Research: Climate Adaptation

Indigenous communities in remote areas of Australia often have inadequate infrastructure, health services and employment. Consequently, many of these communities show features of social and economic disadvantage. Existing social disadvantage reduces coping ability and may restrict adaptive capacity, affecting these communities' resilience to climate hazards. Many of these communities strongly connect the health of their 'country' to their cultural, mental and physical well-being.

Direct biophysical impacts, such as increases in temperature, rainfall extremes or sea-level rise, are likely to have significant indirect impacts on the social and cultural cohesion of these communities. There is recent recognition of the untapped resource of Indigenous knowledge about past climate change which could be used to inform adaptation options.

However, the oral tradition of recording this knowledge has, until recently, largely hindered non-Indigenous scientists from using this expertise to inform their science.

Climate-change impacts identified for remote Indigenous communities include increases in the number of days of extreme heat, which may affect disease vectors, reproduction and survival of infectious pathogens, and heat stress; extreme rainfall events and flooding, causing infrastructure damage; salt inundation of freshwater aquifers and changes in mangrove ecology; changing fire regimes; sea-level rise and coastal erosion.

Latest news

The clean industrial revolution
So where does Australia’s economic future lie in this rapidly changing world? In this compelling book, climate scientist and economist Ben McNeil demonstrates the immense opportunities that will open up if Australia leads the new clean industrial revolution.

Winner of the 2009 Young Tall Poppy Science Award: Dr Donna Green
Dr Donna Green of CCRC is one of three Science Faculty scholars honoured at the 2009 Young Tall Poppy Awards hosted by the Australian Institute of Policy and Science..

Looming El Nino sets up gloomy forecast
South-east Australians can expect little relief from below average rainfall according to climate experts.

More news...

Reading past climates to see the future

With the massive Antarctic Circumpolar Current circling the Southern Ocean, largely preventing north-south flow across it and thereby isolating Antarctica from the subtropics, many scientists believe the existence of the Southern Ocean acts to cool Antarctica. But what other climate patterns might the Southern Ocean control?

An addiction that fouls the air

Coal provides nearly 80 per cent of Australia's electricity needs. Not the US, Russia or even China has a bigger coal addiction, despite having vastly more coal reserves than Australia. The Australian Greenhouse Office says emissions from coal-dominated electricity generation rose 50 per cent between 1990 and 2004.

Bali or bust

The Bali Climate Declaration has made the scientific view on emissions targets patently clear. It is now over to the policy makers to give the planet a decent future.

The Big Engine: oceans and weather

Federation Fellow and 2008 Eureka Prize winner, Professor Matthew England of CCRC, on the latest research into the role oceans play on weather.