Reality Of Climate Research Articles

Is Australia's urban-regional schism on climate reality or rhetoric?

Research and popular discourse have not settled on whether there exists an urban-regional divide on climate. In Australia, we observe rhetoric in the public sphere suggesting such a divide. In this paper we examine whether the urban-regional schism on climate reflects the reality of Australians' opinions on climate change. We conducted a quota survey of the Australian population (N = 2,952) and measured opinion across seven climate and seven social issues. We found limited evidence of an urban-regional divide on climate change and most social issues. However, urban and regional Australians’ attitudes differed on one item: perception of difference between urban and regional people. We suggest that urban-regional divide rhetoric may appeal to rural identifying people, not regional residents per se. We also identified the role of media habits: consumption of ABC (the national broadcaster) or Sky News (News Corp subscription channel) are significant predictors of climate opinion.

Policy responses to extreme heat and its impact on education: The Philippine experience

This paper investigates the experiences and impacts of extreme heat on the Philippine education system during the “summer” seasons of 2023 and 2024, drawing on publicly available data and news reports. It critically examines government responses to the unprecedented challenges posed by emerging extreme heat conditions as part of the new climate normal. Various policy measures were implemented by government agencies to mitigate the adverse effects on students and teachers, including face-to-face class suspensions, shifts to alternative instructional methods, adjusted class schedules, and discussions on returning to the traditional school calendar. However, significant gaps and challenges persist in these responses, underscoring the need for time-consistent policies focused on creating conducive learning environments. The establishment of heat response plans for educational institutions and the development of improved location-specific heat indices are essential to adapt to this new climate reality and minimize the disruption of educational activities.

A Climate Education Experience in the Community of Morro Santa Terezinha in the City of Fortaleza in the State of Ceará (Brazil)

The study presents the evaluation of a teaching-learning process in climate education through active methodologies, as well as the perception of students in the final years of elementary school about the effects of climate variability and the occurrence of natural disasters in the region where they live in Morro Santa Terezinha in Fortaleza/CE. Thus, a questionnaire was applied to diagnose the level of knowledge of these students, the results of which supported discussions of the content in pedagogical meetings, lectures and analysis of climate information obtained from the National Institute of Meteorology and the Ceará Foundation of Meteorology and Water Resources, as well as information on the occurrence of natural disasters obtained from the Municipal Coordination of Protection and Civil Defense. This methodology enabled the students to associate scientific knowledge with the climatic reality observed in the region under study and fostered meaningful learning and protagonism, as recommended in the National Common Curriculum Base, in addition to the preparation and publication of an educational leaflet that was distributed in the school community. It was therefore concluded that the work met the objectives of motivating and arousing the interest of students and the school community in climate education and environmental preservation.

Microclimatic effects of introduced tree plantings in urban environment

Ecological role of urban green spaces is increasing in order to provide citizens with comfortable and safe living conditions in the new climatic realities through the use of ecosystem services of tree and shrub stands in the setting of reduced forest areas, native forest decline and acceleration of urbanization processes. However, in Europe and, in particular, in Ukraine, deterioration of the environmental condition and loss of ecological functions of urban green spaces are observed. One of the reasons for the loss of ecological potential of tree and shrub plantings is unbalanced approach to the development of green infrastructure in cities, when socio-cultural ecosystem services (decorative, aesthetic) are preferred over environmental and regulatory ones, including over climate-regulating services. The active use of introduced tree species has always been driven by the development of green infrastructure in modern cities; the share of these species in dendroflora of urban ecosystems is steadily increasing in Europe. Introduced tree species comprise the basis of urban green infrastructure; therefore, the issue of determining the potential microclimatic effects of these species becomes relevant. The influence of tree species (Acer pseudoplatanus, Fraxinus pennsylvanica, Gleditsia triacanthos, Morus alba, Quercus rubra, Robinia pseudoacacia, Tilia platyphyllos) introduced in the Steppe zone of Ukraine on the formation of microclimatic parameters (light intensity, temperature and relative air humidity) in the space beneath the tree canopy within monodominant group plantings is analyzed in Botanical Garden of Oles Honchar Dnipro National University and park areas of Dnipro city. Beneficial effect of group plantings consisting of introduced tree species on the processes of optimizing the microclimatic conditions of the urban environment is revealed. Beneath the canopy of introduced tree species (compared to the reference open sites), light intensity decreased from 86.9% to 97.9% at midday in late July. The air temperature decreased from 3°C to 6.5°C, and the relative humidity increased by 2.5–9.8%, depending on the species of the tree. By increasing the microclimatic efficiency, the studied tree introducents were determined to form the following series: Gleditsia triacanthos – Robinia pseudoacacia – Fraxinus pennsylvanica – Quercus rubra – Tilia platyphyllos – Acer pseudoplatanus – Morus alba. Along with a significant climate-regulating effect, monodominant group plantings consisting of dense- and semi-dense crowned introduced tree species become "cooling islands" and play a significant role in optimizing the microclimatic conditions of urban ecosystems during the daytime and summer periods. At the same time, introduced tree species with naturally developed dense and semi-dense crowns can be prioritized for creating and reconstructing green spaces with recreational purposes in the cities situated in Steppe zone. The results obtained regarding the microclimatic effects of introduced tree species expand the scientific and theoretical base for the development of methods for optimizing the functionality of green infrastructure in cities by the construction of green spaces using tree species that have significant climate-regulating properties.

Climate Change Misinformation in the United States: An Actor–Network Analysis

Climate change misinformation refers to inaccurate, incomplete, or misleading climate change-related information created and spread in the public domain. Despite substantial consensus among the scientific community on the reality of anthropogenic climate change, public opinion still remains divided. Combating the climate crisis requires immediate and meaningful actions; however, various actors generate and propagate climate change misinformation, with vested interests in sowing doubts in the public sphere about the reality and urgency of climate impacts. The United States of America, where public opinion holds a strong sway in many social and political spheres, acts as a pertinent case in point, where the prevalence of climate denial fueled by persistent climate change misinformation contributes to this divided public perspective. For this reason, it is imperative to enhance the understanding of the subtle ways climate change misinformation exists and functions. This article employs actor–network theory and the concept of black-boxing to explore a case of climate change misinformation in the United States, with the aim of comprehending the workings of climate change misinformation within its network.

The reality of the moral climate and its relationship to the decision-making of boxing referees from the standpoint of coaches

The purpose of this paper is to identifying the relationship between the moral climate and the decision-making of boxing referees from the standpoint of the coaches, and the research problem lies through the work of the researchers in training and managing the teams. It was noted that the role of the referees is one of the most important roles played by the workers to achieve the objectives of the federation, and that the moral climate that prevails among the administrative body the union and the referees on the one hand and between the referees and coaches on the other hand are among the factors of the success of everyone’s work and the survival and strengthening of confidence in their work and thus the continuity of success and production and the achievement of goals, hence the desire to conduct this study, and the researchers used the descriptive approach in the manner of correlations to suit it with the nature of the research problem, The study population consisted of (160) coaches and referees in the Boxing Federation. As for the research sample, it was divided into a sample of adapting the moral climate scale, which consisted of (70) judges. As for the building sample for the decision-making scale, it consisted of (90) coaches. The standards (moral climate) were modified and built. for the administrative body, decision-making for the referees), the measures were applied to the research sample in order to extract the results of the research and achieve the goal of the research, which is to identify the relationship between the moral climate and decision-making for boxing referees from the point of view of the coaches and it was found that they are at an above average level in the moral climate and decision-making as well That there is a direct relationship between the two research variables (moral climate and decision-making), that is, the greater the moral climate, the greater the decision-making.

Pan American climate resilient health systems: a training course for health professionals.

To describe the development, implementation, and results of a training course designed to equip health professionals from the Pan American Health Organization region with the knowledge and tools needed to adapt health systems to current climate realities. The Pan American climate resilient health systems course was a 9-week live-virtual course in March-April 2023, which was delivered through Zoom and offered in English, Spanish, and French. All lectures were delivered by local and regional climate and health experts. The curricular foundation of this initiative was the Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education core competencies for health professionals. Participants completed pre- and post-course surveys. A total of 1212 participants attended at least one of the nine sessions and 489 (from 66 countries) attended at least six sessions. Of these, 291 participants completed both the pre- and post-course surveys which were used in the analysis. Longitudinal survey results suggested an improvement in participants' climate and health communication, an increased frequency of incorporating climate knowledge in professional practice, and improved confidence in engaging in climate initiatives. At the same time, many participants expressed a need for additional training. The results indicate that live-virtual courses have the potential to empower health professionals to contribute to climate resilience efforts by: increasing their communication skills; changing their professional practice; increasing their ability to lead climate and health activities; and preparing them to assess vulnerability and adaptation in health systems, measure and monitor environmental sustainability, and apply a health equity lens.

Rainwater harvesting and supplemental irrigation for cotton cultivation in Minas Gerais, Brazil

AbstractThe North of Minas Gerais, a large inland state in southeastern Brazil, is going through the worst drought of the last 80 years, only compared with the drought that occurred in the 1930s, when there was general devastation in the agricultural and livestock sector. Nevertheless, the cotton crop continues to stand out in the region as one of the few agricultural alternatives capable of generating income and employment due to its characteristic resistance to the effects of drought, which is not the case with other traditional crops. To this end, the Cooperativa dos Produtores Rurais de Catuti Ltda ‐ COOPERCAT (Cooperative of Rural Producers of Catuti) installed eight “Demonstration Units” (DUs) of cotton under supplemental irrigation through rainwater capture in the municipalities of Catuti, Mato Verde, Monte Azul, and Pai Pedro. This study aims to demonstrate that the adaptation of cotton production systems through the “Supplemental Irrigation” method in critical periods provides and guarantees family farmers sustainable cotton production and, on the other hand, to evaluate a production model suitable to the climatic reality of Northern Minas. Since the implementation of this technology, cotton fiber production has increased by 72% from 2015 to date in a 19% smaller area, and total cotton production increased by 58%. As of 2022, cotton producers continue to use this supplemental irrigation methodology, demonstrating that the technology is viable, impacts cotton production, and is effective as a resilience measure to climate change and drought. In addition, this technology proves to be in line with Brazilian public policies, adds value to cotton production, addresses food security, and acts as a model for irrigation initiatives in Minas Gerais and other areas of Brazil.

«Life Strategies of the Youth of the Russian Arctic and the Far East: Factors of Formation and Prospects for Implementation»: Review of the Round Table of the State Duma Committee for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic and the Journal «Russia: Society, Politics, History»

The Arctic zone of the Russian Federation and the Far East have great economic potential and the important geopolitical importance. However, the outflow of young people from these regions and the aging of the population are a serious threat to the national interests of the country as a whole. The cost of living, low economic prospects, and climatic realities are becoming the causes of increasing migration. Due to the relevance of the topic of attracting young people to the Northern and Far Eastern regions of the Russian Federation, the State Duma Committee for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic in partnership with the journal «Russia: Society, Politics, History» organized a round table dedicated to the formation and prospects for the implementation of life strategies of the youth of the Arctic and the Far East. This article will review in scientific way the reports and recommendations from the experts of the round table, as well as draw conclusions about the vectors of solving the problems of youth in the Arctic and the Far East.

DNA metabarcoding Passerine bird feces at tree-line uncovers little intra- and inter-species dietary overlap

High-elevation insectivorous birds are currently confronted with the reality of a changing climate, land use shifts, and the decline of many prey groups. The diet dynamics among many imperiled animals in this group are still unresolved. Examining the diets of tree-line Passerine birds to the species level of the prey allows for stronger population predictions. This study uses DNA metabarcoding to identify prey arthropods from adult Passerine bird feces at and slightly below tree-line in a Pyrenean forest. Our objective was to quantify the intra-and inter-species richness and overlap of Passerine bird diet over time and space. The results showed that adult Passerine diets have high inter- and intra-species dietary variability and low inter- and intra-species dietary overlap. The lack of association between dietary richness and open space, season, and elevation and lack of differences between dietary overlap and open space and elevation suggest high-elevation Passerine birds have very high dietary flexibility. The results also showed that aphids known to be pests to conifers, and other conifer pests, were prevalent in the birds’ diets. The Passerine diets and high rate of rare dietary items are mainly in line with other recent DNA metabarcoding studies. Implications for the long-term projections relative to tree-line Passerine populations are discussed.

Socio-economic impacts of climate change on indigenous communities in the save valley area of Chipinge district, Zimbabwe

In recent years, climate change has fast become a reality that warrants concerted action from stakeholders across fields. Communities in the Save Valley Area of Chipinge District of Manicaland Province in Zimbabwe, for example, report high incidences of socio-economic disruptions caused by climate change. These include loss of livelihoods, livestock, crops, food stocks and infrastructure damage. This study investigated the coping mechanisms adopted by communities in the Save Valley Area in their attempt to mitigate the socio-economic vagaries of climate change. In order to understand community perceptions regarding the possible link between climate change and the increased frequency and intensity of flooding incidences and to evaluate the evolution of community disaster risk management and resilience building as a function of changing climatic realities, the study employed the mixed method research design. Resettled farming households in the Middle Sabi, communal farming households in Chibuwe and Tongogara areas and members of the Chipinge District Development Committee were sampled for this study. Questionnaires, transact walks, structured interviews and focus group discussions were the main data collection methods utilized. Quantitative data entry was done via the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software. Qualitative data was coded and analyzed thematically. Findings revealed that climate change has heightened community vulnerability, weakened their adaptive capacities, as well as disrupting the community resilience-building initiatives. In turn, communities have made attempts to respond to the challenges arising from climate change by modifying their socio-economic activities, organizing themselves internally and reverting to the use of indigenous knowledge based interventions.

High-Resolution Bioclimatic Surfaces for Southern Peru: An Approach to Climate Reality for Biological Conservation

Ecological niche and species distribution models are of great importance, since their results allow for an understanding of many aspects related to the biology of the species under study, even understanding their evolutionary relationships or their response to past or future projections. In this research, climatic surfaces were produced from ground-based meteorological stations in the departments of Arequipa, Moquegua and Tacna. Temperature and precipitation data from 119 stations were obtained and homogenized; then, using geographic and orographic covariates, models were prepared so as to obtain maximum and minimum temperature and precipitation surfaces. The produced surfaces were evaluated by cross validation and compared to other models in the area. Finally, 19 bioclimatic surfaces were created. The results show general patterns for temperature and precipitation, with some particulars. Twelve layers were produced for maximum temperature, minimum temperature and precipitation, respectively, showing acceptable values for RMSEcv and MAD. Comparison with other models shows statistically significant differences. Both the climatic and bioclimatic surfaces produced were placed in a database for free access. Finally, comments are made on the importance and applications of the bioclimatic layers produced here.

Investigating the Growth Effect of Carbon-Intensive Economic Activities on Economic Growth: Evidence from Angola

Despite its immense natural resources, Angola struggles to significantly improve its economy to reduce poverty. Carbon emissions have been increasing over the years, even though the country plans to reduce them by 35% by 2030. This paper attempts to assess the carbon emissions of several sectors (industries, transport, services, and residences) on economic growth, intending to find a balance between environmental protection that requires carbon emissions reduction and economic development that may add to environmental degradation. The study employed time series data on GDP, CO2, CH4, and N2O covering 1971 to 2021 and ARDL and ECM models. This is the first study at the state level in Angola on the relationship between economic development and environmental sustainability considering methane and nitrous oxide emissions. Additionally, the paper assesses the responses of GDP to deviation shock of GDP, CO2, CH4, and N2O by 2032. Phillip Perron and Augmented Dickey-Fuller tests showed that all the data are stationary at the first difference, favoring the application of the ARDL model to explore the short and long-run relationships. The result reveals that methane from agricultural activities and carbon emissions from the building sector and public services contribute to economic growth, whereas carbon emissions from industrial heat systems, non-renewable electricity production, and manufacturing industries harm economic growth. However, no relationship exists between nitrous oxide emissions and economic development. In addition, impulse response function estimates show that appropriate investments can sustain economic development over the years. Therefore, the country should diversify its economy and avoid polluting fuel sources, such as coal. Raising renewable energy’s proportion in the total energy mix can support growth while considering the environmental quality. Investments in skills training, academic projects in renewable energy technologies development, agriculture mechanization, and sustainable job creation are recommended. Additionally, investing in quality seeds adapted to climate realities might help lessen climate change’s adverse effects and promote growth. Manure manufacturing processes must be improved to reduce agriculture and livestock’s methane and nitrous oxide emissions. The country’s leaders are encouraged to promote raw material processing industries while insisting on reducing carbon emissions.

Meaningful public engagement and the integration of climate considerations into impact assessment

In this article, we consider the role of the public and the benefits of participatory approaches for the effective consideration of climate change in impact assessments in the light of three starting assumptions, which we refer to as ‘climate realities’. The first climate reality is the need for full decarbonization within the next 30 years. The second climate reality is that even a ‘well below 2 degrees’ world will result in fundamental changes to ecological and social systems that will require active management, and it is far from clear whether this well below 2° goal will be met. The third climate reality is that climate change will lead to both reversible and irreversible loss and damage, again, even at well below 2°, and more so if this global collective mitigation target is not met. Given these three climate realities, this article explores the important contribution participatory approaches can make to solving the challenges associated with informing sound decision making with respect to climate change in the context of impact assessments. Meaningful participation is particularly relevant to the integration of climate change into impact assessment as it is a site for respect and recognition of rights and interests, transformative learning for all stakeholders, collective and cooperative action, legitimacy of interventions, and adaptive management. Our focus in this article is on project assessments.

A “lifeline out of the COVID‐19 crisis”? An ecofeminist critique of the European Green Deal

A “lifeline out of the <scp>COVID</scp>‐19 crisis”? An ecofeminist critique of the European Green Deal

Defining features of diverse and productive agricultural systems: An archetype analysis of U.S. agricultural counties

Prior research suggests that greater spatial diversity in crops and land use is associated with higher crop yields and improved ecosystem function. However, what leads to the emergence of agricultural systems that meet both productivity and ecological health goals remains an open question. Understanding the factors that differentiate these places from other agricultural systems is key to understanding the mechanisms, pathways, consequences, and constraints to employing diversification as a tool for increasing agricultural sustainability. In this study, we employ archetype analysis to examine the factors uniquely associated with the conjoint existence of high crop diversity and high crop productivity. We identify five agricultural system classes that represent a range of diversity and productivity combinations using k-means cluster analysis then use random forests analysis to identify factors that strongly explain the differences between the classes—describing different agricultural production regimes. Our exploratory analysis of the difference in agricultural system factors across classes suggests (1) crop diversity and its preconditions are associated with the highest yields, (2) biophysical conditions bound diversity-productivity realities, (3) productivity comes at a petrochemical cost, and that (4) crop rotations are a key diversification strategy. Overall, our results suggest that despite clear biophysical constraints on transitions to high diversity—high productivity systems the role of actionable factors on crop production regimes is stronger, providing reason to be hopeful about transitions to agricultural production regimes fit for new climate realities.

What Are We Teaching Engineers about Climate Change? Presenting the MACC Evaluation of Climate Change Education

Engineering underpins the progress of modern societies. However, engineering activities are a key driver of climate change and engineers are responsible in many ways for disaster risk reduction. It is therefore imperative that engineering education accurately portrays the impact that the profession has on our climate and equips engineers with the knowledge to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt infrastructure for climate resilience. Here, we explore how higher education prepares engineers to address the climate crisis via a curricula analysis of three departments (mechanical, civil, and electrical engineering). The pilot study investigated the extent of mitigation and adaptation to climate change (MACC) content across different disciplines by developing and applying an evaluation methodology. We found that module descriptions and learning objectives were largely without reference to MACC, further evidencing the dissociation of engineering education from the climate reality as cited in the literature. This novel approach goes beyond curricula analysis to integrate MACC within module outlines paving the way for future integration. This research demonstrates the urgent need for climate conscious engineering curricula.

Designing digital health applications for climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Designing digital health applications for climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Technologies for Humanity Adaptation to a Changed Climate

This article is an attempt to prove that the urgent adaptation of mankind to an already significantly changed climate, at least, is no less important than "the fight with global warming." In conditions of an already globally changed climate, in order to survive, it's not enough to replace fossil fuels with clean energy. Humankind also urgent needs the implementation of modern technologies for protection against hurricanes, floods, and wildfires, modern technologies to replace of the traditional lowefficiency agriculture and cattle breeding, minimization huge food wastage, and more. Unfortunately, humanity is absolutely not ready for this "new climate reality” and does not have carefully thought-out scientific and technical adaption plans. The main idea of this article is well expressed in the Charles Darwin’s quote written 165 years ago: “It is not the strongest and smartest who survive but the one who adjusts best to the changing environment.”

Social Transformation through Social Innovation: The Case Study of a Moroccan Waste Recycling Cooperative

Faced with the Moroccan economic, social and climatic realities, it is necessary to move towards new models, more adapted to a new dynamic of social transformation. Thus, social innovation appears as a concept linked to social economy, with the aim of meeting social needs through collective action. As such, the cooperative model is the perfect example of a field in which players can work together, collaborate and show solidarity which are essential ingredients for innovation and new solutions to social problems. At this level, the question that arises is how can social innovation contribute to social transformation? We will be focusing on the cooperative structure, as a vehicle for social innovation. With this in mind, the aim of this paper is to highlight, throughout a combination of theorical and empirical work, the role of social actors (as part of the cooperative) in the social transformation of a given territory.