{"id":5187,"date":"2023-08-02T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-02T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wearewater.org\/?post_type=waw_insight&p=5187"},"modified":"2023-11-08T12:49:15","modified_gmt":"2023-11-08T10:49:15","slug":"water-at-the-heart-of-climate-adaptation","status":"publish","type":"waw_insight","link":"https:\/\/www.wearewater.org\/en\/insights\/water-at-the-heart-of-climate-adaptation\/","title":{"rendered":"Water at the heart of climate adaptation"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

Droughts and floods are the most widely reported phenomena in public opinion. In recent years, heat waves and forest fires have competed in summer \u2014and now also in spring\u2014 in prime time on the news, on the front pages of the press, and in trending social media topics. A cocktail of broad media coverage that increasingly worries the population.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

\"We

The climate crisis expresses itself through water. Droughts, floods, desertification, melting ice… \u00a9 Muhammad Amdad Hossain \/ WMO<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Drought and heat are changing the\u00a0landscape<\/a>, forests are browning, ice is disappearing from the mountains, cereals are not growing, fruit trees are not blossoming, and restrictions are being announced in some cities. Anyone who has a mini-weather station at home can see how, year after year, the temperature has been rising.<\/p>\n

Scientists\u00a0are constantly sounding the alarm<\/a>\u00a0and summarize the situation: we must continue with mitigation efforts, but above all, we must focus on adaptation efforts; water is the main element.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Risk equation factors are constantly changing<\/h2><\/div>

According to the World Bank, nine out of ten\u00a0natural disaster<\/a>s are water-related. Climate change has made the water cycle much less predictable and water availability and quality less reliable, threatening communities and their livelihoods to different extents.\u00a0Water-related climate risks<\/a>\u00a0also spread through food, energy, urban and environmental systems.<\/p>\n

This means that the results of the risk equation \u2014Risk = Hazard x Exposure x Vulnerability\u2014 managed by the World Bank, governments, and insurance companies, are constantly changing as their factors do.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

\"We

Hazardous situations (droughts, extreme heat waves, floods, etc.) are increasing and becoming less predictable. \u00a9 Thomas Kirchberger \/ WMO<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Hazardous situations (droughts, extreme heat waves, floods, etc.) are increasing and becoming less predictable. Exposed communities are also more vulnerable. In recent years,\u00a0extreme heat<\/a>\u00a0has risen in latitude; forest fires have reached Canada, Scandinavia, and Russia; floods have reached cities that had never experienced them; and water shortages have become unprecedented in large urban centers.<\/p>\n

The vulnerability has also increased. The poorest countries, especially those in Africa and South Asia, are\u00a0the most affected<\/a>\u00a0and continue to be the most fragile in the face of extreme phenomena. This factor has a direct link to poverty: poor water and sanitation facilities, shantytowns and overcrowded slums are factors that increase vulnerability; droughts ruin small family farms, and a drying pond can wipe out livestock in a few days.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

At the heart of adaptation<\/h2><\/div>

To guide effective adaptation to climate change, the World Bank recommends that efforts reflect the importance of water management in reducing vulnerability and building resilience.<\/p>\n

The UN prioritizes expanding integrated water resources management beyond traditional approaches. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions also depends on access to reliable water sources, as all fuel combustion mitigation actions require water to be effective.<\/p>\n

Protecting the\u00a0natural capital<\/a>\u00a0of the water cycle requires enhancing the\u00a0natural infrastructures<\/a>\u00a0that shape the ecosystem services provided by\u00a0healthy watersheds and coastlines<\/a>, aquifers, and\u00a0wetlands<\/a>.<\/p>\n

These interventions will require\u00a0transboundary actions<\/a>\u00a0that combine watershed management and natural infrastructure. We need international awareness to develop a\u00a0spirit of collaboration<\/a>\u00a0that goes beyond local interests, a way of approaching strategies that allows the most marginalized groups \u2014especially\u00a0women<\/a>\u00a0– to make decisions and have access to learning in all scientific and technological disciplines.<\/p>\n

The world of water shows us that we must study the problems and propose solutions based on a\u00a0global systemic vision<\/a>. All human activities are closely interrelated, and isolated sectoral approaches will not provide the necessary effectiveness for adaptation.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Food security is the success of adaptation<\/h2><\/div>

Agriculture must become more productive, resource-efficient, and environmentally sustainable to feed the world. In the next 30 years, the world’s population is expected to reach 10 billion, and the\u00a0food challenge<\/a>\u00a0is enormous.<\/p>\n

According to FAO, about 3.2 billion people live in agricultural areas that experience high levels of water stress or frequent droughts. An estimated 78% of the world’s poor reside in rural areas and depend mainly on agriculture for their basic income, mostly on small family farms.<\/p>\n

Irrigation covers only 20% of total agricultural land use but supports 40% of the world’s food and fodder production and 55% of the value of production. It is responsible for using 70% of the global freshwater withdrawn from rivers, lakes, and aquifers and employs 6% of the world’s electricity.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

\"We

According to FAO, about 3.2 billion people live in agricultural areas that experience high levels of water stress or frequent droughts. \u00a9 Louis Darrien II. Soriano \/ WMO<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

<\/div>

Climate adaptation requires\u00a0regenerative agriculture<\/a>\u00a0to increase sustainable food production with minimum water expenditure. Service provision needs to be improved, and community management capacity built, especially for aquifers, as protecting groundwater is the essential adaptive guarantee. \u201cSmart water<\/a>\u201d must reach the most neglected areas to improve agricultural production and reduce water loss in irrigation and transport.<\/p>\n

The World Bank emphasizes the need to calculate the\u00a0water footprints<\/a>\u00a0of food production and trade. The most accurate mapping of what is produced and where, and the socio-economic values of each area, is needed.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Investing in resilience delivers benefits<\/h2><\/div>
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Achieving SDG 6 would be a sign that we have succeeded in adapting. According to the World Bank,\u00a0the investment needed is around US$300 billion<\/a>, but the benefits to humanity could be $1 trillion if there is intergovernmental action. A new study shows that every dollar spent on resilient water infrastructure saves four dollars in costs.<\/p>\n

The climate pressures of recent years, the evidence of the urgency of taking action to mitigate and adapt, and the scientific warnings must serve to mobilize political action toward coordinated international efforts. We will not succeed alone; if we unite, obstacles become opportunities.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"featured_media":31870,"template":"","categories":[99,103],"class_list":["post-5187","waw_insight","type-waw_insight","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate-and-environment","category-sustainable-development"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWater at the heart of climate adaptation - We Are Water<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wearewater.org\/en\/insights\/water-at-the-heart-of-climate-adaptation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Water at the heart of climate adaptation - We Are Water\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.wearewater.org\/en\/insights\/water-at-the-heart-of-climate-adaptation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"We Are Water\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/wearewaterfoundation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-11-08T10:49:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.wearewater.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/167H.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@wearewater\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wearewater.org\/en\/insights\/water-at-the-heart-of-climate-adaptation\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.wearewater.org\/en\/insights\/water-at-the-heart-of-climate-adaptation\/\",\"name\":\"Water at the heart of climate adaptation - 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