Roger Street

Assessing the long-term performance of cross-sectoral strategies for national infrastructure

National infrastructure systems (energy, transport, digital communications, water, and waste) provide essential services to society. Although for the most part these systems developed in a piecemeal way, they are now an integrated and highly interdependent “system of systems.” However, understanding the long-term performance trajectory of national infrastructure has proved to be very difficult because of the complexity of these systems (in physical and institutional terms) and because there is little tradition of thinking cross-sectorally about infrastructure system performance. Here, a methodology is proposed for analyzing national multisectoral infrastructure systems performance in the context of uncertain futures, incorporating interdependencies in demand across sectors. Three contrasting strategies are considered for infrastructure provision (capacity intensive, capacity constrained, and decentralized) and multiattribute performance metrics are analyzed in the context of low, medium, and high demographic and economic growth scenarios. The approach is illustrated using Great Britain and provides the basis for the development and testing of long-term strategies for national infrastructure provision. It is especially applicable to mature industrial economics with a large stock of existing infrastructure and challenges of future infrastructure provision.

Leading the UK Adaptation Agenda: A Landscape of Stakeholders and Networked Organizations for Adaptation to Climate Change

This chapter is a review of the landscape of adaptation science and policy stakeholders and networks in the United Kingdom. The aim is to broadly map the key stakeholders and the activities in the science and policy sectors, and across regions and the Devolved Administrations. This is done to gain a better understanding of the range and scope of adaptation actions in the United Kingdom to date. The chapter makes advances in understanding the evolution of the UK adaptation landscape and demonstrates how adaptation policy and science are building adaptive capacity across institutions and networks. We conclude that adaptation policy and actions represent a change to living with climate change futures. The chapter also highlights that there remain significant challenges ahead, in particular in the realm of science.

Adapting to an Uncertain Climate -Lessons from Practice

Benefits policy developers and advisors, practitioners, researchers and others interested in dealing with uncertainty in climate adaptation decision-making Offers case studies from different geographical regions and a wide variety of real-life adaptation situations Presents a new support framework for climate change adaptation decisions under uncertainty Climate change highlights the challenges for long-term policy making in the face of persistent and irreducible levels of uncertainties. It calls for the development of flexible approaches, innovative governance and other elements that contribute to effective and adaptive decision-making. Exploring these new approaches is also a challenge for those involved in climate research and development of adaptation policy. Targeted specifically at policy developers and advisors, practitioners, climate knowledge brokers, researchers and interested adaptation decision-makers, this book differs from other titles addressing climate change adaptation and uncertainty by using real life cases to address distinct and pertinent uncertainties in actual adaptation situations. The editors introduce the role of uncertainties in informing adaptation decisions, showing why and how this is important, and why decisions do not have to wait until uncertainties are resolved. They go on to explore uncertainty assessments supporting decision-making on climate change adaptation, with sections on variability, uncertainty typology, climate change and projection of risks. A discussion of national adaptation planning follows with sections on sources and levels of uncertainty, communication of uncertainty and guidance for adaptation planning under uncertainty. The book provides a dozen real-life examples of adaptation decision making in the form of case studies: · Studies on water supply management in Portugal, England and Wales and Hungary · Studies on flooding, including flood risk in Ireland, coastal flooding and erosion in Southwest France and flood management in New Zealand’s Hutt River region · Studies on transport and utilities, including the Austrian Federal railway system and public transit in Dresden, and Quebec hydro-electric power · A report examining communication of large numbers of climate scenarios in Dutch climate adaptation workshops The concluding section outlines a new support framework for adaptation decisions under uncertainty, as well as guidance, recommendations and decision support for readers to apply in their own work. In the spirit of the newly adopted EU Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change, the book aims - as does the CIRCLE-2 project from which it emanates - to assist informed decision-making, and to provide added value through increased knowledge sharing.

Commonalities between Disaster and Climate Change Risks for Health: A Theoretical Framework

Disasters and climate change have significant implications for human health worldwide. Both climate change and the climate-sensitive hazards that result in disasters, are discussed in terms of direct and indirect impacts on health. A growing body of literature has argued for the need to link disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. However, there is limited articulation of the commonalities between these health impacts. Understanding the shared risk pathways is an important starting point for developing joint strategies for adapting to, and reducing, health risks. Therefore, this article discusses the common aspects of direct and indirect health risks of climate change and climate-sensitive disasters. Based on this discussion a theoretical framework is presented for understanding these commonalities. As such, this article hopes to extend the current health impact frameworks and provide a platform for further research exploring opportunities for linked adaptation and risk reduction strategies.

Introduction to the Use of Uncertainties to Inform Adaptation Decisions

Our social, cultural and economic sustainability and that of future generations depend on quality decisions and policies that address risks and opportunities. As these decisions and policies are for the most part evidence-based and uncertainties are inherent in that evidence, the quality of those decisions and policies requires effective use of that evidence, including the uncertainties. This chapter provides an introduction to this subject and to the experiences and lessons learnt presented in the publication. It indicates why the authors of the publication believe such a publication is needed and the audience we believe will benefit from such a publication. It also provides a brief description of the content of the ensuing chapters and suggests alternative pathways by which those with specific interests may navigate through the publication. In so doing, the intention has been to invite those interested to learn from others and benefit from those shared experiences.

Transferability of decision-support tools

The potential for transferring and translating existing adaptation to climate change decision-support tools for use in different settings provides both opportunities and challenges to those wanting to support such decisions in or for the targeted community/organisation. The opportunities are related to being able to build on an existing credible and tested tool and its supportive resources and foregoing the costs associated with developing such themselves. The challenges relate to taking advantages of the strengths of an existing tool whilst adapting it and its supportive resources such that they are fit for purpose and accepted within the targeted community/organisation. This paper identifies and explores these opportunities and challenges through those revealed as a result of transferring and translating the UKCIP Adaptation Wizard for use within other parts of the world and in different communities and organisations. Whilst drawing on a number of different examples of where the Wizard has been translated, this paper particularly focuses on the transfer and translation for use in Portugal and in Brazil. General lessons learnt related to transferring adaptation decision-support tools are identified and used to develop a practical framework. The intention is to provide insights that have broader implications for those considering transferring similar adaptation decision-support tools, but also for tool developers who want to see their tools being used more broadly.

Briefing: Strategic research on climate impacts

This briefing outlines UK strategic research programmes on climate impacts and adaptation for infrastructure, the built environment and utilities over the past eight years. Future research prospects are highlighted.