OECD Sahel and West Africa Club The African continent is urbanising quickly — in other words, more and more people are living in cities. In the second half of the twentieth century, the population in African cities grew eightfold, from 27… Continue Reading “Building it “right” in African cities — not back better”
Building resilience to natural disaster risk in agriculture
By Francesca Casalini and Jesús Antón, OECD Trade and Agriculture Directorate As one of the economic sectors most inherently exposed to natural hazards, risk management has always been a key issue for agriculture. During the last few decades, however, the frequency and intensity of… Continue Reading “Building resilience to natural disaster risk in agriculture”
Seeing the value in climate science
By Dr. Heather Plumpton, Walker Institute at the University of Reading, UK The recent OECD workshop on approaches to reduce and manage the risks of losses and damages from climate change was fascinating. Not only due to the interesting and novel insights from the… Continue Reading “Seeing the value in climate science”
Changing climate, changing coasts: Why resilience matters
By Marta Arbinolo and Catherine Gamper, OECD Environment Directorate Coastal zones have always been one of the most attractive settlement areas because of their access to the ocean, their richness in natural resources, and the high quality of life they offer. As our new… Continue Reading “Changing climate, changing coasts: Why resilience matters”
Climate resilience is essential for a sustainable financial system
By Michael Mullan, OECD Environment Directorate At the start of the 2000s, consumers were surprised to discover that some of their “beef” lasagne was instead made out of horsemeat. Several years later, the global financial system was brought to its knees by the discovery… Continue Reading “Climate resilience is essential for a sustainable financial system”
La résilience climatique est indispensable à un système de financement durable
De Michael Mullan, Direction de l’environnement de l’OCDE Au début des années 2000, les consommateurs ont eu la surprise de découvrir que leurs lasagnes “au boeuf” étaient parfois faites avec de la viande de cheval. Des années après, le système financier global s’est retrouvé… Continue Reading “La résilience climatique est indispensable à un système de financement durable”
Climate change mitigation and adaptation: managing two sides of the same coin
By Catherine Gamper and Mikaela Rambali, OECD Environment Directorate Even if global average temperature increases are limited to below 2°C, there will still be serious climate impacts. Since pre-industrial times, we have witnessed a global average temperature increase of 1.1°C, while ocean acidity has… Continue Reading “Climate change mitigation and adaptation: managing two sides of the same coin”
2021: Adaptation comes to the fore
By Catherine Gamper and Nicolina Lamhauge, OECD Environment Directorate We entered 2021, full of hope that the approval of COVID-19 vaccines would bring some respite from the crisis brought about by the pandemic. With manufacturing delays, unequal access and delays in the roll-out of… Continue Reading “2021: Adaptation comes to the fore”
Harnessing nature to tackle the climate emergency
By Mikaela Rambali and Catherine Gamper, OECD Environment Directorate While the term “nature-based solutions” may have been coined relatively recently, communities worked with nature’s strengths to enhance societal resilience long before modern civilisation. For example, the Aztecs developed an agro‐hydrological system, known as the… Continue Reading “Harnessing nature to tackle the climate emergency”
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