Report: Higher Education's Role in Adapting to a Changing Climate
A critical mass of the higher education sector has assumed a leadership position in climate mitigation in terms of providing education and research on the topic, and in terms of seeking and role-modeling solutions in campus operations and the local community. This is evidenced through the nearly seven hundred institutions that have signed the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), and hundreds more that are pursuing climate mitigation strategies in other ways.
Given the scale and urgency of the threats posed by climate change to every aspect of our society, all colleges and universities in the country should provide similar leadership in addressing the challenges of climate adaptation as well, by explicitly recognizing the need to adapt to the changing climate and taking steps to prepare society to do so through education, research, operations, and community engagement efforts.
Definition
The term climate adaptation refers to the need for society to prepare for "core system" climate impacts that have become unavoidable. A technical definition of adaptation is "adjustment in natural or human systems to a new or changing environment that exploits beneficial opportunities or moderates negative effects" (NRC, 2010, p.19).
Also referred to as 'climate preparedness' or 'climate resilience,' in practice, climate adaptation means preparing for and responding to increased infrastructure vulnerability, public health threats, constrained or compromised public water supplies, droughts and floods, and impacts on regional economies that have 'already been bought' by increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Climate adaptation is distinct from, though related to, the need to shift society away from fossil fuels and toward climate neutrality in order to halt further, catastrophic climate disruption. Such efforts to avoid additional climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions are referred to as "climate change mitigation." In other words, "mitigation" is about preventing climate change; "adaptation" is about preparing for and responding to impacts of the climate change that is and will continue to occur.
Background
Colleges and universities face clear and growing risks from climate disruption, and it is critical that presidents, trustees and those with fiduciary responsibility for these institutions be aware of these risks. Addressing these risks can provide the opportunity to recreate institutions of higher education for the 21st century, equipping them to be safe and secure in the face of change, more actively engaged in solving real-world problems, and reorganized to better provide the education and research needed to create and maintain a sustainable society.
Colleges and universities have taken a leadership role in climate mitigation. Through the ACUPCC, over 665 institutions have pledged to pursue climate neutrality in their operations and provide the education, research, and community engagement needed for the rest of society to do the same. While mitigation efforts should and will remain a major focus, it is clear that colleges and universities also need to address climate adaptation.
Current Adaptation Efforts Across Sectors
Leaders across society are now recognizing the need for climate adaptation efforts parallel to and integrated with climate mitigation strategies.
- The scientific community has done extensive work to document and project exactly what types of disruptions different regions face.
- Leaders in the private sector have begun exploring climate adaptation options as they recognize the risks climate change poses to their bottom-lines, as well as the opportunities to increase their competitiveness.
- Professional associations of architects and planners like AIA and the US Green Building Council have featured the issue of climate risk and the need for climate adaptation at their conferences and in their journals, helping to draw attention to the opportunities to better site, design and construct buildings.
- Much work is also underway in the public sector, as government policies will play a vital role in facilitating effective climate preparedness. Officials at the local level are reviewing and changing policies governing zoning, building codes, emergency service provisions and many other issues to better prepare communities for climate impacts.
Looking Towards the Future
The report recommends that college and university presidents, trustees and other senior administrators, particularly business officers, take a proactive approach to climate change adaptation, including the following actions:
- Understand the expected impacts of climate disruption in their region.
- Conduct an analysis of what financial and human health and safety risks these impacts pose to the institution.
- Identify and prioritize strategies for reducing these risks that whenever possible also contribute to mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, and integrate those strategies and actions into the institution's climate action plans and campus master plan.
- Evaluate academic offerings on climate adaptation and expand as needed to ensure all graduates have a sufficient understanding of the risks and how to address them in their personal and professional lives.
- If applicable, evaluate research activities and pursue opportunities for generating new knowledge that will help society adapt to climate disruption.
- Engage leaders in local communities in a dialogue to identify opportunities for the institution to provide education, research, and pilot projects on adaptation; and for larger projects that can be pursued in collaboration to improve the resiliency of the region's infrastructure, energy systems, water system, food systems, and transportation systems.
- Take leadership in assuring that communities in the institution's region have access to credible, informative science, and that access is extended particularly to communities that are likely to be most impacted by the effective of climate change.
References & Resources
Georges Dyer of Second Nature and Jennifer Andrews of Clean Air – Cool Planet are the primary authors. The members of the Higher Education Climate Adaptation Committee provided direction, resources, expertise, feed back and review.
For further information about the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment and Second Nature please visit us at: