Outline of Presentation
1. Defining L&D and Related Concepts
2. History of L&D in International Negotiations
3. Details of the Warsaw International Mechanism on L&D
4. Evidence from Nine Country Case Study (UNU-EHS)
5. Conceptualizing L&D (avoiding vs. addressing)
6. How to Address L&D
7. Challenges in Measuring L&D
8. Completed/Ongoing/Upcoming Research
9. Next Steps
Defining Loss and Damage
Loss and Damage (working definitions):
“Effects that would not have happened in a world without climate change, which have not been mitigated, and which
cannot be (or have not been) adapted to” (ActionAid, 2010)
“The actual and/or potential manifestation of impacts associated with climate change in developing countries that negatively affect human and natural systems” (UNFCCC, 2012)
“Representing the actual and/or potential manifestation of
climate impacts that negatively affect human and natural systems” (CDKN, 2012)
“The impacts of climate change that people cannot cope with or
adapt to” (Warner and van der Geest, 2013)
Limits to Adaptation
“The impacts of climate change that people cannot cope with or adapt to” (Warner and van der Geest, 2013)
“[T]he point at which an actor’s objectives (or system
needs) cannot be secured from intolerable risks through adaptive actions” (Dow et al., 2013)
See: Warner, K., and van der Geest, K., (2013) Loss and damage from climate change: Local-level evidence from nine vulnerable countries. International Journal of Global Warming 5(4), 1-20.
Dow, K., Berkhout, F., Preston, B., Klein, R.J.T., Midley, G., Shaw, R., (2013) Commentary: Limits to adaptation. Nature Climate Change 3, 305–307
Other Definitions
Loss vs. Damage Loss: impacts of climate change that cannot be recovered Damage: impacts that can be recovered
Hard vs. Soft Limit Hard Limit: adaptation is no longer possible Soft Limit: adaptation strategies to avoid intolerable risk are
not available
Economic vs. Non-Economic L&D Economic L&D: items for which market values can be assigned Non-Economic L&D: items for which market values cannot
(easily) be assigned (ie. indirect use values or symbolic values)
Economic L&D Impacts
Use Value (measured with economic means and the generation of profit)
Structural Impacts Buildings Homes/Shelters Roads Factories Machinery
Livelihood Impacts Crop loss Land use for production Employment Rent
Challenges with Measuring
The biggest issue with using markets to measure L&D is that markets (Morrissey and Oliver-Smith, 2013):
1. Do not value public goods2. Tend to ignore symbolic values needed to forge
identify and come together to problem solve3. Fail to value knowledge systems
Formal qualitative accounts of L&D tend to undervalue the real costs of climate change.
See: Morrissy, J. and Oliver-Smith, A. (2013) Perspectives on Non-Economic Loss and Damage: Understanding Values at risk due to climate change. CDKN Research. Available at: www.lossanddamage.net/download/7213.pdf
Non-Economic Impacts
Non-economic losses and damages go beyond the quantifiable
Human lives Health Psychological Impacts Education Traditions/Religious Symbolic Assets Cultural Heritage Biodiversity Ecosystem services
History of L&D in Int’l Negotiations1991
• Vanatu proposal to include an insurance mechanism for the cost of climate change in the convention
2007
• COP13 in Bali called for understanding of risk management, reduction sharing and transfer
2010
• COP16 in Cancun launched a work programme for enhanced understanding of L&D
2012
• COP18 in Doha called for the establishment of institutional arrangements on L&D at COP19
2013
• COP19 in Warsaw established the Warsaw International Mechanism (WIM) on L&D
Warsaw Int’l Mechanism (WIM)
Highlights from the work plan of the Executive Committee of the WIM: Identify tools, technologies, lessons learned and best practices to
facilitate comprehensive risk management Assess and develop recommendations to enhance knowledge and
capacity to address slow onset processes Invite relevant risk management and humanitarian organizations to
develop country specific analyses of the risk of loss and damage and develop institutional arrangements to prevent and manage loss and damage
Establish an expert group to develop recommendations for reducing the risk of and addressing non-economic losses
Need to enhance understanding of: how loss and damage impacts vulnerable people and countries, slow onset processes and approaches to address them, human mobility and non-economic losses
See: http://unfccc.int/files/adaptation/cancun_adaptation_framework/loss_and_damage/application/pdf workplan_18sept_11am.pdf
Nine Country Case Study
Found L&D occurs in four different cases:
1. Coping and adaptation measures are not sufficient
2. Coping and adaptation measures have costs that are not recovered (both economic and non-economic)
3. Coping and adaptation measures are erosive and increase vulnerability
4. No coping or adaptation measures are implemented because of a lack of capacity or resources or because the hard limits of adaptation have been reached
See: Warner, K., and van der Geest, K., (2013) Loss and damage from climate change: Local-level evidence from nine vulnerable countries. International Journal of Global Warming 5(4), 1-20.
Conceptualizing L&D
Avoiding L&D:
Mitigation, adaptation, risk management and sustainable development
Addressing Residual L&D:
Risk management (risk transfer, risk retention, relief and reconstruction)
Addressing Residual L&D
Risk Reduction: Structural measures such as embankments, cyclone shelters, etc. Non-structural measures such as the use of indigenous knowledge,
early earning systems, etc.
Risk Transfer: Insurance, micro-insurance, risk pooling, catastrophe bonds
Risk Retention: Social safety nets/social protection measures, contingency
funds/loans
Other: Sustainable development, livelihood diversification, migration
policies, national frameworks and policies and regional agreements
Challenges
Attribution
Data collection
Spatial/temporal scales
Differentiating direct/indirect impacts
Perceptions/physical characteristics
Quantitative/qualitative assessments
Completed Research
Loss and Damage in Vulnerable Country Initiative
Compendium project with ICCCAD, GermanWatch, MCII and UNU-EHS
All publications are available at:
www.lossanddamage.net
Key Findings from Bangladesh
Transformational approaches are needed to address L&D
Comprehensive approaches are necessary to effectively address L&D
Capacity building is required to effectively design and implement approaches to L&D
Enhance collaboration and communication within as well as between government agencies and external research organizations
Enhance public awareness about climate change
Linking national, regional and international processes
Finance and technology transfer will be required to undertake research
Establishment of a national-level L&D mechanism
See: Roberts, E. et al. (2013) Early Lessons from the Process to Enhance Understanding of Loss and Damage in Bangladesh. CDKN Research. Available at: www.lossanddamage.net/4945
Ongoing Research
Asia-Pacific Network on Global Change Research (APN-GCR) 14 Project initiative on DRR, CCD and L&D research
Enhanced Understanding on: The risk of slow onset events Economic and non-economic L&D Impacts on the most vulnerable Approaches to slow onset and extreme events into climate-
resilient development processes How climate change is affecting patterns of mitigation,
displacement and human mobility
All research will be available at:
www.lossanddamageforum.org
Next Steps
Explore and expand synergies with existing policy agendas on DRR, CCA and sustainable development
Identify limits to adaptation and understand who is particularly vulnerable to experiencing loss and damage
Understand how different value systems can help avoid/reduce future losses and damages
Enhance understanding of how transformative adaptation can play a role in avoiding and reducing loss and damage
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