Paleoclimate information is key to understanding the climate system and predicting future climate. Currently, stable isotope analysis of whole molecules in tree rings is among the most advanced paleoclimate tools. Still, it only enables reconstructions of one climate parameter at a time (univariate climate reconstruction), a fundamental limitation. Here, we investigated whether this limitation can be overcome by analysing isotope variability at the level of intramolecular carbon positions in tree-ring glucose. We found that drought governs isotope variability at glucose C-1 to C-3, whereas radiation governs isotope variability at glucose C-5 to C-6. These isotope-climate relationships are statistically and mechanistically robust. According to cross-validation analysis, they can be reconstructed with high accuracy and precision. Thus, intramolecular isotope analysis enables multivariate climate reconstructions (proof of concept).

Following the development and dissemination of new climate-smart agricultural technologies to farmers globally, there has been an increase in the number of socio-economic studies on the adoption of climate-smart integrated pests’ management (CS-IPM) technologies over the years. In this study, we review empirical evidence on adoption determinants of CS-IPM technologies and identify possible science-policy interfaces. Generally, our review shows that socioeconomic and institutional factors are influential in shaping CS-IPM adoption decisions of farmers. More specifically, income was found to positively influence the adoption of CS-IPM technologies while land size owned influences CS-IPM adoption negatively. Registered land tenure (registered secure rights) positively influences CS-IPM technologies’ adoption, implying that efficient land markets that enable competitive and fair distribution and access to land, more so by the vulnerable but efficient smallholder producers do indeed increase the adoption of CS-IPMs technologies. Social capital, achieved via farmers’ organizations is also central in fostering CS-IPM technologies’ adoption, just as markets reforms that minimize market failures regarding access to credit, labor, and agricultural information, which could indirectly hinder farmers’ use of CS-IPM practices. Functional extension systems that improve farmers’ awareness of CS-IPM do also improve CS-IPM technologies’ adoption. However, the adoption of CS-IPM technologies in Ghana and Benin is slow-paced because of factors like lack of access to farm inputs that facilitate uptake of these technologies, lack of credit facilities, and limited extension services among others. Interestingly, our review confirms that CS-IPM technologies do indeed reduce and minimize the intensity of pesticide usage and foster ecosystem (environmental and human) health. Therefore, this review unearths strategic determinants of CS-IPM adoption and makes fundamental guidance around climate-smart innovations transfer and environmental policies that should be prioritized to curb environmental pollution and ensure agricultural ecosystems’ sustainability.

This study aims to evaluate the land surface temperature (LST) and the thermal characteristics of the Urban Canopy Layer (UCL) of the urban canyon in Avenida Rio Branco in the Central Business District (CBD) of Rio de Janeiro during summer. In order to conduct this evaluation, two methods were employed: 1) TIRS Landsat-8 sensor for data selection and processing (latest generation, 2011-2020); ; 2) field survey using nine sampling points — seven along two mobile transects, one fixed point, and one vertical measurement point, which required the use of a RPA (Remotely Piloted Aircraft). Three categories of analysis were established for the field survey based on the prevailing synoptic situations: stability, instability, and post-instability. The CBD is characterized by extensive areas with surface heat islands, in which temperatures were higher than 38.9°C; the areas with milder LSTs were Campo do Santana, Avenida Rio Branco, and one of the Mixed-Use Zones (Praça Mauá). With respect to Rio Branco Avenue, the LST niches of lowest elevation were derived through building shadowing; however, the orbital data diverged from the observation data of the ten field-study days. In situ data revealed that the characteristics urban morphology of Avenida Rio Branco is susceptible to the formation of heat islands, presenting heat islands of very strong magnitude (over 6.1°C) in atmospheric stability, strong magnitude (4.1-6.0°C) in atmospheric instability, and moderate magnitude (2.1°C-4.0°C) in post-atmospheric instability. Despite the synoptic situation, thermal cores were concentrated at 1 pm. The intersection between Avenida Rio Branco, Rua do Ouvidor, and Praça Mauá stored most of the solar energy received during the day due to the greater sky obstruction caused by the verticalization. Finally, vertical analysis demonstrated the formation of a thermal inversion on the night of the highest mean air temperature (29.5°C), probably, due to the roughness and number of buildings in the urban canyon.

Water is essential to all life-forms including various ecological, geological, hydrological, and climatic processes/activities. With changing climate, associated El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events appear to stimulate highly uncertain patterns of precipitation (P) and evapotranspiration (EV) processes across the globe. Changes in P and EV patterns are highly sensitive to temperature variation and thus also affecting natural streamflow processes. This paper presents a novel suite of stochastic modelling approaches for associating streamflow sequences with climatic trends. The present work is built upon a stochastic modelling framework HMM_GP that integrates a Hidden Markov Model with a Generalised Pareto distribution for simulating synthetic flow sequences. The GP distribution within HMM_GP model is aimed to improve the model's efficiency in effectively simulating extreme events. This paper further investigated the potentials of Generalised Extreme Value Distribution (EVD) coupled with an HMM model within a regression-based scheme for associating impacts of precipitation and evapotranspiration processes on streamflow. The statistical characteristic of the pioneering modelling schematic has been thoroughly assessed for their suitability to generate/predict synthetic river flows sequences for a set of future climatic projections. The new modelling schematic can be adapted for a range of applications in the area of hydrology, agriculture and climate change.

This study addresses the causal links between external factors and the main hydro-climatic variables. There is a gap in the literature on the description of a complete chain in addressing the structures of direct causal links of solar activity on the terrestrial variables. This is why, the present study uses the extensive facilities of the application of information theory in view of recent advances in different fields. Also, by other methods (e.g. neural networks) first are tested the existence non-linear links of solar-terrestrial influences on hydro-climate system. The results are promising related to the solar impact on terrestrial phenomena which is discriminant in space-time domain. The implications prove robust for determining the causal measure of climate variables under direct solar impact which makes it easier to consider solar activity in climate models, by appropriate parametrizations. This study found that hydro-climatic variables are sensitive to solar impact only for certain frequencies (periods) and these have a coherence with the Solar-Flux only for some lags of the Solar-Flux (in advance).

Weeds are among the major constraints to any crop production system, reducing productivity and profitability. Herbicides are among the most effective methods to control weeds, and reliance on herbicides for weed control has increased significantly with the advent of herbicide-resistant crops. Unfortunately, over-reliance on herbicides leads to environmental-health issues and herbicide-resistant weeds, causing human-health and ecological concerns. Crop diversification can help manage weeds sustainably in major crop production systems. It acts as an organizing principle under which technological innovations and ecological insights can be combined to manage weeds sustainably. Diversified cropping can be defined as the conscious inclusion of functional biodiversity at temporal and/or spatial levels to improve the productivity and stability of ecosystem services. Crop diversification helps to reduce weed density by negatively impacting weed seed germination and weed growth. Additionally, diversified farming systems are more resilient to climate change than monoculture systems and provide better crop yield. However, there are a few challenges to adopting a diversified cropping system, which ranges from technology innovations, government policies, farm-level decisions, climate change, and market conditions. In this review, we discuss how crop diversification supports sustainable weed management, the challenges associated with it, and the future of weed management with respect to the diversification concept.

Human leptospirosis cannot be investigated without studying zoonotic and environmental as-pects of the disease. The objectives of this study are to explore the abundance of Leptospira in dif-ferent climate zones of Sri Lanka and to describe the presence of Leptospira in same water source at different time points. First, water and soil samples were collected from whole-island, secondly, water sampling continued only in dry-zone, finally serial sampling of water from ten open wells was performed at five different time points. Quantitative PCR for water and metagenomic se-quencing for soil were used to detect Leptospira. In first component, 2 out of 12 water sites were positive and both are situated in wet-zone. Very small quantities of Genus Leptospira was detect-ed by metagenomic analysis of soil. Only 5 out of 26 samples were positive in the second compo-nent. Six, five, four, five, six wells were positive respectively in serial measurements of third component. All wells were positive at least one measurement while only one well was positive in all measurements. Closer to tank and higher distance from main road were significant risk fac-tors associated with well positivity. Presence of Leptospira seems not consistent indicating ran-dom abundance of Leptospira in natural environment.

Chaparral shrublands are the dominant wildland vegetation type in southern California and the most extensive ecosystem in the state. Disturbance by wildfire and climate change have created a dynamic landscape in which biomass mapping is key in tracking the ability of chaparral shrub-lands to sequester carbon. Despite this importance, most national and regional scale estimates do not account for shrubland biomass. Employing plot data from several sources, we built a random forest model to predict above ground live biomass in southern California using remote sensing data (Landsat NDVI) and a suite of geophysical variables. By substituting the NDVI and precipi-tation predictors for any given year we were able to apply the model to each year from 2000-2019. Using a total of 980 field plots, our model had a k-fold cross validation R2 of 0.51 and a RMSE of 3.9. Validation by vegetation type ranged from R2 = 0.17 (RMSE=9.7) for Sierran mixed conifer to R2 = 0.91 (RMSE = 2.3) for sagebrush. Our estimates showed an improvement in accuracy over a two other biomass estimates that included shrublands, with an R2 = 0.82 (RMSE = 4.7) compared to R2 = 0.068 (RMSE = 6.7) for a global biomass estimate and R2 = 0.29 (RMSE = 5.9) for a regional biomass estimate. Given the importance of accurate biomass estimates for resource managers we calculated the mean year 2010 shrubland biomass for the four national forests which ranged from 3.5 kg/m2 (Los Padres) to 2.3 kg/m2 (Angeles and Cleveland). Finally, we compared our estimates to field-measured biomass from the literature summarized by shrubland vegetation type and age class. Our model provides a transparent and repeatable method to generate biomass measure-ments in any year, thereby providing data to track biomass recovery after management actions or disturbances such as fire.

An indisputable fact about our planet is that its atmospheric temperature has risen dramatically during the past century. Combustion of fossil fuels and their subsequent greenhouse gas emissions are thought to be the main contributors to recent changes within the Earth’s ecosystem. The transportation sector and electricity generating power plants are each responsible for approximately one-third of these emissions. Shifting towards a cleaner and renewable resources to generate electricity is believed to omit a big portion of polluting substances. Improvements in vehicles’ fuel efficiency and the introduction of alternative fuels besides strategic plans to control travel demand are among the most promising approaches to alleviate emissions from the transportation sector. Recent technology advancements, however, drew much attention to the production and manufacturing of alternative fuel vehicles, electric vehicles in particular. Since these vehicles use electricity as part of or all their powertrain, assessing the amount of emissions they produce is closely tied to the cleanliness of the electricity source. In order for a valid comparison to be made between internal combustion and electric vehicles, hence, a life cycle assessment procedure needs to be followed from production stages to terminal life of vehicles. Involvement of numerous affecting factors during the lifetime of a vehicle on one hand, and the ambiguity in the exact source of electricity used to charge electric vehicles on the other hand bring about more complexities. The latter case is more commonly known as the marginal grid problem, which deals with how a combination of sources used to generate electricity can influence the life cycle emissions. There are also other concerns regarding the growth in fuel-efficient and electric vehicles. Transportation planners argue that new developments in the vehicle industry may attract more people to owning and driving cars. This phenomenon which is better known as a rebound effect not only will result in increased traffic congestion, but it can also outpace the environmental benefits from utilizing electric vehicles. Moreover, since fuel taxes comprise the majority of Highway Trust Funds, alternative ways to compensate for state and federal revenues should be devised. This paper is an attempt to review the existing literature to better elaborate on the role of the transportation sector in controlling climate change threats. More specifically, issues around the use of electric vehicles and how they can contribute to more environmentally friendly communities are discussed.

As part of the efforts to reduce the environmental impacts caused by the aviation sector, the use of bio-based instead of fossil-based materials has been assessed as a possible mitigation option. Natural Fibre Polymer Composites have proven to have a higher environmental performance in the automotive sector and are emerging as an option for weight reduction in aircraft. This study quantifies, though Life Cycle Assessment, the environmental performance of specific flax-based composite panels intended for aircrafts as interior fitting elements (i.e. partition panels, tray tables, baggage compartments) compared to a glass fibre/epoxy composite with a honeycomb core. Through system expansion, the fate of co-products issued from the production of the flax fibre technical textile used as reinforcement in the biocomposite material were considered in the assessment. Results showed that for an application in the aeronautics sector, the weight of the panels is the upmost critical parameter shaping the overall environmental performance of panels. Focusing on the panel production only, the biocomposite panel showed a higher environmental performance in the categories of climate change and marine eutrophication compared to the conventional panel, and the fire suppressant agent was identified as the main contributor to the environmental impacts of the bio-based panel. Yet these gains were negligible when considering the full life cycle of the panels, due to the higher weight (14%) of the bio-based panels; which is linked to the bio-based panel being at a prototype stage.In order to improve the environmental performance of the biocomposite panel and thus reduce its weight, it was shown relevant to optimize geometry of the panel itself, especially its core, so less resin could be used.

Thermal variations affect tri-trophic interactions involving plants, herbivores, and parasitoids, causing a mismatch between their phenological cycles. In the current environmental context of climate change, climatic factors can undergo profound and sudden changes, such as sudden hot or cold snaps. Here we show that episodes of short but sustained low temperatures have increased, mainly in the month of May, in the last two decades. We subjected galls induced by Asian chestnut gall wasp (ACGW) Dryocosmus kuriphilus to cold stress to assess if and how the pest and its parasitoids were affected. Over the course of two years seasonal parasitism, parasitism rates, the relative abundance of each parasitoid species, and mortality of ACGW were calculated. We found that the cold treatment affected both pest and parasitoids, resulting in a reduction in emerging ACGWs and differing ratios of species within the parasitoid community. The striking example was the change in the relative frequency of three species of Eupelmus spp. and of Mesopolobus tibialis, which doubled in thermally-stressed galls in all chestnut fields. The thermal effects on the development of the host and the direct effects of cold temperatures on the surface of galls (i.e., humidity or hardness of the galls) warrant further research in this direction.

The Cape Restionaceae species, an endemic of the Fynbos Biome, is threatened by urbanization, alien plant invasion, agricultural expansion, and groundwater extraction. This is further worsened by the semi-arid conditions and hydrological variability factors, which influences species niche dynamics. Therefore, it is important to assess and monitor the Restionaceae species for preservation of their endemism and richness. This study models the hydrological niche and distribution changes of Restionaceae species at the New Years Peak (NYP) at microclimate level for biodiversity conservation. MaxEnt modelling and GIS analytical approaches were applied at various stages in niche modelling process as follows: (i) microclimatic input raster layers’ generation, (ii) ecological modelling and hydrological niche manipulation, and (iii) spatial distributional change mapping. The hydrological niches of the Restionaceae were effectively examined under the recent climate and compared with RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 future climate scenarios as the microscale environmental inputs. The results showed that most of the studied Restionaceae species positioned themselves along a hydrological gradient. Each species tolerated a range of hydrological conditions, which formed their hydrological niche. Changing climate would cause both positive and negative species range shifts. The study assists in plant species conservation and future climate change impact analysis on endangered plant species.

Analysis of the hourly Canadian Prairie data for the past 60 years has transformed our quantitative understanding of land-atmosphere-cloud coupling. The key reason is that trained observers made hourly estimates of opaque cloud fraction that obscures the sun, moon or stars, following the same protocol for 60 years at all stations. These 24 daily estimates of opaque cloud data are of sufficient quality that they can be calibrated against Baseline Surface Radiation Network data to give the climatology of the daily short-wave, longwave and total cloud forcing (SWCF, LWCF and CF). This key radiative forcing has not been available previously for climate datasets. Net cloud radiative forcing reverses sign from negative in the warm season to positive in the cold season, when reflective snow reduces the negative SWCF below the positive LWCF. This in turn leads to a large climate discontinuity with snow cover, with a systematic cooling of 10°C or more with snow cover. In addition, snow cover transforms the coupling between cloud cover and the diurnal range of temperature. In the warm season, maximum temperature increases with decreasing cloud, while minimum temperature barely changes; while in the cold season with snow cover, maximum temperature decreases with decreasing cloud and minimum temperature decreases even more. In the warm season, the diurnal ranges of temperature, relative humidity, equivalent potential temperature and the pressure height of the lifting condensation level are all tightly coupled to opaque cloud cover. Given over 600 station-years of hourly data, we are able to extract, perhaps for the first time, the coupling between cloud forcing and the warm season imbalance of the diurnal cycle; which changes monotonically from a warming and drying under clear skies to a cooling and moistening under cloudy skies with precipitation. Because we have the daily cloud radiative forci, which is large, we are able to show that the memory of water storage anomalies, from precipitation and the snowpack, goes back many months. The spring climatology shows the memory of snowfall back through the entire winter, and the memory in summer goes back to the months of snowmelt. Lagged precipitation anomalies modify the thermodynamic coupling of the diurnal cycle to the cloud forcing, and shift the diurnal cycle of mixing ratio which has a double peak. The seasonal extraction of the surface total water storage is a large damping of the interannual variability of precipitation anomalies in the growing season. The large land-use change from summer fallow to intensive cropping, which peaked in the early 1990s, has led to a coupled climate response that has cooled and moistened the growing season, lowering cloud-base, increasing equivalent potential temperature, and increasing precipitation. We show a simplified energy balance of the Prairies during the growing season and its dependence on reflective cloud.

Irrigation scheduling is used by growers to determine the right amount and timing of water application. In most parts of Mozambique, 90% of the total yearly precipitation occurs from November to March. The El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon influences the climate in Mozambique and affects the water demand for crop production. The objectives of this work were to quantify the effects of ENSO phenomenon on tomato crop water requirements, and to create the AgroClimate irrigation tool (http://mz.agroclimate.org/) to assist farmers in improving irrigation management. This study was based on daily grid-based climate information from 1983 to 2016 from the Climate Forecast System Reanalysis. Daily crop evapotranspiration was calculated by Hargreaves equation and crop coefficients. This tool is available online and considers different planting dates, ENSO phases, and crop growing season lengths. Irrigation needs varied from less than 250 mm per growing cycle during winter to 550 mm during spring. Both El Niño and La Niña influenced the irrigation scheduling, especially from November to March. El Niño periods were related with increased water demand due to drier and warmer conditions while the opposite was observed for La Niña. The ENSO information might be used to understand climate variability and improve tomato irrigation scheduling in Mozambique.

The key anthropogenic effects on climate include the changes in land use and emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Depletion of vegetation poses serious threat that speeds the process of climate change and reduces carbon sequestration by the environment. Thus, the preservation of natural environment in urban areas is an essential component of the garden city model, proposed by Sir Ebenezer Howard in 1898, to ensure ecological balance. Recent Landsat images showed that Kumasi does not have the required percentage of green vegetation as was stipulated in the garden city model on which the city was built. It was observed that most parts of Kumasi's green vegetation have been lost to built environments. This study was conducted to assess the impact of urbanization on the garden city status and its effect on the micro-climate of the city. Significant changes in the vegetation cover of the city was evaluated from Landsat-TM imagery and analysis of a long term climatic data of Kumasi carried out over a 55-year period (1960 to 2015). It was observed that, climatic conditions have slightly changed, as mean surface temperature of has increased by 1.2 °C/ 55 years, due to the significant landuse changes from development of non-transpiring, reduced evaporative urban surfaces. However, the impact is not greatly felt due to the geographical location of the city on the globe despite the evidence of a considerable temperature change. Green vegetation conservation for the city is recommended as a top priority in future for city authorities and planners.

Abstract: Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is the most prevalent disease worldwide, which has been linked to work stress because of poor job design as explained by the Job Demand-Control (JDC) and the Effort-Reward Imbalance (ERI) models. In this paper we explore for the first time relative impact of a specific aspect of organisational climate, Psychosocial Safety Climate (PSC), on any CVD including angina, myocardial infarction, hypertension, and stroke. We used two waves of interview data from Australia, with an average lag of 5 years (excluding baseline CVD, final n = 1223). Logistic regression was conducted to estimate the prospective associations between PSC at baseline on incident CVD at follow-up. It was found that participants in low PSC environments were 59% more likely to develop new CVD than those in high PSC environments. Logistic regression showed that PSC at baseline predicts lower CVD risk at follow-up (OR = 0.98, 95% CI 0.96-1.00), and this risk remained unchanged even after joint adjustment for measures of ERI and JDC. These results suggest that PSC is an independent risk factor for CVD in Australia. Beyond job design this study implicates organisational climate and prevailing management values regarding worker psychological health as the genesis of CVD.

The manuscript wants to investigate the debate on urban resilience and climate change linking theory and practice, describing the possible innovations that concern urban design, urban normative and regional laws developing in different countries. The approach pursued would encourage resilience and flood protection through smart planning and through the architectural and urban project; considering public space as strategic soil where developing the resilient city, using engineering technical climate defence as new space for citizens and communities. Resilience themes are included in all levels of government and in spatial and strategic development policies such as in some project concerning public and private space and in municipal plans; the urban defense structures has to become new pleasant space for the city; these actions will not only contribute to making cities more resilient but will contribute to the creation of a more pleasant and attractive urban environment. The Resilience is the main keyword of some strategic vision of the Netherlands and of Italian laws and the concept is tested in some best practice such as in Rotterdam, in Bordeaux, in London and in the research carried out by "Arquitectos de Cabecera" in Barcelona. Resilience is seen as a new paradigm of smart planning.

The daily path of the Sun across longitude yields night and day, but the Sun also travels across latitude on a belt 47° wide. The Sun meridian declination explains the annual budget of natural beam irradiance (NBI), which is the irradiance delivered to the Earth’s surface as a normal projec-tion from the Sun. Data for the sun meridian declination data were obtained from the geometric model. The distribution of NBI was weighed between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. The variation patterns of the solar declination conform to the dynamics of pendular motion. The joint distributions of velocity or acceleration of meridian declination against declination fit circular graphs. The NBI budget fluctuates in inverse proportion to the velocity of declination, yielding 18 sun-paths per degree for latitudes above 20°, and 6 sun-paths per degree for latitudes under 20°. All sites of the planet, whose latitude coincide, whether within or between hemispheres, accumu-late an equivalent budget of NBI.

Global climate change requires urgent solutions. Ambitious tree-planting initiatives, many already underway, aim to sequester enormous quantities of carbon, partly compensating for the anthropogenic CO₂ emissions that are a major cause of rising global temperatures. However, poorly planned and executed tree-planting could actually increase CO₂ emissions and have long-term, deleterious impacts on biodiversity, landscapes and livelihoods. Here, we highlight the main environmental risks of large-scale tree planting and propose ten golden rules, based on some of the most recent ecological research, to implement forest ecosystem restoration that maximizes rates of both carbon sequestration and biodiversity recovery, while simultaneously improving livelihoods. These are: i) Protect existing forest first; ii) Work together (involving all stakeholders); iii) Maximize biodiversity recovery to meet multiple goals; iv) Select appropriate areas; v) Use natural regeneration wherever possible; vi) Select species to maximise biodiversity; vii) Use resilient plant material (with appropriate genetic variability and provenance); viii) Plan ahead for infrastructure, capacity and seed supply; ix) Learn by doing (using an adaptive management approach); and x) Make it pay (ensuring the economic sustainability of the project). We focus on the design of long-term strategies to tackle the climate and biodiversity crises and support livelihood needs. We emphasize the role of local communities and their dependence on benefits from successful reforestation programmes that restore ecosystem functioning and deliver a diverse range of forest products and services. While there is no simple and universal recipe for forest restoration, it is now crucial to build on the public and private interest in this topic to ensure interventions provide effective, long-term carbon sinks and maximise benefits for biodiversity and people.

The field of water management is continually changing. Water has been subject to external shocks in the form of climate change and globalization. Analysis of water management is subject to disciplinary developments and inter-disciplinary interactions. Are these developments well documented in the literature? Initial observations on interdisciplinary literature suggest that results are fragmented, implying that a state-of-the-art review is needed. The objective of this paper is to close this gap by reviewing recent developments in water economics that address the increasing perceptions of water scarcity by looking first at changes in supply and quality of water, and then at impacts of climate change on water extremes. Among responses to such challenges, the paper identifies changes to water use patterns by including and co-managing water from different sources—surface and groundwater, wastewater, and desalinated water. Technological advancements also are among the resources that address water challenges. Water challenges reflect also on management of internationally shared water. A recent surge in scientific work identified international treaties as playing a significant role in water management. The paper reviews recently employed economic tools, such as experimental economics, game theory, institutional economics, and valuation methods. And finally, it explores modeling approaches, including hydro-economic and computable general equilibrium models that are being used to deal with water challenges.

This paper provides an in-depth exploration of the role of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in advancing dairy farming towards net zero emissions, a critical goal in the face of the global climate crisis. The study emphasizes how these technologies significantly enhance the management of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and optimize resource use, thereby contributing to environmental sustainability in agriculture. A key aspect of this transition is the alignment with international climate commitments, such as the Paris Agreement, which are instrumental in steering global efforts toward emission reduction and mitigating climate change. The integration of Big Data and AI in dairy farming emerges as a powerful tool to reduce the sector's environmental impact while sustaining economic growth. The paper delves into the specific applications of these technologies in emission management, including predictive analytics for feed optimization, manure management, and energy efficiency enhancements. It also addresses the broader implications of technological integration in dairy farming, considering aspects like benchmarking standards, data privacy, and the role of policy in fostering sustainable practices. The study underscores the challenges inherent in adopting these advanced technologies, including the need for improved farmer training, data quality, and compatibility with existing systems. It also advocates for enhanced policy frameworks that support sustainable practices, encourage technological adoption, and balance economic viability with environmental responsibility. This comprehensive analysis offers valuable insights into harnessing digital technologies for climate change mitigation and delineates a path for the dairy industry towards achieving net zero emissions, thereby contributing significantly to global environmental sustainability efforts.

In this paper, the Shannon entropy measure was used to assess changes in precipitation and temperature conditions. Due to the short, low-volume sequences of precipitation and temperature data analysed, a bootstrap method was used in the procedure for calculating Shannon entropy. The analysis used minimum and maximum values of monthly precipitation totals and monthly mean temperatures for 377 catchments distributed across the globe. A 110-year data series from 1901 to 2010 was analysed. Entropy values for the estimated parameters of the generalised extreme value distribution (GEV) were calculated for the adopted data. Entropy value calculations were performed for the left-hand constraint, based on minimum values, and for the right-hand constraint, based on maximum values. The applicability of Shannon's entropy measure in the analysis of climate change was demonstrated by allowing the degree of disorder and complexity of the distributions describing climate variables in the form of precipitation and temperature to be measured. This made it possible to obtain information on the directions of changes occurring with regard to minimum and maximum values in the field of monthly precipitation and mean temperatures in the analysed catchments. The study demonstrated the existence of Shannon entropy trends. The evaluation of entropy trends for precipitation and temperature sequences was performed using non-parametric tests. Mann -Kendall tests at the 5% significance level were used for trend analyses. The Pettitt test was performed to determine the point of change in trend for the rainfall and temperature data. The performed analysis was supported by graphical presentations.

Initial evaluations of the System of Rice Intensification in India and elsewhere have mainly fo-cused on its impact on yield and income and have usually covered just one or two seasons. Re-searchers at the ICAR-Indian Institute of Rice Research conducted a more comprehensive evalua-tion of SRI methods over six years (six wet and six dry seasons), comparing these methods with three other rice crop management systems: modified, partially mechanized SRI (MSRI); direct-seeded rice (DSR); and normal transplanting with inundated fields (NTP). SRI grain yield was found to be about 50% higher than with NTP (6.35 t ha-1 vs 4.27 t ha-1), while the MSRI yield was essentially the same (6.34 t ha-1) and 16% higher than with DSR (5.45 t ha-1). Compared to NTP, SRI methods significantly enhanced soil microbial populations over time, bacteria by 12%, fungi by 8%, and actinomycetes by 20%. Indicators of biological activity in the rhizosphere were also higher, dehydrogenase by 8.5% and FDA enzymes by 16%. Glucosidase activity, an indicator of soil organic matter, was 78% higher. Relative to normal transplanting methods, SRI reduced GHG emissions by 21%, while DSR reduced them by 23% and MSRI by 13%, which indicated pos-itive effects of the alternate and improved methods over normal transplanting. Economic analy-sis showed that both gross and net economic returns to be higher with SRI than with MSRI and the other management systems evaluated. While the six-year study documented many ad-vantages of SRI crop management, the MSRI version evaluated is a promising adaptation that provide similar benefits but with lower labor requirements.

This paper explores the challenges faced by blue-collared international migrants in adapting to new and unfamiliar climates while pursuing job opportunities, with a focus on poverty alleviation. Drawing on existing research and empirical evidence, the study investigates the trials encountered by these migrants as they navigate climate shocks and assesses the potential impacts on poverty reduction efforts. The findings underscore the significant difficulties blue-collared migrants experience when confronted with abrupt changes in climate conditions, adversely affecting their physical and mental well-being, as well as their employment prospects. The process of adjustment involves not only acclimating to new climate patterns but also navigating cultural nuances and social dynamics, exacerbating stress and feelings of isolation. Consequently, these challenges can perpetuate poverty by disrupting employment stability and limiting opportunities for career advancement. To address these issues, the paper proposes comprehensive support measures, including targeted pre-departure training programs, access to retraining opportunities, and assistance in securing sustainable livelihoods. By prioritizing climate resilience and empowering blue-collared migrants to adapt effectively to new climates, it becomes possible to enhance their livelihood prospects, reduce poverty levels, and foster sustainable development. The paper concludes by highlighting the significance of integrating climate adaptation strategies with poverty alleviation efforts to create a more inclusive and resilient future for blue-collared migrants in their pursuit of sustainable livelihoods.

Animal-assisted pedagogy (AAP) is well known in classroom practice, but scientific evidence is still lacking. At the same time, the biggest challenge in education systems worldwide is the social in-tegration of students. In a pre-post design, 30 heterogeneous students (16f/14m) from four different school classes (grades 5-7) were interviewed (problem-centred interview) about their social inclu-sion and their social climate in class before and after being taught selected subjects with a school dog (of different breeds) for one school term. At the second measurement point, they were also asked about their perception of AAP. The data was analysed both qualitatively (Kuckartz) and in terms of the number of quotes on the main topics using MAXQDA analysis software. The presence of a dog in the classroom leads to an improved social climate and more social integration. In ad-dition, the perception of the other students and the teacher changes to a more positive and friendly image. Through AAP, a new social role is added to the classroom, where caring and bonding are prioritised. Social interaction and norms are influenced and sterotypical and individual roles can be changed. Therefore, AAP can be a key to promoting social inclusion in the school environment.

The boreal Hemisphere has been experiencing increasing extreme hot and dry conditions over the past few decades, consistent with anthropogenic climate change expectations. The continental extension of the phenomenon calls for tools and techniques capable of monitoring the global to regional scales. In this context, the satellite is the only system that can satisfy the need for global coverage. The main objective we have addressed in the present paper is the capability of infrared satellite observations helping to monitor the vegetation stress due to increasing drought and heatwaves in summer. We have designed and implemented a new water deficit index (wdi) that exploits satellite observations in the infrared to retrieve humidity, air temperature, and surface temperature simultaneously. These three parameters are combined to provide the water deficit index. The index has been developed based on the Infrared Atmospheric Sounder Interferometer or IASI, which covers the infrared spectral range 645 to 2760 cm-1 with a sampling of 0.25 cm-1. The index has been used to study the 2017 heatwave, which hit Continental Europe from May to October. In particular, we have examined Southern Italy, where Mediterranean forests suffer from climate change. We have computed the index's time series and show that it can be used to indicate the atmospheric background conditions associated with meteorological drought. We have also found a good agreement with soil moisture, which suggests that the persistence of anomalously high water deficit index was an essential driver of the rapid development and evolution of the exceptionally severe 2017 droughts.

Abstract: The frequency and intensity of air pollution are two of most critical issues the world faces in dealing with global environmental problems. They are both important areas that need to be improved. Our previous research [20] examines the assessment of fine dust pollution in Baekryeong island by statistical reasoning through one specific example of inland city (Yanggu) in Republic of Korea; however, given that Baekryeong Island is a remote island, there has been little focus on in-depth examination of its effect on the high density of fine dust in Baekryeong Island. The purpose of this article is twofold: (i) to examine the effect of a remote island on the high density of fine dust on Baekryeong Island using statistical reasoning and to provide a more specific statistical basis for the claim that one of the non-negligible factors influencing the high density of fine dust on Baekryeong Island is the geographic proximity to China; and (ii) to present brief discussion of fundamental cause of fine dust and global air pollution issues, which are not discussed in [20].

The term sustainable energy is very familiar to all of us yet its exact definition or meaning has so far been vague. To date the widely adopted definition of sustainable energy has been inspired by the definition of sustainable development formulated more than 30 years ago in the Our Common Future - the UN’s Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development. The current definition conceals the true spirit of the Report and this has some ramifications. It raises the question as to whether we have put too much emphasis on attaining the future dimension of sustainability in the middle of the situation where the energy survivability is in fact the real issue in many parts of the world. In this paper the role of energy in sustaining livelihoods of low income communities is discussed. Existing definition of sustainable energy that the whole world seems to have embraced is looked at critically and its downsides exposed. The identified pillars of sustainable energy and the associated issues is discussed and the need for an additional pillar, i.e. affordability is discussed and called for. This paper will argue that global definition of sustainable energy seems inappropriate and should be jettisoned and a more realistic definition should be formulated, adopted and embraced at local (i.e. national or regional) level taking into account local attributes and factors. The current push for a transition from the reliance on conventional energy sources to ‘cleaner’ energy sources (generally associated with renewable energy) has further exacerbated the issue of energy affordability that has made the conditions even more dire for so many groups of the world population. In the midst of this situation, those who push for a rushed energy transition seem to be those who also produce unsustainably high carbon footprint but who can easily offset their carbon foot-print through the ‘net-zero’ concept.

Living walls (LWs) are a climate change adaptation strategy for cities, as they have a cooling effect. Previous studies of the cooling effect of LWs were carried out in different climatic zones. These studies differed in their experimental design, or simulated data via models. Plants’ cooling capacity is explained by shading and transpiration, and depends on physical plant parameters, environmental factors, and system-related influences. A three-year-long trial was carried out between 2017 and 2019 at an experimental garden in Geisenheim, Germany. We chose a textile-based LW system with high water demand and plants from a wet/fresh habitat. We assumed that this would achieve high evaporative cooling. The experimental setup included four experimental walls which were exposed to the north, south, east, and west, respectively. The plant choice was divided into three plant mix variants (Cascade, Ground cover, and Meadow) and a Control with no vegetation. We measured the temperature with sensors and a thermal imaging (IR) camera in different setups. The main results were that the measured vegetation temperature (TV) depends on air temperature (TA), measurement position, plant mix variant, and plant species. We could detect the cooling effect only at a small distance from the LW (microclimatic). Our methodological approaches should be continued in further studies.

Phytoplankton under the ice of seasonally ice-covered lakes is a key indicator species for maintaining the health of lake ecosystems. However, there is a lack of a unified definition of cold lakes internationally. In addition, there are few studies on the distribution, driving mechanism and simulation prediction of phytoplankton under the ice, which have limited the development of winter limnology and the prevention and control of spring algal blooms. The average temperature of the coldest month, the duration of the ice period and the average annual water temperature were the main indicators for defining cold lakes based on the literatures review. The cross-action of subglacial hydrodynamics and biogeochemistry during the ice period and freeze-thaw period is the key to promoting the phytoplankton growth. The migration and transformation of nutrients and the formation of hypoxic zones of subglacial were driven by physical factors such as available light and water temperature. Cyanobacteria got advantages in the ice period and above the water column through their own gas vesicles and strong adaptation to low temperature and low oxygen. Diatoms are able to multiply rapidly with the increasing of available light and the water temperature in spring. However, the migration and transformation of nutrients induced by physical factors during the freezing-freezing-thawing process, the role of microorganisms in biogeochemical reactions, and the extent and direction of the combined effects of multiple environmental factors on phytoplankton functional groups are still unclear. At present, lake algal blooms have gradually expanded to higher latitudes under the climate change. How to accurately predict the development and response mechanism of algal blooms in cold lakes under the climate change has become a key direction in the development of winter limnology. This review explains the unique physical and chemical processes of phytoplankton growth competition in cold lakes from the perspectives of bibliometrics, mechanism analysis, method construction and future prospects. These findings would provide new insights into the field of winter limnology and provide theoretical support for the future management of spring algal blooms in cold lakes.

Sub-national governments (SNGs) in developing countries have increasingly explored green municipal bonds as a financing tool, driven by promises of lower borrowing costs, enhanced reputation, and support for sustainable economic development. This study aims to critically examine these claims by analysing the actual costs and complexities associated with green municipal bonds (GMBs). The research involves a comparative analysis of traditional municipal bonds and GMBs, focusing on the financial and operational challenges faced by SNGs. Detailed case studies from Mexico City and Cape Town are used to illustrate the practical implications of issuing GMBs. The findings reveal that, despite similar or slightly lower interest rates, GMBs often entail higher issuance costs due to the need for certification, monitoring, and reporting of green projects. These additional costs, coupled with the necessity of hiring external consultants, make GMBs more expensive and difficult to replicate after initial transactions. Furthermore, the study highlights that the demand from investors has not met initial expectations. While green-aligned investors show a higher appetite for GMBs, they constitute only a small portion of the finance market. Traditional investors, primarily focused on financial returns, are less inclined to invest in GMBs solely based on their green label. Consequently, many SNGs have reverted to issuing traditional “vanilla” municipal bonds while still using the proceeds to fund green initiatives. This shift underscores the need for a realistic assessment of GMBs’ viability in developing countries and calls for a re-evaluation of strategies for promoting sustainable economic development through green finance.

The dissolution of CO₂ in seawater in the form of bicarbonate ions is an attractive alternative to the storage in geological formations, on the conditions that the storage is stable over long times and does not harm the marine environment. In this work, we focus on the long-term chemical stability of CO₂ absorbed in seawater as bicarbonate, by monitoring the physico-chemical properties of the solutions (pH, dissolved inorganic carbon and alkalinity), in six different sets of experiments on both natural and artificial seawater lasting up to three months. The bicarbonate treatment of natural seawater consists in pouring pre-equilibrated solutions obtained from the reaction of CO₂ and Ca(OH)₂. If the pre-equilibrated mixture does not exceed a critical threshold (ca. 1000-1500 mmol/L), the resulting bicarbonate-rich solutions can be stable for over three months.

The clothing industry is a hotbed for exploitative working conditions and environmental damages, of which affluent global North countries remain a substantial driver. The circular economy is a potential solution to these issues, but its social implications remain unclear. Using the UK as a case study, this article analyses the global social impacts of a transition to circular clothing economies in the global North, finding these to be (almost) entirely dependent upon the intentions and design of the associated politics. Some aspects of a transition will be unambiguously good for some people; others will only be beneficial with careful governance. Moreover, entrenched global economic inequalities leave trade-offs borne largely by the global South, highlighting the need for circular economy research – its drive for localisation notwithstanding – to look globally to consider how a fair transition can be achieved.

The hybrid AC/DC grid, based on a significant share of renewable energy sources, is gradually becoming an essential configuration of the modern energy system. The integration of intermittent renewable generators into contemporary energy systems is accompanied by the decommissioning of power plants containing synchronous generators. Consequently, this leads to a reduction in system inertia and an increase in the risks of stability disruption. The abrupt disconnection of the primary generator or power line can result in an unanticipated mismatch between power generation and consumption. This discrepancy can trigger substantial and swiftly evolving alterations in power distribution, angular speed, load flow, and the frequency of generators. The risks of an energy system collapse can be mitigated through automation, enabling rapid adjustments to generation and load capacities as well as power flows in the electrical network. This article justifies the utilisation of a power control method for high-voltage power line interconnections. The technology of hydro storage power plants and measurements of voltage phasors are employed. The potential for easing power flow restrictions and realising substantial economic benefits is supported by the results obtained using simplified dynamic model of the Baltic power system and Nord Pool electricity market model.

Colombia has initiated the process of participating in the environmental projects of the United Nations global agenda for the mitigation of climate change and the protection of biodiversity. Consequently, organizations within the solidarity sector have devised projects with the objective of aligning themselves with regional programs and of promoting leadership in the rural development through solidarity-based environmental initiatives. These include the organizations Canapro Ambiental, Cooperación Verde and Cootregua, which have participated in and accompanied local environmental projects. This study has identified the common elements related to the principles of organizational design proposed by Elinor Ostrom as a result of the adoption of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for the purpose of a sustainable growth. The above findings serve to corroborate the relevance of the principles of organizational design as a qualitative assessment methodology for environmental solidarity initiatives. In particular, the methodology demonstrates the value of supporting the objectives of environmental sustainability and governance in the long term, by means of the strengthening of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for the purposes of the solidarity ecosystem.

Climate change is affecting the production of temperate fruit crops. Freeze damage, particularly in spring, has resulted in significant economic losses in peach production in the southeastern United States. Research efforts in peach and other Prunus species have primarily focused on dormancy-related traits associated with bloom time, such as chill and heat requirement, with fruitlet freeze tolerance not equally represented. This study reports fruitlet freeze tolerance in 75 peach and nectarine accessions at six freezing temperatures (0 to -10ºC) using electrolyte leakage method over two seasons (2022-2023). Fruitlet freeze tolerance ranged from -3.94 to -10.22 °C with an estimated damage ranging from 16-48% with the majority of the accessions showing tolerance to cold temperatures in the -4 to -6ºC and 25-35% range. Variability in tolerance was noted across years, including some inconsistencies between tolerance group assignments. Grouping based on the estimated damage showed better stability and some accessions changed their grouping from the extremes to an intermediate tolerance group. Interestingly, nectarine accessions were among most tolerant in both seasons. Broad-sense heritability of 0.52 and 0.85, for freeze tolerance and estimated damage, respectively, suggested genetic control of this trait with a potential for improvement via breeding.

Prescriptions for fuels management are universally applied across forest types in British Columbia, Canada, to reduce fire behaviour potential in the wildland-urban interface. Fuel thinning treatments are assumed to reduce the potential for sustained ignition and crown fire initiation by reducing surface fuel loading. We hypothesized that these prescriptions are not appropriate for the coastal wet forests in the Whistler region of the province. Our study measured the efficacy of fuel thinning treatments in four stands located in the Whistler community forest. We examined several in-stand microclimate variables during snow melt in the spring and at the height of fire danger in late summer, at thinned and unthinned locations paired using GIS- analysis. We found that thinning increased the wildfire risk based on the differences between unthinned and thinned areas in the same forest stand.

Abstract: ‘Temperate movements: Artistic Responses to Climate Vulnerability in the Canadian Arctic’ uses examples and methodologies from contemporary art and theory to think through the impact and legacy of Arctic Sea ice melt upon Inuit culture. Here, the work of Inuit artists Eldred Allen and Maureen Gruben illustrates how melting Arctic Sea ice maybe considered as relational space best understood through a cultural, rather than an exclusively scientific and data-oriented relationship to global sea rise level. Such a cultural perspective, which emphasizes the interconnection between humans, animals, and the environment, can counter dominant climate change imagery which tends to homogenize and de-socialize the Arctic as a single concept. The work of these Inuit artists is also considered as outreach to non-Inuit communities, both in terms of photographic art forms circulating in ‘southern’ contemporary art contexts, as well as becoming ‘novel’ indexes of climate vulnerability and resilience.

Coastal flooding exacerbated by climate change is recognised as a major global threat which is expected to impact more than a quarter of people currently residing in Pacific Islands countries. While most research in the last decade has focused on understanding the dynamics and impacts of future coastal flooding from extreme sea levels, relative sea level rise (RSLR) effects on tsunami hazards are not well understood. Far-field or distant-sourced tsunamis tend to have relatively lower impacts in Pacific Island states compared with locally sourced events, but there is limited understanding on how the impact of far-field tsunamis changes over time due to RSLR. Using the hydrodynamics software BG-Flood, we modelled the Tōhoku tsunami from propagation to inundation in Samoa under incremental SLR to examine the effects that RSLR has on changing the exposure of the built environment (e.g., buildings) to a far-field tsunami. Outputs of maximum tsunami inundation and flow depth intensities which incorporate incremental SLR were then combined with digital representations of buildings and depth-damage functions in the RiskScape multi-hazard risk modelling software to assess the changes in building exposure over time. Results indicate that present day buildings exposure in Samoa to a Tōhoku-oki type far-field tsunami will increase by approx. 600% with 1 m RSLR by 2080–2130, and approx. 2,350% with 2 m RSLR by 2130–2140. These findings provide a useful baseline for tsunami hazard risk assessment under changing sea level conditions in analogous island environments.

Over 130 countries have committed to reaching net-zero CO2 or GHG emissions by 2050, yet this ambition is rarely underpinned by robust policies. By applying a detailed integrated assessment modelling approach for Brazil, we assess, for the first time, the extent to which the existing and planned local policies could put Brazil on the path to its net zero pledge. This includes quantifying the role of nature-based solutions, such as protection and restoration, and engineered solutions, such as bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS). We show protection is the single most important climate mitigation measure at relatively low costs, whereas relying heavily on engineered solutions would jeopardise Brazil’s chances of achieving its net zero pledge. We also show that the mismatch between Brazil's short- and long-term climate targets reflects current weak environmental governance. Our analysis reinforces the urgent need for Brazil to eliminate illegal deforestation and go beyond to help fight climate change whilst curbing biodiversity loss.

Fossil-based emissions can be avoided through using wood in place of non-renewable raw materials as energy and materials. However, increasing wood harvest influences forest carbon stocks. This effect may reduce the overall climate benefit of wood use significantly but is widely overlooked. We carried out a systematic review of simulation studies and compared differences in forest carbon and amount of wood harvested between more and less intensive wood harvest scenarios for three different time perspectives; short (1-30 years), mid (31-70 years) and long (71-100 years). Out of more than 450 reviewed studies 44 provided adequate data. Our results show that increased harvesting reduced carbon stocks over 100 years in temperate and boreal forests roughly 1.6 (stdev 0.9) t_C per t_C harvested. The value proved to be robust when outliers explicitly influenced by other factors than change in harvest rate, such as increase in fertilization or forest area, were removed. Interestingly, no significant difference in carbon impacts was found for average values of boreal and temperate forests or between short and long time-horizons. However, impacts tend to be greatest in the mid-term. This carbon balance indicator that we estimated can be interpreted as carbon debit of wood harvest in forests. It is significant compared with the typical GHG credits in technosphere generated by avoiding fossil emissions in substitution and increase in carbon storage in harvested wood products, and should not be ignored. Our estimates provide default values that can directly be included in GHG balances of products or assessment of mitigation policies and measures related to wood use. However, more systematic scenarios and transparent data in which different factors influencing forest carbon stocks are separately studied are clearly required to provide better constrained estimates for specific forest types.

The Mediterranean is one of the regions of the world where human-induced climate warming is expected to have large impacts on water and environmental resources. To predict shifts in the current climate system, more regional climate records, including seasonal-to-century scale variability spanning longer than the instrumental periods, are needed. To help fill this gap, we provide a reconstruction of autumn precipitation variations for the Central Pyrenees range since 1500 Common Era (CE) using the varved sediments of Lake Montcortès. To assess the suitability of the calcite sublayer width of the sediments of this lake as a proxy for precipitation anomalies, we performed an analysis and smoothing of the temporal structure of the width series, calibration of the new series with the available instrumental climate records, calculation of a transfer function and testing and comparison of the reconstructed series against available empirical data.The prediction model was statistically robust and showed that the climatic signal was captured in the calcite sublayers. The reconstruction provides the first estimations of regional autumn precipitation shifts in the Central Pyrenees at annual resolution, since 1500 CE. Pronounced interdecadal shifts in precipitation were noticeable; no increasing nor decreasing linear trends or periods of extreme precipitation events were identified. The reconstructed precipitation anomalies suggest a decrease in rainfall during the coldest phase within the coldest period of the Little Ice Age and also during the 20^th century, probably associated to current Global Warming. Correlations between autumn precipitation and the North Atlantic Oscillation, Western Mediterranean Oscillation and Southern Oscillation indices were weak to moderate. A potential relationship with the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation pattern is suggested. The reconstructed autumn precipitation trends are coherent with other palaeohydrological reconstructions in similar Mediterranean settings, and consistent at a regional level.

Protected areas, such as natural World Heritage sites, RAMSAR wetlands, and Biosphere reserves are ecosystems within landscapes. Each site meets certain criteria that allow it to qualify as heritage or protected. Both climate change and human influence (e.g., incursion, increased tourist visitation) are altering biophysical conditions at many such sites. As a result, conditions at many sites are falling outside the criteria for their original designation. The alternatives are to change the criteria, remove protection from the site, change site boundaries such that the larger or smaller landscape meets the criteria, or manage the existing landscape in some way that reduces the threat. This paper argues for adaptive heritage, an approach that explicitly recognizes changing conditions. We discuss the need to view heritage areas as parts of a larger landscape, and to take an adaptive approach to management of that landscape. We offer five themes of adaptive heritage: 1) treat sites as living heritage, 2) employ innovative governance, 3) embrace transparency and accountability, 4) invest in monitoring and evaluation, and 5) manage adaptively. We offer the Australian Wet Tropics as an example where aspects of adaptive heritage currently are practiced, highlighting the tools being used. This paper offers guidance supporting decisions about natural heritage in the face of climate change and non-climatic pressures. Rather than delisting or lowering standards, we argue for adaptive approaches.

There is high confidence that climate change has increased the probability of concurrent temperature-precipitation extremes, changed their spatial-temporal variations, and affected the relationships between drivers of such natural hazards. However, the extent of such changes has been less investigated in Australia. Daily weather data (131 years, 1889-2019) at 700 grid cells (1◦ × 1◦) across Australia was obtained to calculate annual and seasonal mean daily maximum temperature (MMT) and total precipitation (TPR). A nonparametric multivariate copula framework was adopted to estimate the return period of compound hot-dry (CHD) events based on an ‘And’ hazard scenario (hotter than a threshold ‘And’ drier than a threshold). CHD extremes were defined as years with joint return periods of larger than 25 years. Mann-Kendall nonparametric tests was used to analyse trends in MMT and TPR as well as in the frequency of univariate and CHD extremes. A general cooling-wetting trend was observed over 1889-1989. Significant increasing trends were detected over 1990-2019 in the frequency and severity of hot extremes across the country while trends in dry extremes were mostly insignificant (and decreasing). Results showed a significant increase in the association between temperature and precipitation at various temporal scales. The frequency of CHD extremes was mostly stable over 1889-1989, but significantly increased between 1990 and 2019 at 44% of studied grid cells, mostly located in the north, south-east and south-west. Spatial homogeneity (i.e. connectedness) and propagation of extreme events from one grid cell to its neighbouring cells was investigated across Australia. It can be concluded that this connectedness has not significantly changed since 1889.

In the last decades farm animals kept in confined and mechanically ventilated livestock buildings are increasingly confronted with heat stress (HS) due to global warming. These adverse conditions cause a depression of animal health and welfare and a reduction of the performance up to an increase of the mortality. To facilitate sound management decisions, livestock farmers need relevant arguments, which quantify the expected economic risk and the corresponding uncertainty. The economic risk was determined for the pig fattening sector based on the probability of HS and the calculated decrease in the gross margin. The model calculation for confined livestock buildings showed, that HS indices calculated by easily available meteorological parameters can be used for assessment quantification of indoor HS, which is so far difficult to determine. These weather-related HS indices can be applied not only for an economic risk assessment but also for a weather-index based insurance for livestock farms. Based on the temporal trend between 1981 and 2017, a simple model was derived to assess the likelihood of HS for 2020 and 2030. Due to global warming, the return period for a 90-percentile HS index is reduced from 10 years in 2020 to 3-4 years in 2030. The economic impact of HS on livestock farms was calculated by the relationship between an HS index based on the temperature-humidity index (THI) and the reduction of the gross margin. From the likelihood of the HS and this economic impact function, the probability of the economic risk could be determined. The reduction of the gross margin for a 10 year return period was determined for 1980 with 0.27 € per year and animal place and increased by the 20-fold to 5.13 € per year and animal place in 2030.

Climate change from anthropogenic activities represents a serious threat to life in earth. Agriculture releases significant emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG), but also offers low-cost opportunities to mitigate GHG emissions. This paper assesses agricultural GHG emissions in Aragon, one important and representative region for agriculture in Spain. The Marginal Abatement Cost Curve (MACC) approach is used to analyze the abatement potential and cost-efficiency of mitigation measures under several scenarios, with and without taking into account the interaction among measures and their transaction costs. The assessment identifies the environmental and economic outcomes of different combinations of measures. Moreover, we develop future mitigation scenarios for agriculture toward the year 2050, in order to assess the impacts on GHG emissions. Results highlight the importance of assessing biophysical processes in mitigation measures, and the significant effects of interactions between measures that reduce the abatement potential and worsen the cost-efficiency. The inclusion of transaction costs provides a better ranking of measures and a more accurate estimation of implementation costs. The scenario analysis shows how the combinations of measures could reduce emissions and promote sustainable agriculture in the future. Keywords: Climate change; mitigation measures; biophysical processes; cost-efficiency; abatement costs; transaction costs; policy scenarios.

CASBEE-City tool determines the city’s Built Environment Efficiency (BEE) by calculating the improvement of Quality of Life (Q) over human activities’ Environmental Load (L) within the city’s hypothetical boundary. A total of 58 variables (57 Q indicators and one variable for L) are used in the worldwide version of CASBEE-City which were grounded using ISO 37120:2014 Sustainable Development of Communities and 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the United Nations (UN). This paper examines the application of CASBEE-City for Malaysian cities using the case of Johor Bahru City and identifies assessment indicators which are customised based on the data availability, reliability and suitability through focus group discussions (FGDs) which involved 36 respondents (researchers, urban planners and stakeholders). This paper reveals Johor Bahru with moderate score B+ in 2010 and 2025. Consensus were also achieved from the 36 FGD respondents for the practicability and future potential of CASBEE-City and BEE framework in Johor Bahru.

The construction industry is one of the most fatal industries, so it is important to pay more attention to safety solutions. Even though work-related accidents are known as major waste in construction projects, little attention has been paid so far to incorporating safety into the lean construction framework. In this research, lean construction theory is reviewed through the lens of safety. That being so, the identified challenges in previous research on improving safety in construction projects are categorized and those related to the concept of lean project delivery are introduced. Then, the principles of the lean construction framework are explained and the relevant changes for incorporating safety into the framework are introduced and discussed. It is expected that this hybrid model would further enrich the lean construction framework. The careful attention of project executives to this model may improve the safety situation in construction projects.

A better understanding of the expected future cyclonic activity, especially in the Mediterranean Basin in winter, is essential for developing scientifically based adaptation and mitigation methods to extreme precipitation and wind anomalies. The aim of this study is to analyze the change of winter cyclonic activity in the Mediterranean-Black Sea region, within the Atlantic–European region, at the beginning (as the recent historical period), middle and end of the 21st century. The projections are based on an ensemble of seven CMIP6 models, which showed the best consistency with NCEP/NCAR and ERA5 reanalysis, under the intermediate SSP2-4.5 and highest-emission SSP5-8.5 scenarios. The results show a consistent increase of the frequency of cyclones over Central Europe and the British Isles associated with the shift of cyclone tracks: norward from the Western Mediterranean region and southward from the Iceland Low. The latter leads to a decrease of the frequency in the north of the Atlantic–European region. At the same time, there is a reduction of the frequency of cyclones over the east of the Mediterranean Sea consistent with the decrease of cyclogenesis events. Area-averaged cyclone numbers in the Western and Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea subregions reduce to the end of the century under the highest-emission scenario, but not constantly and with a raise in the middle of the 21st century under both scenarios, which may be linked to the long-term multidecadal variability or regional features. In general, our study shows that the future winter cyclonic activity in the Mediterranean-Black Sea region responds unevenly to global climate changes, because regional and monthly features are important, as well as accounting for the long-term quasiperiodic variability.

This study examines the DCMA concerning the future risk of the water security status. We considered three risk factors: population growth, economic growth, and natural water supply demand differences. In the risk analysis part, we consulted with experts from several sectors including academia, Non-Governmental Organization (NGOs), and industry, to predict that the probability of future water stresses in high, medium, and low scenarios are 0.73, 0.24, and 0.03, respectively. In the decision analysis part, we adopted two Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) approaches that include Multiple Attribute Value Theory (MAVT) and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) methods to evaluate the best alternative decision to alleviate future water stresses in the DCMA. The sensitivity analysis demonstrates the best option closely connects to the weighting scheme of the criteria considered in the framework. This study provides a valuable risk and decision analysis framework to analyze the water security status associated with the future water supply and demand gap decrease caused by three risk factors: population growth, climate change, and natural water supply.

The Blue Economy represents a sustainable development model emphasizing the responsible use of ocean resources to foster economic growth while preserving marine ecosystems. This approach aims to balance economic prosperity with environmental conservation, recognizing the oceans' crucial role in supporting life on Earth. Key sectors within the Blue Economy include fisheries, tourism, renewable energy, maritime transportation, and aquaculture. As global populations rise and climate change impacts intensify, the Blue Economy is increasingly seen as essential for addressing global challenges and promoting sustainable development. Responsible fisheries management, such as implementing fishing quotas and creating marine protected areas, is crucial to combat overfishing and ensure food security. Sustainable aquaculture practices further alleviate pressure on wild fish stocks. Marine tourism, or ecotourism, promotes responsible practices that benefit local communities and the marine environment. Activities like beach clean-ups, wildlife conservation, and responsible diving practices are integral to this sector, supporting local economies and conservation initiatives. The Blue Economy significantly impacts the global economy, with the potential to double its contribution to the world's GDP by 2030. Sustainable marine sectors create jobs, drive economic growth, and contribute to energy security by harnessing renewable ocean-based energy sources. Additionally, the Blue Economy fosters innovation and technological advancements, enhancing competitiveness across various industries. Despite its potential, the Blue Economy faces challenges like overfishing, pollution, and climate change, which threaten marine biodiversity and ecosystems. Addressing these issues requires international cooperation, effective governance, and public awareness to promote sustainable practices and protect marine resource.

Plants thriving in desert environments are suitable for studying mechanisms for plant survival under extreme seasonal climate variation. Zygophyllum dumosum Boiss, like many other Zygophyllaceae species, displays a unique epigenetic mechanism whereby the repressive markers di- and tri-methyl of H3K9 do not exist. We studied epigenetic mechanisms underlying seasonal growth cycles in Z. dumosum and their association with factors regulating basic cell functions. We showed strong association between rainfall and seasonal growth and the epigenetic marker of dimethyl H3K4, which disappears on entry into the dry season and the acquisition of dormant state. DNA methylation is not affected by lack of H3K9 di and tri methyl and changes in methylation pattern are apparent on entry into the dry season. Proteome analysis of acid soluble fractions revealed extensive reduction in ribosomal proteins and in proteins involved in chloroplasts and mitochondria activities during the dry seasons concomitantly with up-regulation of molecular chaperone HSPs. Our results highlight mechanisms underlying Z. dumosum adaptation to seasonal climate variation. Particularly, summer dormancy is associated with loss of the permissive epigenetic marker dimethyl H3K4, which might facilitate genome compaction, concomitantly with significant reduction in proteins involved in basic cell functions (i.e., protein synthesis, photosynthesis and respiration).

In times of water scarcity, water conservation measures from authorities are primarily directed to the residential sector—homeowners and renters who engage in individual activities to reduce water consumption. Business owners, manufacturers, and institutional workers—the ICI sector, generally, do not receive targeted information and education on water savings measures, and when they do, the information, typically, refers to indoor technologies, and behavior choice. In answer to this shortfall, this research illustrates how the ICI sector might engage in outdoor water conservation and, thus, realize water savings using the well-established Pittenger’s Simplified Landscape Irrigation Design Estimation (SLIDE) formula that estimates outdoor water conservation/savings for the lesser studied industrial, commercial, and institutional (ICI) sector. We applied the SLIDE formula five diverse climate areas in Texas to demonstrate the potential water savings in each, as well as identifying the type of water technology measures that yielded the greatest water savings for outdoor ICI landscapes. Overall, the greatest water savings for outdoor ICI landscapes was realized through smartscape design with soil moisture sensors-SMS technology, second best. Our findings will provide ICI facility owners/managers with knowledge and examples of a simplified system for quantitative decision making when considering choices among technologies and/or practices toward outdoor water conservation for their own facilities.

Sri Lanka's vulnerability to climate change-induced natural disasters, particularly floods, under-scores the urgent need for an integrated approach to disaster risk management (DRM) that ad-dresses the interconnected challenges within the water-food-land-energy nexus. The Deduru Oya basin, located in the north-western region, exemplifies this vulnerability, with its predominantly intermediate climatic zone susceptible to flooding. While the focus has traditionally been on flood risk reduction, it is imperative to recognize the broader implications of floods on water, food, land, and energy systems. This study aims to strengthen data acquisition and management efforts to better understand rainfall trends and their impact on the water-food-land-energy nexus in the Deduru Oya basin. By compiling 60 years of rainfall data and conducting time series analysis, we observed a decreasing trend in monthly rainfall, particularly during the South-West Monsoon, Second Inter Monsoon, and North-East Monsoon seasons. These findings have significant implica-tions for water availability, agricultural productivity, land use patterns, and energy generation in the basin. Moreover, the malfunction of stakeholders' responsibilities for local-level flood risk management exacerbates the challenges faced by communities living in flood-prone areas. By in-tegrating insights from this study into flood risk management strategies, stakeholders can develop holistic approaches that not only mitigate flood risk but also enhance resilience across the water-food-land-energy nexus. This interdisciplinary approach will inform policymakers, flood manag-ers, practitioners, and the community in formulating effective strategies to address the multifacet-ed challenges posed by floods in the Deduru Oya basin and beyond.

Accurately glacier mapping is crucial for understanding climate change impacts, but existing efforts may be biased due to overlooking spatial autocorrelation during map validation. To address this, we compared several widely used machine learning algorithms as gradient boosting machines (GBM), k-nearest neighbor (KNN) and random forest (RF) with parametric logistic regression (GLM) and an unsupervised remote sensing-based method (NDSI) for mapping Peru's glacier regions in a thoughtful experimental setup. Spatial and non-spatial cross-validation methods were used to evaluate model’s performance and compared with a fully independent test set. Performance differences of up to 18% were found between bias-reduced (spatial) and overoptimistic (non-spatial) cross-validation results when compared to independent test set, emphasizing the need to consider spatial autocorrelation when using machine learning for glacier mapping. K-nearest neighbors (KNN) was the overall best model across regions consistently demonstrating the highest performance followed by logistic regression (LR) and gradient boosting machines (GBM). Our novel validation approach, accounting for spatial characteristics, provides valuable insights for glacier mapping studies and future efforts on glacier retreat monitoring. Incorporating this approach improves the reliability of glacier mapping, guiding future national-level initiatives.

For tropical forests to survive anthropogenic climate change, the trees that comprise them will need to tolerate the newly emerging conditions through adaptation or acclimation, or they can avoid climate change through range shifts and “species migrations”. In this review, we show that the rapid pace and extreme severity of modern climate change makes it extremely unlikely that tropical tree species can adapt (with some possible exceptions). We also show that while many tropical tree species are shifting their distributions to higher, cooler elevations, the rate of these migrations are mostly insufficient to offset ongoing changes in temperatures, especially in lowland tropical rainforests where thermal gradients are shallow or nonexistent. We argue that the best hope for tropical tree species to avoid becoming “committed to extinction” is acclimation. While several new methods are being developed to test for acclimation, we unfortunately still do not know if tropical tree species can acclimate or what factors may prevent or facilitate acclimation. Until these questions are answered, our ability to predict the fate of tropical species and tropical forests – and the many services that they provide to humanity – remains critically impaired.

Canada has committed to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by increasing the non-emitting share of electricity generation to 90% by 2030. As solar energy costs have plummeted, agrivoltaics (co-development of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and agriculture) provide an economic path to these goals. This study quantifies agrivoltaic potential in Canada by province using geographical information system analysis of agricultural areas and numerical simulations. Systems modeled would enable conventional farming of field crops to continue (and potentially increase yield) by using bifacial PV for single-axis tracking and vertical system configurations. Between a quarter (vertical) to more than one third (single axis tracking) of Canada’s electrical energy needs can be provided solely by agrivoltaics using only 1% of current agricultural lands. These results show that agrivoltaics could be a major contributor to sustainable electricity generation and provide the ability for Canada to render the power generation sector net zero/GHG emission free. It is clear that the potential of agrivoltaic-based solar energy production in Canada far outstrips current electric demand and can thus be used to electrify and decarbonize transportation, heating, expand economic opportunities by powering the burgeoning computing sector, and export green electricity to the U.S. to help eliminate their dependence on fossil fuels.

The threat posed by climate change, the progressive erosion of natural resources, the polluting effects related to private motorization, energy waste, excessive consumption of agricultural and natural soils and their progressive waterproofing and reduction in vegetation cover, with the subsequent environmental degradation, have highlighted the need for a sustainable management of natural resources, in terms of an equitable and ethical development, to build inclusive communities able to adapt to the negative effects of emergency phenomena, through new capacities of economic, cultural and social resilience. This contribution presents the results of the activities conducted in the RivEr/Generation_LAB, a project organized by three CIVIS members (Sapienza University of Rome, Universitè libre de Bruxelles, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid) as a part of the CIVIS Project "RivEr/Generation_LAB. Linking resilience with inclusiveness in the urban built environment of Rome, Brussels, and Madrid", financed into the Hub4 Cities, Territories & Mobilities’ Call for proposals 2021. The project proposes a methodology of intervention in the Flaminio district, in particular on the 'Olympic Village' and its relationship with the Tiber River, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and the New European Bauhaus, to establish new relationships between cities and the natural environment, favouring sustainable and inclusive public spaces.

Forests play an important role in reducing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, thereby mitigating the impact of climate change. Estimating the accumulated biomass in a forest ecosystem is important for assessing the productivity and sustainability of the forest. Allometric models for above ground biomass (AGB) are linear regression equations based on the relationships between biomass and diameter at breast height (DBH), tree height (H), and/or wood density. This study estimates AGB in the Colo-I-Suva Forest Park by applying the allometry of Chave et al (2005) and the diameter: height ratio derived from Payton & Weaver (2011) for height estimation in a plot of 20

Historical analysis of Australian bushfire data spanning 170 years addresses whether the strength of recent fire events has been exacerbated by human-induced climate change. The question of “cause” looks at the characteristics of a wider range of natural hazards. Fire characteristics are compared with earthquake hazard characteristics: (1) energy – termed “magnitude”; (2) severity – termed “intensity”; and (3) resultant damage to people and structures – termed “impact”.Published global, Northern and Southern hemisphere temperature data are shown to vary consistently in phase over 170 years, but vary in amplitude with statistical significance. CO₂ levels north and south of the Equator have tracked quite consistently. Thus, Southern Hemisphere bushfire magnitude and intensity is compared with the Southern Hemisphere climate record, rather than a global data set.28 major bushfires and associated droughts since 1850 show neither apparent drought extent, nor area burned, nor bushfire intensity, correlates with changes in Southern Hemisphere climate. Average rainfall from 1900 shows a wetter, rather than drier trend. Cyclone energy shows no significant trend with climate. Planet-wide “greening”, through CO₂ fertilisation, is an insignificant contributor to bushfire magnitude. Combustion theory shows recorded “global warming” could have had no significant influence on bushfire magnitude or intensity. Any increase in Australian bushfire impact, as judged by lives lost, similarly, shows no correlation with bushfire magnitude, nor indeed, any observed Southern Hemisphere global warming.Thus, bushfire magnitude seems much more likely driven by fuel load and any anomalous bushfire intensity is likely driven by anomalous ground level fuel load. The evidence suggests that any CO₂ emissions reduction will have no impact on future bushfire “severity.

Enhanced food and nutrition security remains a primary goal for every community. Several interventions have been promoted in dry areas to improve issues on food and nutrition security. However, studies on the level of knowledge, cultural norms, perceptions and attitudes that are key drivers in adoption and uptake to highlight gaps and provide evidence for improvement are limited. This study investigated variables influencing the adoption and implementation of an integrated crop-dairy goat farming system in Elgeyo Marakwet. A descriptive cross-sectional survey entailing qualitative and quantitative approaches among farmers practicing integrated farming was undertaken. A thematic questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data, while key informant interviews and focus groups discussions were used in qualitative research. This study utilized the multi-stage sampling procedure to sample the farmers and sample size was calculated based on Krejcie and Morgan table. Data analysis for quantitative data was done using SPSS software while qualitative data utilized N-vivo software The findings show that farmers have knowledge on the integrated farming system. Age, level of education, land size, gender, perceptions and attitudes influence adoption. Small animals like dairy goats are associated to women in this community hence increasing their participation in access, control and decision making of agricultural resources. The key findings of this study provide baseline data that can form evidence to help inform policy on the indicators contributing to adoption of integrated crop-dairy goat systems to enhance food and nutrition security

The need to address climate change and establish sustainable urban environments has driven increased efforts in Europe to develop climate-neutral cities. This study highlights the importance of integrating solar energy technologies and nature-based solutions as key strategies to achieve climate neutrality. By examining current practices, emerging trends, and case examples, it explores the benefits, challenges, and prospects associated with the integration of solar energy and nature-based solutions in urban contexts. The study presents a pioneering approach to assess the urban heat and climate change mitigation benefits of combining building-integrated photovoltaics and nature-based solutions specifically within the European context. The results emphasize the synergistic relationship between nature-based components and solar conversion technology, identifying effective combinations for different climatic zones. In warmer regions of Southern Europe, strategies like rooftop photovoltaics on cool roofs, photovoltaics shadings, green walls, and urban trees have demonstrated effectiveness. Conversely, mid- and high-latitude European cities have seen positive impacts through the integration of rooftop photovoltaics and photovoltaics facades with green roofs and green spaces. As solar cell conversion efficiency improves, the environmental impact of photovoltaics is expected to decrease, facilitating their integration into urban environments. The study emphasizes the importance of incorporating water bodies, cool pavements, spaces with high sky-view factors, and effective planning in urban design to maximize resilience benefits. It also highlights the significance of prioritizing mitigation actions in low-income regions and engaging citizens in the development of social photovoltaics positive energy houses, resilient neighbourhoods, and green spaces. By adopting these recommendations, European cities can lead the way in creating climate-neutral urban environments that prioritize clean energy, nature-based solutions, and the overall well-being of residents. The findings underscore the need for a multidisciplinary approach that combines technological innovation, urban planning strategies, and policy frameworks to effectively achieve climate neutrality in European cities.

We reviewed various physical and biological manifestations of an unprecedented large-scale water temperature anomaly that emerged in the Northeast Pacific in late 2013. The anomaly dubbed “The Blob” persisted through 2014-2016, with some signs of its persistence through 2017-2018 and a possible reemergence in 2019. The tentative timeline of The Blob’s successive appearances around the Northeast Pacific is suggestive of its advection by currents around the Gulf of Alaska, along the Aleutians, into the Bering Sea, and eventually to the Bering Strait. During the initial phase of The Blob’s development in 2013-2014, advection along the Polar Front might have played a certain role. The extreme persistence and magnitude of The Blob resulted in numerous and sometimes dramatic ecosystem responses in the eastern Bering Sea. The multi-year duration of The Blob might have preconditioned the Bering Sea for the record low seasonal sea ice extent during the winter of 2017-2018 and disappearance of the cold pool in 2016 and 2018 that profoundly affected zooplankton, invertebrates, fishes, sea birds, and marine mammals. Comparison of time-series of population responses across trophic levels suggests that The Blob lowered primary production during spring, increasing small copepod production and jellyfish, and reducing energy transfer efficiently to higher trophic levels. While the Bering Sea’s water temperature, seasonal sea ice, and cold pool seem to return to the long-term mean state in 2022, it remains to be seen if the Bering Sea ecosystem will completely recover. The two most likely alternative scenarios envision either irreversible changes or hysteresis recovery.

The social, environmental and scientific significance of the urban climate has shaped a research stream at Universitat Jaume I’s Climate Lab. Previous research has found higher temperature trends at urban observatories. This study examines in depth the features of the urban environment and the thermal behaviour of land use and land cover and the changes which have taken place. The CORINE Land Cover database was used to delimit the primary Land Use Land Cover (LULC) and its changes between 1990 and 2018. Once this had been established, land surface temperatures (LSTs) between 1985 and 2023 were retrieved from the Landsat database available on the Climate Engine website. Analysis of the primary land cover showed the greatest thermal increase in artificial surfaces, especially in industrial, commercial and transport units which are common on their outskirts. These areas also have the highest temperatures on a monthly basis with the biggest differences occurring in the summer. The results are less clear for urban fabrics and agricultural areas due to their diversity and complexity. The study concludes that urban growth and its commercial and industrial environment has an undeniable effect on the temperatures recorded by urban observatories and enables better decision-making when setting up weather stations for a more detailed time study of the urban heat island (UHI).

An existing simplified simulation model of global climate, population, economy, and governance is extended, through statistical and other data analysis, to include several measures of human well-being and population displacement. The revised model is used to explore (in testing to the year 2060) vicious cycles and causal cascades that, some have warned, could lead to acceleration of climate change in the coming decades. Model scenario testing addresses two uncertainties, namely the strength of the effect of climate change on governance erosion, and the strength of the “heat trap” effect from physical tipping points such as ice loss and permafrost thaw. This testing indicates that a strong heat trap effect could very well accelerate climate change, but that even a strong governance erosion effect is unlikely to do so. Governance erosion would hurt human well-being but is probably not much of a climate threat per se. These results are tentative but point to the possibility of formally modeling causal cascades beyond what the larger climate models have done to date.

In the field of adaptive building technologies, this research introduces the development of a self-regulating solar shading actuator, that utilizes the thermal shape memory effect. The study places its focus on addressing the actuator’s performance under diverse environmental conditions. Thermal simulations were carried out during the development of the individual components of the actuator and for the prediction of specific switching temperatures. The investigation includes an analysis of the sunshade’s response to varying environmental conditions, emphasizing its effectiveness on clear summer days and identifying challenges during overcast periods. The critical coordination between the solar collector and the shape memory alloy (SMA) wire is examined, shedding light on the impact of SMA temperature dynamics on the actuation performance. Through the integration of simulation data and real-world measurements, the study validates the thermal model for the solar collector, establishing the robustness of the system’s operation. This research work contributes significantly to the development of intelligent actuators and outlines the importance of validation of SMA-based applications under real conditions.

Abstract: Earth’s Phanerozoic history is marked by about 100 major events (“golden spikes”) indicating the beginnings of new stages in the Geologic Time Scale (GTS). Stage boundaries signify major deterministic events that are relatively well-known and can be correlated worldwide, mostly on the basis of appearances or disappearances of fossil species. The latest stage (Anthropocene) is human-made and currently involves rapid (approximately linear) increase in average atmospheric temperature. The main cause of Earth’s past and current temperature increases is addition of CO2 to the atmosphere. There is continuous exchange of greenhouse gases between atmosphere and oceans, which (per unit of volume) contain 50 to 60 times as much CO2 as the atmosphere. Abundance of new very precise worldwide observations is allowing multifractal modeling of weather and climate during the latest Quaternary stages during which some variables like temperature of the atmosphere and frequency of forest fires can be described by using the Pareto-lognormal frequency distribution model with parameters that are subject to continuous (deterministic) changes, similar to those in the earlier Phanerozoic.

Identification of Dengue drivers is crucial for pro-active prevention strategies. In semi-arid regions, the relationship between meteorological variables, particularly rainfall, and the dengue vector is complex. This study analyzes associations between the number of dengue cases and rainfall categories in six semi-arid locations in India. Focusing on official website data, we find significant correlations only with heavy rainfall (R>10 mm/day). The findings underscore the importance of heavy rainfall in Dengue incidence and offer insights for pro-active prevention. The study methodology involves rainfall and dengue occurrence over Indian region. This research contributes to the growing body of knowledge on Dengue prevention, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions during periods of heavy rainfall.

Accurate climate data at fine spatial resolution are essential for scientific research and the development and planning of crucial social systems, such as energy and agriculture. Among them, sea surface temperature plays a critical role as the associated El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is considered a significant signal of global interannual climate system. In this paper, we propose an implicit neural representation-based interpolation method with temporal information (T_INRI) to reconstruct climate data of high spatial resolution, with sea surface temperature as the research object. Traditional deep learning models for generating high-resolution climate data are only applicable to fixed resolution enhancement scales. In contrast, the proposed T_INRI method is not limited to the enhancement scale provided during the training process and its results indicate that it can enhance low-resolution input by arbitrary scale. Additionally, we discuss the impact of temporal information on the generation of high-resolution climate data, specifically, which month the low-resolution sea surface temperature data is from. Our experimental results indicate that T_INRI is advantageous over traditional interpolation methods under different enhancement scales, and the temporal information can improve T_INRI performance for a different calendar month. We also examined the potential capability of T_INRI in recovering missing grid value. These results demonstrate that the proposed T_INRI is a promising method for generating high-resolution climate data and has significant implications for climate research and related applications.

To remain relevant in the green transition, companies are beginning to voluntarily account for the exchange of emissions in their supply chain transactions and using the resulting greenhouse gas inventories for climate resilient decision support. Market advantages of sustainability and transparency see a shift from internal decision support tools to external communication tools which potentially expose companies to the risk of uncovering greenwashing if claims are not supported by transparent data, sound modelling, and a climate just emissions inventory, which considers external impacts connected to the production system. The different methods and standards in place for such greenhouse gas inventories, despite all referring to the ISO life cycle analysis standards and guidelines, present mixed signals and leave room for different interpretations, that may ultimately lead to cascading greenwashing, misleading results, and false successes. The new GHG Protocol Land Sector and Removals Guidance draft addresses this in part. With the GHG Protocol moving into revision periods, we identify gaps that present barriers to companies, or allow for interpretations that goes against the intentions of reporting GHG emissions related to an activity or organisation. The literature agrees that not rectifying these subtle-ties present counterproductive decision support for the green transition’s overall goal: to reduce global emissions.

Recent times have witnessed an increasing number of countries and private firms pledging carbon neutrality by mid-century. Whilst representing a significant improvement in intentions to tackle climate change, such pledges lack substance and structure. For instance, individual pledges lack coordination and aggregation among peers, while strategies and measures to achieve ambitious targets are largely absent. Moreover, current disagreements obstructing progress in international climate change negotiations further undermine the reliability of carbon neutrality objectives. Effective international policies are needed to foster aggregate mitigation ambitions and the creation of adequate supporting mechanisms. This theoretical paper describes a governance innovation aimed at overcoming such shortfalls and disagreements through a unifying yet customizable pathway towards carbon neutrality. It does so by first outlining a political governance framework based on a climate club interpretation of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. Secondly, it proposes carbon emission mitigation effort sharing on a per capita basis to ensure efficiency, equity and political feasibility. Thirdly, this paper describes how the supply of certified mitigations of carbon emissions required to satisfy effort sharing-based demand can be assetized as carbon credits by operationalizing Article 6 as a joint certification mechanism. The resulting governance architecture for managing demand and supply of mitigations shifts efforts to tackle climate change from a ‘problem-driven’ cost approach to ‘opportunity-driven’ value creation pathways towards carbon neutrality.

We develop the process of discounting when underlying rates follow a jump-diffusion process, that is, when, in addition of diffusive behavior, rates suffer a series of finite discontinuities located at random Poissonian times. Jump amplitudes are also random and governed by an arbitrary density. Such a model may describe the economic evolution specially when extreme situations occur (pandemics, global wars, etc.). When between jumps the dynamical evolution is governed by an Ornstein-Uhlenbeck diffusion process, we obtain exact and explicit expressions for the discount function and the long-run discount rate and show that the presence of discontinuities may drastically reduce the discount rate, a fact that has significant consequences for environmental planning. We also discuss as a specific example the case when rates are described by the continous time random walk.

This article argues that we need to look at living examples provided by non-state communities in various regions of the world that are, perhaps unwittingly, contributing to the maintenance of the Earth's optimal thermal balance. These fully sustainable communities have been living outside the mainstream for centuries, even millennia, providing examples in the global struggle against the degradation of social–ecological systems. They have all, to varying degrees, embraced simple forms of living that make them ‘exemplary ethical communities’ (EECs) – human communities with a track record of sustainability related to forms of traditional knowledge and the capacity to survive outside the capitalist market and nation-state system. The article proceeds in three steps: First, it condenses a large body of research on the limits of the existing nation-state system and its accompanying ideology, nationalism, identifying this institutional–ideological complex as the major obstacle to tackling climate change. Second, alternative social formations that could offer viable micro-level and micro-scale alternatives are suggested. These are unlikely to identify with existing nation-states as they often form distinct types of social communities. Taking examples from hunter-gatherer societies and simple-living religious groups, it is shown how the protection and maintenance of these EECs could become the keystone in the struggle for survival of humankind and other forms of life. Finally, further investigation is called for, into how researchers can come forward with more examples of actually existing communities that might provide pathways to sustainability and resistance to the looming global environmental catastrophe.

The boundary layer height (BLH) distinguishes the interface between the lower and free atmosphere, which is a key variable in numerical simulation, aerosol, and environmental pollution studies. Thus, the goal of this work is to propose a novel method conjuncting with numerical regularization to analyze climate characteristics of the marine boundary layer height (MBLH) using 2007-2011 GPS-RO data from the COSMIC mission. While traditionally, the difference method has been used to achieve this aim, herein, we propose an innovative method, in which the bending angle profile gradient was calculated using the numerical regulation method where the regulation parameters are determined by the double-parameter model function method. Then, the MBLH was determined by employing the maximum gradient method to ascertain the height corresponding to the smallest gradient. The results show a correlation between currents and the MBLH—a relationship that has not been previously demonstrated. A low MBLH is associated with seasons and regions where cold ocean currents are prevailing; whereas a high MBLH is observed in the seasons and places where warm currents are prevailing. This correlation was validated by comparing the obtained results with different occultation data—i.e., atmprf and echprf—which also established that atmprf is more sensitive to convective cloud top capture. In seas with active convection, the armprf calculated bending angle is higher than that from echprf. Subsequently, the standard deviation was used to express the MBLH confidence level. The results show that the MBLH standard deviation is highest in low latitudes and lowest in the middle and high latitudes. Furthermore, we analyzed the interannual MBLH variation trend, which displayed a seasonal variation and spatial distribution corresponding with the current and subsolar point. Finally, we conducted a case study in the South China Sea, and identified a distinctive seasonal change and downward trend.

To assess the presence of organochlorine pollutants (OCP) in Alaskan sub-Arctic latitudes, we analyzed ice core and meltwater samples from Jarvis Glacier, a polythermal glacier in Interior Alaska. Jarvis Glacier is receding as atmospheric warming continues throughout the region, increasing opportunity for OCP transport both englacially and into the proglacial watershed. Across all meltwater and ice core samples we identify the pesticides DDT, DDE and DDD, α- HCH and ϒ-HCH. OCP concentrations in ice core samples were highest at the 7-14 m depth (0.51 ng/L of DDT) and decreased gradually approaching the bedrock at 79m. Meltwater concentrations from the proglacial creek slightly exceeded concentrations found in the ice core, potentially indicating aggregate OCP glacial loss, with peak OCP concentration (1.12 ng/L of DDD) taken in July and potentially associated to peak melt. Ongoing use of DDT to fight Malaria in Asia, and the extended atmospheric range of HCH may account for concentrations in near-surface ice, correlating with use and atmospheric transport. The opportunity for biota bioaccumulation of OCPs, or human uptake of OCPs from glacial meltwater, may increase as glacial melt continues.

This study aims to suggest a basis for the selection of technologies for developing high-performance buildings to reduce energy consumptions and greenhouse gas emissions. Energy-saving technologies comprising of 15 cases were categorized into passive, active, and renewable energy systems. EnergyPlus v8.8 was used to analyze the contribution of each technology in reducing the primary energy consumptions and CO₂ emissions in the Korean climate. The primary energy consumptions of the base model were 464.1 and 485.1 kWh/m²a in the Incheon and Jeju, respectively, and the CO₂ emissions were 83.4 and 87.4 kgCO₂/m²a, respectively. Each technology (cases 1–15) provided different energy-saving contributions in the Korean climate depending on their characteristics. The heating, cooling, and other energy-saving contributions of each technology indicate that their saving rates can be used when selecting suitable technologies during the cooling and heating seasons. Case 15 (active chilled beam with dedicated outdoor air system + ground source heat pump) showed the highest energy saving rate. In case 15, the Incheon and Jeju models were reduced by 189.4 (59.2%) and 206.2 kWh/m²a (57.4%) compared to the base case, respectively, and the CO₂ emissions were reduced by up to 32.7 (60.8%) and 35.6 kgCO₂/m²a (59.3%), respectively.

The importance of predicting the exposure to environmental hazards is highlighted by issues like global climate change, public health problems caused by environment stresses, and property damages and depreciations. Several approaches have been used to assess potential exposure and achieve optimal results under various conditions, for example, for different scales, groups of people, or certain points in time. Micro-simulation tools are becoming increasingly important in human exposure assessment, where each person is simulated individually and continuously. This paper describes an agent-based model (ABM) framework that can dynamically simulate human exposure levels, along with their daily activities, in urban areas that are characterized by environmental stresses such as air pollution and heat stress. Within the framework, decision making processes can be included for each individual based on rule-based behavior to achieve goals under changing environmental conditions. The ideas described in this paper are implemented in a free and open source NetLogo platform. A simplified modeling scenario of the ABM framework in Hamburg, Germany, further demonstrates its utility in various urban environments and individual activity patterns, and portability to other models, programs and frameworks. The prototype model can potentially be extended to support environmental incidence management by exploring the daily routines of different groups of citizens and compare the effectiveness of different strategies. Further research is needed to fully develop an operational version of the model.

The Siret River crosses NE Romania from the north to the south and it discharges into the Danube, near the city of Galati. During the period, 17^th June - 10^th July 2010, significant amounts of precipitations in the mountainous basin of Siret were recorded. The floods comprised two periods with four bimodal cycles and they were counted among the strongest on the Romanian territory. The exceptional floods occurred in the rivers of Siret, Suceava, Moldova, Bistrita, Trotus and so on. The most important compound flood wave was determined by the precipitations which fell within the period, 29^th June to 1^st July 2010, when significant amounts of rain were recorded, sometimes, exceeding 80 mm. The high discharges on the Bistrita River – downstream from the Bicaz Reservoir – were controlled by complex hydro technical works. The maximum discharge for the year 2010 summer floods was recorded at Dragesti hydrometric station: 2,884 m³/s (historic discharge) compared to the preceding historic discharge of the year 2008 (2,850 m³/s). The effects of floods were strongest in the counties of Suceava, Neamt, and Bacau. The floods on the main course of the Siret River were analyzed in correlation with the tributaries within the mountainous sector.

We re-inventoried red wood ant nests (RWA) in 12 study sites (≈1281 ha) in the Westeifel Volcanic Field, Germany, in an area-wide and integrated ecosystem approach after 12 years. Combined with the re-identification of previously mapped nests using a photo database, this approach leads to more accurate nest counts in (re)inventories. A total increase of nests from 1144 (2009) to 1252 (2021), and a dramatic one for the Heidberg site by 52-fold (2009) and 85-fold (2021) compared to a 1984 inventory was observed, contrasting with earlier postulations of a decline in RWA. Early to medium mature (41-80 years) and mature (³81–140 years) spruce forests were the preferred habitat. Large increase in small nest sizes suggests an increase in new nest settlements also in clearings, despite climate-induced forest dieback over the past decade. A decline in biodiversity in the herbaceous layer was observed; highly proliferating blackberries had no negative impact on RWA nests. Monitoring of woodpecker cavities in RWA nests is suggested as an indirect indicator tool for evaluating populations in forests. Positive ground movement rates caused by the Eifel plume are suggested another factor favoring nest settlements. This study contributes to the urgent update of statistically valid data required to a) effectively substantiate the status-quo of RWA occurrences, b) protect RWA as ecosystem engineers, c) advance understanding of Geo-Bio-Interactions in the wake of climate change, and c) contribute to the German government's Insect Conservation Action Program.

The present paper reviews evidence for ecological evolution of Montiaceae. Montiaceae (Portulacineae) comprise a family of ca. 275 species and ca. 25 subspecific taxa of flowering plants distributed mainly in extreme western America, with additional endemism elsewhere, including other continents and islands. They have diversified repeatedly across steep ecological gradients. Based on narrative analysis, I argue that phylogenetic transitions from annual to perennial life history have been more frequent than suggested by computational phylogenetic reconstructions. I suggest that a reported phylogenetic correlation between the evolution of life history and temperature niche is coincidental and not causal. I demonstrate how statistical phylogenetic comparative analysis (PhCA) missed evidence for marked moisture niche diversification among Montiaceae. I discount PhCA evidence for the relation between Montiaceae genome duplication and ecological diversification. Based on the present analysis of Montiaceae evolution, I criticize the premise of the prevalent statistical approach to PhCA, which tests Darwinian deterministic hypotheses against stochastic evolutionary null models. I discuss theoretical/empirical evidence that evolution is neither stochastic, nor Darwinistically-determined, but idiosyncratic. Idiosyncraticity describes the outcome of a stochastically perturbed nonlinear chaos-like process. The Principle of Evolutionary Idiosyncraticity (PEI) is based on the evolutionary theory of Natural Drift, which maintains that determinism in evolution is a property of the organism and not, as maintained by the theory of Natural Selection, its traits or its milieu. This determinism is characteristic of chaotic functions, which are absolutely determinate, generate self-similarity, but remain absolutely unpredictable. PEI explains precisely observations that evolution proceeds not linearly, but chaotically, producing both quasi-linear fractal-like patterns and non-linear jumps. PEI has ramifications for all areas of macroevolutionary research. In particular, it demonstrates both the fallacy and futility of the statistical PhCA approach that interprets evolutionary causes in terms of evolutionary correlations. However, statistical methods of PhCA can be applied heuristically and fruitfully to reveal idiosyncraticity and discover evolutionary novelty. This, in turn, is demonstrated by the emergence of statistical anomalies in evolutionary analyses of Montiaceae.

The Keeling Curve shows that in addition to the progressive increase in the amount of CO₂ in the atmosphere, the rate of increase in the rate of uptake of CO₂ into the atmosphere, both in ppm and gigatons C/year, has been progressively increasing from 1960 to the present, despite some leveling off of man-made emissions. There is a similar processive increase in the earth’s heat imbalance. I propose that this is due to the additive effect of multiple partially activated tipping points putting the earth into a positive feedback mode such that these increases in rate will continue even after net zero emissions from fossil fuels is attained. As a result, controlling global warming will require a marked acceleration of Carbon Dioxide Removal using multiple Negative Emission Technologies.

The study used ERA5 reanalysis SST dataset re-gridded to a common grid of 0.25° X 0.25° spatial resolution (latitude × longitude) for the historic (1940–2014) and projected (2015–2100). The SST simulation under the SSP5-8.5 scenarios was carried out with output from 8 General Circulation Models (GCMs). The bias-corrected dataset was developed using Empirical Quantile Mapping EQM for the historical (1940-2015) and the future (2030-2100) while the CMIP6 model simulation was evaluated against the ERA5 monthly rainfall observed data for monthly and annual sea surface temperatures (SST) over the Gulf of Guinea. ). The CMIP6 models simulation for SST projection from 2030-20100 based on SSPS 8.5 SST is projected to increase by 4.61o (31oC) in 2030 to 35oC in 20100 in the coastal GOG and 2.6oC in the Western GOG (Sahel). The correlation coefficient (r) was used to evaluate the performance of the CMIP6 models and the analysis showed ACCESS 0.1,CAMS CSM 0.2, CAN ESM 0.3, CMCC, 0.3 and MCM, 0.4 indicating that all models performed well in capturing the climatological pattern of the SST. The.CMIP6 bias corrected model simulations showed increased SST warming over the GOG will be higher in the Far period end than the Near-term climate. The study affirmed that the CMIP6 projections can be used for multiple assessments related to climate and hydrological impact studies and for the development of mitigation measures under a warming climate

Droughts are among the major natural hazards that are spreading to many parts of the world with huge multi-dimensional impacts. For Continental Croatia an extensive analysis of drought phenomenon is presented based on meteorological E-OBS gridded dataset (0.25° x 0.25°), within the period of 1950 to 2022. The drought events were characterized by the Standardized Precipita-tion Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) applied to different time-scales (6 and 12 months) in order to describe the subannual and annual variability of drought. The spatiotemporal patterns of drought are obtained through principal component analysis (PCA) and K-means clustering (KMC) applied to the SPEI field. An areal drought evolution analysis and the changes in the frequency of occur-rence of the periods under drought conditions were achieved by using a kernel occurrence rate es-timator (KORE). The Modified Mann-Kendall (MMK) test coupled with the Sen’s slope estimator test are applied to the SPEI series in order to quantify the drought trends throughout the country. According to drought events history and considering the different morphoclimatic characteristics of the study area the results showed that Croatia could be divided into three different and spatial-ly well-defined regions with specific temporal and spatial characteristics of droughts (Central North, Eastern and Southern regions). It is shown that there is a manifest increase in the percent-age of area affected by drought as well as in the yearly drought occurrences rates in both Central North and Eastern regions and an evident decrease in the Southern region for both 6 and 12 month SPEI time-scales. In the observation of the drought temporal characteristics, it was found that downward trends expressing increasing drought severities were strongly significant in North and Eastern regions while a few significant upward trends were seen in Southern region. From this study, it is possible to obtain a broader view of the historical behaviour of droughts in Croatia with results providing useful support for drought risk assessment and decision-making processes.

The evaluation of suitability for bioclimatic viticulture indices (BVIs) zones, as with any other crop, requires a well-founded knowledge of the spatial variability in climate data, which is also used to assess different grapevine cultivars and to delimit appropriate regions for vineyard production under the current climate and projected climate change. BVIs, on the other hand, are typically calculated using a small number of locations linked by climatic station sites or applied using a coarsely-resolution distributed dataset. Furthermore, often the methods applied to precisely delineate symmetrical regions are not appropriate to generate accurate maps. To provide an analysis using three temperature-based indices and the hydrothermal coefficient (HTC), quantifying their spatial variation, and representing the spatial patterns of each BVI throughout the Jabal Al Arab viticulture—one of the most important Syrian viticulture regions in the Eastern Mediterranean—daily temperature data from 15 meteorological stations and 57 rain gauges, considering the 1984–2014 period, and downscaled future scenarios (RCPs based on CanESM2), considering the 2016–2100 period, were utilized. The statistical method of each BVI was analyzed, and, later, they were mapped by using GIS and a hybrid interpolation (regression-kriging) approach. The regression fitting method revealed that the sum accumulation of heat and the hydro-thermal index during the growing season were highly related to elevation and distance to the seacoast variables; however, the viticulture zones varied spatially depending on which index was used and under suggested future scenarios compared to the current climate. The spatial distribution of climate in the Jabal Al Arab regions exhibits significant variability. The findings suggest that climate change projections indicate a prevalence of warmer conditions in the future. Under the RCP scenarios, the territory can be categorized into up to three bioclimatic classes for both the Heat Index (HI) and the Winter Index-Growing Degree Days (WI-GDD), in contrast to the current climate which has six classes. These results provide valuable insights into the suitability of viticulture within each climatic region and facilitate the identification of homogeneous zones. The utilization of consistent bioclimatic indices and an advanced hybrid interpolation method has enabled the delineation and comparison of bioclimatic variables of Jabal Al Arab with other regions worldwide. Such comparisons should be considered when selecting grapevine varieties and assessing the potential for grape production.

Global warming is increasing the frequency and intensity of compound drought-heat events (CDHEs), potentially leading to larger and more extreme fire seasons in mesic forests. Wildfire activity in subtropical China, under the influence of monsoonal rainfall, was historically limited to dry winters and rare in rainy summers. Here we seek to test that this area is on the brink of a major change in its fire regime characterized by larger fire seasons, extending into the summer, leading to increases in burned area. We analyze fire activity in Chongqing Municipality (46,890 km2), an important area in subtropical China hosting the Three Gorges Reservoir Area. We observed significant increases in summer forest fires under anomalous dry-hot summer conditions, where total burned area was 3-6 higher than the historical annual mean (largely confined to the winter season). Vapor pressure deficit, an indicator of hot and dry conditions, was a strong predictor of fire activity, with major wildfires occurring on days where VPD was higher than 3.5kPa. Results indicate that major wildfire activity may occur in the area as a result of climate change, unless strong fire prevention policies are implemented.

The Victorian Government Inquiry into wildfires that killed 173 people in 2009 has driven an Australian policy shift from self-evacuation or staying and defending a well-prepared property (‘go or stay’) to self-evacuation under catastrophic fire weather (‘leave early’). The Inquiry also led to the establishment of national ‘performance standards’ for Private Fire Shelters (PFS, that also known as bunkers). Nonetheless, incorporation of PFS into national bushfire policy remains embryonic with only Victoria having streamlined accreditation and planning approval processes. Arguments against PFS include potentially engendering complacency about preparing dwellings to survive fire and encourage risky behavior in response to a fire threat. Counteracting these arguments is research that shows that residents without PFS have low engagement with bushfire preparation and typically delay evacuation. In any case, because wildfire is unpredictable it is accepted that self-evacuation plans must have fallback positions that include sheltering ‘in place’ from the bushfire, making properly used and well maintained PFS an important element of bushfire safety. A less discussed barrier to PFS uptake outside Victoria appears to hinge on a lack of clarity about obligations for their design, certification, and consistency with planning approvals. The escalating Australian fire crisis demands much greater research and development in legal frameworks, policy and planning processes for PFS, as well as design and construction standards.

Our planet faces several serious and urgent challenges to sustainability, not just climate change. Most researchers argue that technological solutions can solve these problems. This review paper first examines the prospects for decoupling environmental damages in general from economic growth, considered at the global level, then looks at whether the recent advances in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) can help. It is argued that although absolute decoupling might have occurred in some countries, even after accounting for energy-intensive imports, it has not occurred at the global level, which is the relevant level for global sustainability problems. This conclusion is strengthened by the very high correlation over the past three decades found between GDP and several parameters relevant for sustainability, particularly for atmospheric CO2 ppm and ecological footprint as a function of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). ICT innovations relevant to energy use include smart grids and smart cities, especially smart urban transport. A review of recently published papers shows no definite findings of energy or carbon reduction, although some innovations show energy/carbon reduction potential, if given strong policy support. However, the needed policies could well give marked reductions even without ICT approaches. Overall, it is concluded that Earth’s sustainability challenges will necessitate deep energy reductions, which in turn require profound sociopolitical changes.

In this review, the potential of an emerging field of interdisciplinary climate research, that is the Coastal Boulder Deposits (CBDs) as natural archives for intense storms, is explored with particular reference to the Mediterranean region. First, the identification of the pertinent scientific articles was performed by using Web of Science (WoS) engine. Thus, the selected studies have been analysed to feature CBDs produced and/or activated during the last half century. Then, the meteorological events responsible to the literature reported cases were analysed in some details using the web archives of the Globo-Bolam-Moloch model cascade. The study of synoptical and local characteristics of the storms involved in the documented cases of boulder production/activation proved useful to assess the suitability of selected sites as geomorphological storm proxies. It is argued that a close and fruitful collaboration involving several scientific disciplines is required to develop this climate research field.

The provision requirement of 10% openings of the total floor area stated in the Uniform Building by Law 1984 Malaysia has been practiced by designers for building plan submission approval. However, the effectiveness of thermal performance in landed residential buildings, despite the imposition by the by-law, has never been empirically measured and proven. Although terraced houses in Malaysia have dominated 40.9% of the total property transaction in 2019, such mass production with typical designs hardly provides its occupants with thermal comfort due to the static outdoor air condition and lack of external windows, where the conventional ventilation technique does not work well, even for houses with an air well system. Consequently, the occupants need to rely on mechanical cooling, which is a high energy-consuming component contributing to outdoor heat dissipation and therefore urban heat island effect. Thus, encouraging more effective natural ventilation to eliminate excessive heat from the indoor environment is critical. Since most of the research focuses on simulation modelling lacking sufficient empirical validation, this paper drawing on field measurement investigates natural ventilation performance in terraced housing with an air well system. More importantly, the key concern as to what extent the current air well system serving as a ventilator is effective to provide better thermal performance in the single storey terraced house is to be addressed. By adopting an existing single storey air welled terrace house, the existing indoor environmental conditions and thermal performance were monitored and measured using scientific equipment, namely HOBO U12 air temperature and air humidity, the HOBO U12 anemometer and the Delta Ohm HD32.3 Wet Bulb Globe Temperature meter for a six-month duration. The findings show that the air temperature of the air well ranged from 27.48°C to 30.92°C, while the mean relative humidity were from 72.67% to 79.25%. The mean air temperature for a test room (single sided ventilation room) ranged from 28.04°C to 30.92°C with a relative humidity of 70.16% to 76%. These empirical findings are of importance, offering novel policy insights and suggestions to potentially revising the existing building code standard and by laws; since the minimum provision of 10% openings has been revealed to be less effective to provide a desired thermal performance and comfort, mandatory compliance with, and the necessity for, the bylaw requirement should be revisited and further studied.

Frequent flooding from sea-level rise (SLR) is one of the immediate climate change impacts affecting low-lying and exposed coastal communities. These communities rely upon the delivery of three-waters services for wastewater, stormwater and water supply. Due to ongoing SLR, managing these networks will increasingly be a challenge. This raises the issue of how local government can reconcile maintaining levels of service as the impacts of climate change and their uncertainties worsen over the coming decades (and beyond). Can they be adapted over time to retain levels of service or will they eventually require retreat and if so at what adaptation threshold? This paper explores managed retreat of two-waters infrastructure (wastewater and stormwater) as an adaptation option using a Dynamic Adaptive Pathway Planning (DAPP) approach. In the study, we use DAPP to frame the retreat of two-water networks, developing a combination of an area specific retreat strategy, pathway portfolios, retreat phases, land use change signaling and identify pathway conflicts and synergies. Repurposing retreated areas by utilizing Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) options was found to extend retreat thresholds for adjacent areas. A systematic ’routine’ developed in this study provides a structured approach for managed retreat of two-water infrastructure with the aim to reduce future disruption from flooding, signal land use changes early and allow for gradual budget adjustments by the agencies to manage expenditure over time. This approach helps inform and improve the decision-making process for the agencies and the communities they serve, by providing a stepwise process that can be communicated spatially and visually, thereby making a retreat adaptation option more manageable.

Easter Island (Rapa Nui) deforestation has traditionally been viewed as a single event, synchronous in time and space across the island and caused by Polynesian settlers. However, recent studies have challenged this idea introducing the concept of spatio-temporal heterogeneity and suggesting a role for climate change. This paper presents a continuous paleovegetation record of the last millennium (~960 to ~1710 CE), based on palynological analysis of a peat core from Lake Kao. During this time interval, deforestation was gradual, with three main pulses at ~1070 CE, ~1410 CE and ~1600 CE, likely driven by drought, anthropogenic practices (mostly fire) or the coupling of both. Some forest regeneration trends have been documented after the first and the second deforestation pulses. Forests were totally removed by 1600 CE, coinciding with the full permanent human settlement of the Kao area. Comparison with other continuous palynological records available for the last millennium (Aroi marsh and Lake Raraku), confirms that forest clearing was heterogeneous in time and space, rather than synchronous island-wide.

Results-Based Funding (RBF) for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) has become an important instrument for channeling financial resources to forest conservation activities. At the same time, much literature on conservation funding is ambiguous about the effectiveness of existing RBF schemes. Many effectiveness evaluations follow a simplified version of the principal-agent model, although in practice the relation between aid providers and funding recipients is much more complex. As a consequence, intermediary steps of conservation funding are often not accounted for effectiveness studies. This research paper aims to provide a nuanced understanding of conservation funding by analyzing the allocation of financial resources for one of the largest RBF schemes for REDD+ in the world: the Brazilian Amazon Fund. As part of this analysis, this study has built a dataset of information on Amazon Fund projects at unprecedented detail in order to accurately reconstruct the allocation of financial resources across different stakeholders (i.e. governments, NGOs, research institutions), geographies and activities. The results show that stakeholders seem to hold preferences with respect to the type of activities that they support, thereby suggesting that project owners exert much influence on how deforestation reduction is to be attained. There are evidences that governmental organizations lack financial additionality of their projects, which renders the growing share of funding to this type of stakeholder particularly worrisome. By contrast, the geographical distribution of financial resources seemed to follow a more focused rationale as financial support tends to concentrate in areas where deforestation threats are highest. Overall, the allocation of the financial resources from the Amazon Fund reflects an arbitrary support of different projects that adopt very diverging theories of change that are not primarily concerned with attaining further deforestation reductions. As projects owners exert influence on funding effectiveness to some extent, the Amazon Fund may either seek to regulate the allocation of financial resources more actively or adopt funding effectiveness evaluations that account for this influence more comprehensively.

Salinity intrusion is one of the most serious consequences of climate change coupled with rising sea level that significantly affects agricultural activities in many parts of the world. This phenomenon has increasingly become more serious and frequently occurred in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam. As a result, Vietnam has been ranked among top five countries where have been devastatingly impacted by climate change, in particular, its Tra Vinh Province characterized by coastal plain and alluvial deposit. In addition, this area is of the tropical monsoon zone of long rainy season with source of salt brought from the sea by the tides and sea level rise. Regions that are contaminated by salt are located in lowland and often suffer from floods linking to tidal effects with salty water from river systems and channels. Soil salinity evaluation is critical for coastal protection, restoration, and agricultural planning since it can be considered as an agricultural indicator to evaluate quality of soil. Here, we attempt to estimate the soil salinity in Tra Vinh Province, in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam. Landsat 8 OLI images are utilized to derive indices for soil salinity evaluation including single bands, Vegetation Soil Salinity Index (VSSI), Soil Adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), and Normalized Difference Salinity Index (NDSI). Subsequently, satistical analysis between soil salinity, electrical conductivity (EC, dS/m), and environmental indices derived from Landsat 8 OLI image is performed. Results indicate that spectral value of Near Infrared (NIR) band and VSSI are highly correlated with EC (R2 = 0.7779 and R2 = 0.6957, respectively) in comparison with the other indices. Comparative results show that soil salinity derived from Landsat 8 is consistent with in situ data. Findings of this study demonstrate that Landsat 8 OLI images reveal a high potential for spatiotemporally monitoring the magnitude of soil salinity at the top soil layer. Outcomes of this study are useful for agricultural activities, planners, and farmers by providing the base map of soil salinity contamination for better selection of accomodating crop types to reduce economical lost in the context of climate change. Our proposed method that estimates soil salinity using satellite-derived variables can be applied in the other regions.

Appropriate governance structures are extremely important for the fishery dependent communities to develop integrated territorial development strategies and adaptive capacity to change, including the climate one. This paper assesses to what extent fisheries co-management schemes (e.g Fisheries LAGs, being regional/local governance instruments in fishing communities) are strengthening sustainability. The latter includes improving energy efficiency, promoting renewable energy sources (RES), coping with climate crisis, minimizing environmental impacts, and promoting sustainable blue economy. For detecting policy aspects of aligning climate neutrality and sustainable blue economy, the research lens focuses on the Greek Fisheries Local Action Groups (FLAGs) given that these are mostly located in coastal/marine and insular territories with significant blue growth potential. To map and assess their capacity and efficiency in pursuing Green Deal objectives, a co-development process with FLAG managers was put in place. The results and findings of this process reveal the scarcity of sustainability and blue economy related strategies. Key conclusion is that transition to a post-carbon blue economy on a local level, requires the understanding of the evolutionary dynamics of fisheries co-management schemes. The latter, being multi-sectoral structures, may boost dialogue and cooperation to harmonize local development strategies and EU policies. Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) as an evolutionary governance process itself, can be a driver for making FLAGs evolve, and strengthen commonization and blue justice and equity for fishers.

Stagnating low renovation rates, vacancies and underused town centers, unprecedentedly high levels of land sealing and excessive consumption of resources through the construction of new buildings and infrastructure as well as the effects of climate change were some of the reasons for carrying out the monumentum ad usum research project.Thermodynamic simulations were used to carry out in-depth analyses of specific building parameters such as energy balances and how they are influenced by the effects of climate change. Life cycle analyses under ecological and economic aspects examined the aspects of sustainability and the individual behaviour of predominantly listed existing buildings under standardized conditions.The project results show that sustainable refurbishment can significantly increase the attractiveness of using historic and listed buildings for non-profit building owners. The results and conclusions of the project are as varied as the recommendations derived from them. In practice, old buildings consume significantly less energy than predicted in the structural calculations. Correction factors are to be developed and thermodynamic simulation calculations are to be used instead of energy performance certificates for more realistic forecasts of energy requirements and emission savings potential. The aspects of sustainability in refurbishment are essential for the protection of our architectural heritage.

South Africa’s internationally celebrated water legislation placed the responsibility for investing in water services at the door of the government. In recent years South Africa has struggled to invest adequately to keep up with growing demand for these services. The result is a suite of social, economic and environmental risks that are destabilising to the fiscus and the financial sector. This paper explored both operating and capital costs, and applied the ‘Beyond the Gap’ analysis to show that an additional 55% investment (R91 billion annually) is necessary to ensure South Africa meets its water policy goals. The analysis explores the factors that influence the investment amount and shows that a combination of policy choices and exogenous factors such as climate change could render the investment gap anywhere between 30% and 90% of the estimated current allocation to the water sector. The most significant savings are attributed to reducing the extent of “non-revenue water”, an energy transition away from coal, sharing of some water taps between (up to) five houses, reduced water allocations to agriculture, investments in invasive alien plant (IAP) clearing in water catchments above dams, and water demand management, capacity building and more efficient integration of different bulk water schemes. The study revealed important dependencies between capital and operating costs; where operating costs are ignored, the decay of water infrastructure is accelerated. Showing the contingency of investment needs on policy choices, places responsibility for attaining water policy goals and SDG 6 in the hands of a diverse set of actors. Quantifying the investment need also raises the critical question of how to raise the required investment. Recognising the need to balance risks to financiers with the widespread risks to households, companies and government when investment in water services is inadequate, South Africa is exploring a Monetary Architecture approach of inter-balance sheet relationships in an attempt to mobilise investment from new sources.

(1) Background: Human-generated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are the largest contributor to climate change worldwide. Climate change negatively impacts human and planetary health threatening the existence of life on earth. The healthcare industry is responsible for approximately 8.5% of carbon emissions in the United States. Measuring baseline GHG emissions is the first step in emissions reduction. However, very few models of measurement exist for health care organizations. This project aimed to develop and implement a program to measure and track GHG emissions at a Midwestern Academic Medical Center (MAMC) and to educate staff to manage the process. (2) Methods: A Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycle and Quality Improvement methodology was used to develop, implement, and assess a standardized GHG emission inventory process to measure Scope 1 and Scope 2 baseline emissions, and provide virtual training and education to the accountable staff. A pre- and post-survey design was used to measure the knowledge and readiness of the staff after the implementation of the GHG inventory training. (3) Results: The GHG inventory process was validated through an external verification process and the measurement of Scope 1 and Scope 2 baseline GHG emissions was completed and verified for accuracy through a data comparison review. The pre-post-training survey showed an increase in the knowledge and readiness of staff in maintaining a GHG inventory. (4) Conclusions: This work shows the feasibility of obtaining baseline GHG emissions data at large medical centers. It represents the initial phase of the overarching goal to develop site-wide and system-wide carbon reduction strategies and a climate action plan within this health system.

Already more than 140 countries consider or have pledged to reach net-zero emission targets by 2050 or earlier and the share of global emissions falling into an emission pricing scheme has steeply increased over the past three years. Even where there are no direct implications for industry (yet), there is a series of subtle pressure points driving an increasing number of companies across the globe to work towards climate neutrality and pledging ambitious emission reduction goals. This article sheds light on the pressure points, the subtle triggers, the underlying considerations as well as the hoped-for benefits for industrial companies from achieving net-zero emissions. The observations and ideas presented in this paper are derived from quantitative data obtained via the Energy Efficiency Index of German Industry (EEI) and qualitative data. Not only societal, work force, supply chain and investor expectations play a large role, but also many strategic considerations which have the potential to make the company more resilient and profitable, particularly in time of crisis. Those companies that do not move towards decarbonisation, on the other hand, may face a costly late-mover disadvantage. This piece uncovers subtle interconnections, helping stakeholders from industry and beyond to grasp opportunities and challenges ahead.

Previous studies have shown, in the United States (U.S.), that non-White communities are exposed to significantly higher temperatures in urban environments than complementary White populations. Studies highlighting this disparity have usually been cross-sectional and are therefore “snapshots” in time. Using surface urban heat island (SUHI) intensity data, U.S. Census 2020 population counts, and a measure of residential segregation, this study performs a comparative analysis between census tracts identified as prevalent for White, Black, Hispanic and Asian populations and their thermal exposure from 2003 – 2018. The analysis concentrates on the top 200 most populous U.S. cities. SUHI intensity is shown to be increasing through time for all examined tracts. However, the increase is only statistically significant for White and Black prevalent zones. There is a 1.25K to ~2.00K higher degree of thermal exposure on average for non-White relative to White prevalent areas. When examined on an inter-city basis, White and Black prevalent tracts had the largest disparity, as measured by SUHI intensity, in New Orleans, LA, USA by < 6.00K. Hispanic (>7.00K) and Asian (<6.75K) prevalent tracts were greatest in intensity in San Jose, CA, USA. To further explore temporal patterns, two models were developed using a Bayesian hierarchical spatial temporal framework. One models the effect of varying the percentages of each population group relative to SUHI intensity within all examined tracts. Increases in percentages of Black, Hispanic, and Asian populations contributed to statistically significant increases in SUHI intensity. White increases in population percentage lowered SUHI temperature intensity. Throughout all modeled tracts, there is a statistically significant 0.01K per year average increase in SUHI intensity. A second model tests the effect of residential segregation on thermal inequity across all examined cities. Residential segregation, indeed, has a statistically significant positive association with SUHI intensity from this portion of the analysis. Similarly, there is a statistically significant 0.01K increase in average SUHI intensity per year for all cities. Results from this study can be used to guide and prioritize intervention strategies and furthers urgency related to social, climatic, and environmental justice concerns.

Soil temperature is a fundamental parameter in water resources and engineering. A cost-effective model which can forecast soil temperature accurately is extensively needed. Recently, many studies have applied artificial intelligence (AI) at both surface and underground levels for soil temperature prediction. However, there is no comprehensive and detailed assessment of the performance of different AI approaches in soil temperature estimation, and primarily limited atmospheric variables are used as input data for AI models. In the present study, great varieties of various land and atmospheric variables are applied to evaluate the performance of a wide range of AI methods on soil temperature prediction. Herein, thirteen approaches, from classic regressions to well-established methods of random forest and gradient boosting to advanced AI techniques like multi-layer perceptron and deep learning are taken into account. The results show that AI is a promising approach in climate parameter forecast and deep learning demonstrates the best performance among other models. It has the highest R-squared ranging from 0.957 to 0.980, the lowest NRMSE ranging from 2.237% to 3.287% and the lowest MAE, ranging from 0.510 to 0.743 in predicting soil temperature. The prediction is repeated for different sizes of data, and prediction outcomes confirm the conclusion mentioned above.