Publication

With barriers such as extremely fragile ecological conditions, severe water shortage, few financial resources, poor infrastructure, low levels of education, and little access to technology and markets, Northwestern China has been suffering from climate variations and will experience severe impacts of climate change on food production, water resources, and ecosystem health. In this project, an integrated approach was developed for identifying regional vulnerabilities to climate variations and change, and for prioritizing adaptation options to deal with climate change vulnerability. Different methods were employed to form the integrated approach, including surveys, workshops, multi-stakeholder consultation, ecological simulation modeling, geographical information system (GIS), remote sensing, and multi-criteria decision-making. The project addresses the following questions: 1) How vulnerable is Western China to current climate variations and future climate change in key sectors? 2) What can the vulnerabilities of these key sectors to present climate variations teach us about future vulnerability? and 3) What are the desirable adaptation options to deal effectively with future climate change? The project has engaged key Chinese stakeholders at national and local levels. It has also improved the scientific capacity in the region and suggested practical adaptation options and/or policies to effectively handle climate change impacts and to enhance regional sustainable development. 

Project website: http://essi.nju.edu.cn/AIACC/website/index.htm