Climate and Disaster Resilience Essay

Resilience Alliance described resilience as a step of having and retaining same structure and functioning, which enables maintenance of identity. In this explanation, an example is creating a disturbance that overcomes a society to change, for instance, the creation of equal opportunities to women and curbing racial segregation. In matters climate change, the focus of resilience is through climate change adaptation (Kelman, Gaillard, & Mercer, 2015). The appraisal of the authors, recommends climate adaptation as a critical approach to minimize disaster risk. Climate change is a significant contributor to disaster risk and vulnerability. Disaster risk elimination or reduction is currently profoundly reliant on enhancing resilience, and thus adaptation to climate is a crucial step. The bounce forward ability from resilience is reliant on current responses evaluation, preparedness, and prevention preparedness (Manyena et al., 2011). The first step in moving beyond climate change and resilience is the inclusion of climate change as part of disaster risk reduction. Research, policy-making and long-term solutions are the fundamental needs currently. Efforts should target finding causes of vulnerability and sensitization in matters policy, integration of multiple integrations and consequences. To save humanity, the theoretical significance of climate change should be evaluated. Also, the development and sustainability goals should be adopted. The UNDP recommends Sustainable Development Goals as a tool for building on resilience by ensuring disaster risk reduction on climate change by advocating for risk-informed development (United Nations Development Programme, 2018).

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

According to Pereira, Hunt, & Chan (2014), a crucial step in advocating for climate resilience and disaster prevention is strengthening science and technology in its use in dealing with hazards in vulnerable regions and populations. The authors echo the importance of technology role particularly climate change and variability. For instance, weather forecasting, climate modeling, and prediction of coastal inundation and floods. The use of technology and science has been successful in the prevention of disasters, but this has not been effected to maximum potential. The research gap addressed in this journal article as of 2015 is on the limited use of technology in climate resilience and prevention of disasters. A major limiting factor has been non-existent and incomplete records of information coupled with restricted access. The proposed solution is the invention of a Network for Climate Science and Technology (NCST) (Pereira, Hunt, & Chan, 2014). Through this institute, researchers will be facilitated to exchange relevant information and engage in the development of coordination projects that promote resilience. The authors argue that climate resilience and disaster prevention would be boosted by openness between organizations and researcher. Also, relevant stakeholders have to bear a participatory role in controlling hazards associated with climate variability (Paton & Johnston, 2017).

Science and technology can be used in disaster management. For instance, use of geographic information systems, communication and information technology, remote sensing, and satellite data can be efficiently utilized in risk stratification (Alonso, 2017). World Bank, one of the major funders in climate resilience, attributed the risk of increased flooding to rapid and unplanned urbanization. Scientific capacity in this fight against vulnerability can be utilized to cover research relating to technology use in establishing resilience. There is a challenge in justifying the role of development agencies in investing in technology, such as Doppler radar in determining and predicting size and intensity of storms. However, World Bank's GFDRR (Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery) focuses on the use of technology in the identification of disaster risks. The organization has a firm belief that technology can boost resilience (World Bank, 2017).

Effective Adaptation to Climate Change

Adaptation is defined as an anticipatory means of adverse climatic change and efforts taken to minimize or prevent the impact that can be caused. Effective adaptation to climate change is dependent on the proper use of energy, water, land, and other scarce resources. Most countries do not focus on the interdependence and interconnection between the three primary resources (Rasul & Sharma, 2016). Practical use of these scarce vital resources is the most crucial step in climate change adaptation. Preparedness to climate risks requires planning with sufficient knowledge and foresight (Bassett & Fogelman, 2013).

The European Commission advocates for adaptation measures such as efficient use of scarce water resources, development of crops which are tolerant to drought, prevention of storms and fires through planting appropriate tree species and fostering a good forestry culture (European Commision, 2018). Additionally, adaptation has an element of preparing for future climatic conditions and adverse weather. Thus, effective adaptation also incorporates building defenses for flood and raising dykes' levels as well as segregating land corridors to assist species migration (Maru, Race, Sparrow, & Mathew, 2015).

According to Wise et al., 2014, there is a need to change the shift from impacts and vulnerabilities to adaptation actions due to the global warming incident. There is available evidence of the effects of climate change on natural systems, and it is widely recognized. However, the efforts to climate change adaptation have not yielded success over the past years. Authors of this article identify the research gap as a paucity of information relating to the integration of methodological theoretical and procedural understanding in adaptation conceptualization. The traditional complex role of adaptation coupled with complex and uncertain nature of proposed future changes bears a challenge to the conceptualization of adaptation (Wise et al., 2014).

The degree to which implementation of conceptualization of adaptation will depend on the stakeholders' extent can engage in comparative learning from organizational and other social networks that can be considered useful case studies (Andersson & Keskitalo, 2018). It is the importance of not only addressing the solutions to environmental change but also, the conceptualization and incorporation of population experiences to adverse effects of climate change to highlight the societal norms and values that are currently the pre-existing problems.

Through this, a sustainable trajectory towards sustainable development will be realized since organizations, institutions and the general public will hold greater responsibility in fighting climate change.

Similarly, pointing out impacts on future socio-economic factors, the vulnerability in specific affected areas, and the need for adaptation for relative cost-effectiveness in Europe has boosted effective adaptation (Harrison, Holman, & Berry, 2015). By focusing on underlying issues, the society reflects on harmful practices, and subsequently, the negative social behaviors would be stopped (Mullan, 2015).

Climate Finance

In many countries, climate finance is often considered costless in global policy. However, the reality is that this financing involves transaction costs that are high. Donor governments channel funds to developing countries in a bid to help them combat climate change. The current trend, however, is channeling through multilateral and bilateral organizations which implement and monitor the progress. Direct transfers are risky due to the enormous costs and uncertainty of recipient's capacity, contract enforcement and predictability of outcomes. Thus, through alternative routes, there is a low probability of scrutiny by policy-makers (Brunner & Enting, 2014). Industrialized countries under United Nations Framework Convention on climate change agreed to cover costs associated with mitigation of climate change in developing countries. According to climate finance could hit a rocket high of $400 billion by 2020 the most significant beneficiary being Sub-Saharan Africa (Jakob, Steckel, Flachsland, & Baumstark, 2015).

According to the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) report, temperature goal of below two degree Celsius can be achieved by an estimated investment of $1.1 trillion (Buchner et al., 2014). Scaling up the investment will ensure a transition to a climate-resilient and low-carbon environment. However, the funding in climate finance has progressively decreased from 2011 to 2015. For instance, there has been a decrease in the amount of money invested in renewable energy. If temperature goals are to be achieved, this trend cannot continue. The need for investment in climate change is due to scarce government funding in the least developed countries. The financing should, however, be stabilized by regulations and rules regarding its use (World Resources Institute, 2018). The management should be both at international, national and sub-national level.

A study on the need of climate finance by Wen Zhang and Xun Pan (2016) argues that The INDC (Intended Nationally Determined Contribution) presents an opportunity for donor countries to evaluate the finance climate demand, accountability, and prior planning. The study incorporated submitted INDC reports for developing countries. The appraisal of the two authors is three recommendations. First, (INDC), is essential and growing countries should be fully aware. These countries should safeguard the balance and comprehensiveness of various aspects of the INDC. Secondly, these countries need to coordinate and improve the transparency in climate finance through use of links with donor countries. Through this, the future reports of INDC will have comparability and ensure fairness. Thirdly, countries need to set new targets for climate finance as the sum might reach a combined US$100 billion in 2020 (Zhang & Pan, 2016). New theoretical approaches based on scientific summary and evaluation should be suggested for developing countries so that climate finance can bear predictability and accountability (Nakhooda et al., 2014).

The Paris' enhanced transparency framework is the solution to climate finance accounting and reporting. The article by Weikmans and Roberts (2017) highlights the controversy in figures accounted for in the climate finance. Lack of modalities that are recognized internationally and agreed on leads to erosion of trust between parties (Weikmans & Roberts, 2017). Thus, without such patterns, reporting and accounting of the climate finance will have controversies.

Energy and Climate Change

The revolution towards sustainable development is driven by the focus on renewable energy. The current state of energy use is unsustainable. According to Kaygusuz (2015), Greenhouse gas emissions are estimated to double by 2050 if no decisive actions are undertaken. Also, with the ever-increasing demand for oil, wars will escalate. Thus, there are increased calls to actualize use of environmentally, economically and socially friendly supplies of energy. Examples of this sources of energy include low-carbon energy technology. IEA (Inter...