Page - 232 - in Loss and Damage from Climate Change - Concepts, Methods and Policy Options

232 K.vanderGeest et al. between climatic stressors, impacts on ecosystems, ecosystemservices, adaptation opportunities, limits andconstraints and residual losses anddamages.Acase study fromWestAfrica illustratedhowthisworksout ina real-world setting. The case study showed that causal links between climate change and a specific event,with subsequent losses anddamages, areoften complicated.Oversimplifica- tionmustbeavoidedandtheroleofdifferentfactors,suchasgovernanceormanage- mentofnaturalresources,shouldbeexploredfurther.Forexample,lackofinvestment inwater related infrastructure, agricultural technology, or health care services also increase the riskof losses anddamages. In theSahel, variability in rainfall patterns influences primary productivity, but barriers to pastoralists’ freedomofmovement havealso increased theirvulnerability todroughts. Thecasealsoshowsthatwhilesomeadaptationmeasureshavebeenimplemented, losses and damages have nevertheless occurred. For instance, adaptationmeasures inDrylandWestAfricaincludecrop-livestockintegration,soilfertilitymanagement, planting of drought-resistant crops, water harvesting, dug ponds forwatering ani- mals, livelihood diversification, and seasonal or permanent migration. A number of thesemethods have beenpracticed for generations.However, as climate change intensifies,promisingpracticeswillhave tobescaledupandnewmethodswillhave tobedevised.Awin-winsolutionwillbe to invest inambitiousmitigationaction to avoid theunmanageable, andcomprehensiveandholistic adaptationaction toman- age theunavoidable–includingbettermanagementofecosystemsandtheir services, improvedgovernance, andeconomicpolicies that support sustainabledevelopment. Ultimately,arangeofapproachesisneededtoaddressclimatechangeimpactsand toensure that resiliencebuildingefforts andsustainabledevelopment cancontinue. This includespolicyoptions toavert losses anddamages, and toaddress losses and damages that have not been or cannot be averted through enhancedmitigation and adaptation. These options include risk transfer, which can be used to both avoid and address losses and damages; risk retention, such as social protection policies; migration, recovery, rehabilitationandrebuildinginthewakeofextremeevents;and tools to address non-economic losses and damages.Approaches to avert and limit lossesanddamagesaswellas toaddress theresidual impactsofclimatechangewill bemore successful if they incorporate inclusive decision-making, account for the needsofawide rangeofactors, and target thepoorandvulnerable. As Loss andDamage is a new and emerging topic in science and policy, there aremoreunansweredquestions thananswers at present.We identify two important areas for future research and evidence gathering. First, there is a need to increase understandingofhowlossesanddamages tohumanwell-being ismediated through losses and damages to ecosystem services and of the specific policy entry points. Thisincludesmorestudyoftheadverseimpactsofclimatechange,includingclimate extremes, on ecosystem functioning. Examplesmay include the effects of extreme heatanddroughtonforest ecosystems, theconsequencesof sea level riseandstorm surge for coastal ecosystems ranging from sea grasses andmarshes tomangroves, andtheimplicationsofglacierlossondownstreamhydrologyandriparianecosystem functions. Second, it is important to document and evaluate the effectiveness of efforts to avert losses and damages and identify how the efficacy of tools andmeasures can