Deconstructing vulnerability and adaptation in a coastal river basin ecosystem: a participatory analysis of flood risk in Nadi, Fiji Islands

Autor: Petros Gaganis, Alvin Chandra
Rok vydání: 2015
Předmět:
Zdroj: Climate and Development. 8:256-269
ISSN: 1756-5537
1756-5529
Popis: Despite the growing discussion on vulnerability and adaptation in urban areas, there is limited research on how smaller towns and cities in Small Island Developing States are being affected by and responding to climate change impacts. This study uses fuzzy cognitive mapping (FCM), field visits and semi-structured interviews with 40 stakeholders across 6 different stakeholder groups in the Nadi River Basin, Fiji Islands to identify, analyse and deconstruct climate change vulnerability and adaptation options to manage increasing flood risks. The research evidence suggests that vulnerability to floods in the basin is on the rise due to a complex mesh of three intersecting factors. Firstly, non-climatic pressures such as development, drainage, social change, agriculture, tourism growth and deforestation combine, juxtapose and interact in a rather unique way with global climate variability (interdependent systems) to increase the stress on the river and coastal ecosystems. Secondly, the most vulnerable or at-r...
Databáze: OpenAIRE