Transcript Geographers responding to climate change

Projections for SA, 2030
• 10-50% hot days
• 20-80% decrease in frost days
• rainfall decreases likely, particularly in
autumn and spring = less runoff, shorter
growing seasons, more droughts
• increases in extreme rainfall events =
flooding & soil erosion
• Sea-level rise
• More strong storms
(McInnes et al. 2003)
You have received a planning
submission for a SA coastal community
• An application for a new caravan park in a
small country town
• Near the coast: dunes + reef
• Near a river: estuary
• Surrounded by scrub containing rare and
endangered species: red-tailed black
cockatoo
• Wine and fruit growing area
+ Climate change
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Key finding
… the overwhelming majority of
respondents indicated a willingness to
accept wider policy changes to adapt to
climate change, even if it meant that such
changes would involve them making
personal sacrifices.
(Bardsley & Liddicoat 2008)
Risk for global human
ecosystems
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….Climate change
Globalisation: changing supply &
demand
Land and water redirected for other
uses eg. biofuels
Ongoing natural resource depletion
Rising energy and fuel prices
Rising social inequality/poverty
Urbanisation……
Employment & climate change
• Geography educates for boundary-spanning
individuals with interdisciplinary knowledge,
skills, degrees and values
• Interdisciplinary systems thinkers & workers,
communicators, conveners, mediators
• A significant employment niche in a servicebased global economy
• People who develop trust by working with
credible information, legitimise roles of
stakeholders, understand environmental &
socio-cultural contexts & are flexible enough to
deal with uncertainty
This presentation prepared from:
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Bardsley, D.K. & Rogers, G. (In Press) Prioritising engagement for sustainable adaptation to
climate change: An example from natural resource management in South Australia, Society &
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Bardsley D.K. & Sweeney S. (In Press) A regional climate change decision framework for
natural resource management. DWLBC Report 2008, SA Government, Adel.
Bardsley D.K. & Liddicoat C. (2008) Community perceptions of climate change impacts on
natural resource management in the Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges. DWLBC Report
2008/14, SA Gov., Adel.
Bardsley D.K & Bardsley A.M. (2007) A Constructivist Approach to Climate Change Teaching
and Learning. Geog. Res., 45: 329-339.
Bardsley D.K. & Edwards-Jones G. (2007) Invasive species policy and climate change: social
perceptions of environmental change in the Mediterranean, Env. Sci. & Policy, 10: 230-242.
Bardsley D. (2006) There's a change on the way - An initial integrated assessment of
projected climate change impacts and adaptation options for Natural Resource Management
in the Adelaide and Mt Lofty Ranges Region. DWLBC Report 2006/06, SA Gov., Adel.
Bardsley D.K. & Thomas I. (2006) In situ agrobiodiversity conservation: examples from
Nepal, Turkey and Switzerland in the first decade of the CBD, J. of Env. Pl. & Man., 49: 653674.
Crossman ND, B A. Bryan & DK. Bardsley (2008) Modelling Native and Exotic Flora
Distributions under Climate Change. Final Report - April 2008 CSIRO Land and Water
Science Report 01/08.
Houston P. & Rowland J., with Bardsley D., Sweeney S., Hayman P., Nidumolu U., James P.,
Ranford T. & Williams A. (2008) Room to Move: Towards a strategy to assist the Adelaide
Hills apple industry adapt to climate change in a contested peri-urban environment. DWLBC
2008/In Press.
IPCC website, www.ipcc.ch
McInnes K.L., Suppiah R., Whetton P.H., Hennessy K.J. & Jones R.N. (2003) Climate change
in South Australia. CSIRO Atmospheric Research, Melbourne.