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CCDB hosted a session named on Adaptation technologies for building resilience to climate change: Bridging the global and local

CCDB hosted a session named on Adaptation technologies for building resilience to climate change: Bridging the global and local on Gobeshona Global Conference 3.

We introduced the adaptation technologies practised worldwide and the opportunities of the CCDB Climate Centre to the participants. It will grow interest in visiting the centre to understand climate impacts and their adaptive solutions from five different ecological perspectives. Stakeholders was informed about how to become part of this innovative capacity-building initiative with the perfect settings to host and participate in an ever-successful climate research, training and conference. Participants observed the effectiveness of agricultural adaptation strategies in Bangladesh’s coastal villages.

Climate-related disasters: 9.4m displaced in seven years

Over a thousand lives lost, says study

At least 1,053 people were killed and 9.4 million more displaced internally in different climate-related disasters in 58 districts in seven years from 2014, says a recent study.

During the period, the country suffered economic losses of $4,120 million due to the disasters, including monsoon flood, flash flood, river erosion, cyclone, storm surge and landslide, found the study.

The country received only $104 million in humanitarian aid in those seven years following 15 major disasters, the study report said, adding that 42 million people were affected.

Analysing the data of all major natural disasters from 2014 to 2020, Start Fund Bangladesh (SFB), a civil society-managed network of 45 NGOs working in Bangladesh since 2017, conducted the study.

The SFB is going to unveil the report titled “Multivariate Analysis of Climatic Disasters, Financial Flow Analysis, and Analysis of Household Economic Status in Flood-Prone Districts” at a city hotel today.

The disaster management ministry assisted SFB in carrying out the study, which also projected how many people may be affected by different disasters and also prepared a map that shows the most disaster-prone areas.

“People living in disaster-prone areas are exposed to different natural disasters in various ways. Our study will help the government officials and aid workers have a clear idea about how many people could be impacted following a certain disaster and they would be able to take measures accordingly,” said Shofiul Alam, programme coordinator of Start Network.

Analysing the data of disasters that took place in the seven years, the study estimates that 12.10 million people belonging to 2.71 million households could potentially be affected each year by different climate-induced disasters, including monsoon flood, flash flood, river erosion, cyclone, storm surge and landslide,

The study has also taken into consideration other hazards such as nor’wester, cold wave, and hailstorm.

It also assesses that at least 18.33 million people may get exposed to climate-related hazards in 64 districts a year from 2021 to 2025. Around 66 percent of them would be affected by natural disasters .

It anticipates that the minimum economic loss would be $337.94 million in the same period.

According to the study, four northern districts — Kurigram, Gaibandha, Sirajganj and Jamalpur — are very prone to flood and river erosion, while four southern districts — Satkhira, Khulna, Barguna and Patuakhali — are at high risk of being hit by cyclone and storm surge. Besides, 27 other districts are exposed to disasters.

SFB has collected data for the study from multiple sources, including Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council, Multi Hazard Risk and Vulnerability Assessment Modeling and Mapping, National Disaster Response Coordination Centre, Centre for Environmental and Geographic Information Services, Forecast-based Warning, Analysis and Response Network, Needs Assessment Working Group, and Network for Information, Response and Preparedness Activities on Disaster.

The Delta Blues: Why Climate Change Adaptation is Crucial in the World’s Deltas

Deltas are biodiversity hotspots that drive economic development and house thriving cities, yet they are particularly vulnerable to climate change. They require urgent adaptation measures to prevent losses that could stifle entire economies.

With fertile soils and some of the planet’s richest biodiversity, deltas generally belong to the world’s most densely populated areas. Trade and agricultural production have long flourished in these hubs of intense human and economic activity.

Deltas are climate hotspots where people, food production, wildlife and economic development meet the impacts of climate change – yet despite their indisputable value, climate adaptation in deltas does not receive the interest and funding it… CLICK TO TWEET

“In the race to adapt to climate change, deltas currently stand at the starting line. A lot of work must be undertaken to address adaptation in deltas, and we have to begin by understanding just how valuable these environments are as biodiversity hotspots and engines of economic growth, and just how gravely threatened they are by climate risks,” said Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA).

In 2021, GCA launched a report that explores best practices in adaptation and resilience through inspiring case studies in selected delta countries. “Living with water: climate adaptation in the world’s deltas” aims to push delta adaptation efforts up the political agenda while presenting scalable and replicable adaptation best practices.

The report highlights that today, 500 million people live in delta and coastal urban regions, a figure expected to rise by 50 percent by 2050. Deltas are drivers of economic growth, and many, have a higher GDP per capita than the economies that host them. The Mekong Delta, for instance, is home to 20 million people and supports approximately a quarter of Vietnam’s GDP.

Vibrant cities and thriving agricultural and industrial centers exist along the world’s deltas. Europe’s largest seaport is located in the cosmopolitan delta city of Rotterdam. The biodiversity-rich Fraser delta has made the bustling city of Vancouver a major Canadian trade center. And the world’s largest delta, the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna delta shared by India and Bangladesh, is home to nearly 200 million people and a major agriculture center with, amongst other, intense paddy cultivation.

What are deltas?

Deltas form at the mouths of rivers, where they deposit sediment and merge with another body of water such as the ocean. Deltas are nutrient-rich wetland habitats, and like most wetlands, they host diverse ecosystems and act as natural buffers for extreme weather events, such as storms, hurricanes and cyclones. They also filter water that flows downstream, reducing the impact of river pollution.

Floating market in the Mekong Delta at Cai Rang, Vietnam.

A ticking time bomb

Because climate change will be primarily expressed through water, delta regions are especially vulnerable to its effects.

A report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) asserts with “high confidence” that even if the world were to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lower global temperatures, deltas will be confronted with “high to very high risks” from rising sea levels in the future.

Sea levels are expected to rise by 0.5 meters by 2050 and over a meter by 2100. These projections place large parts of many deltas at risk of submergence. Indeed, experts predict that by 2050, seventeen percent of Bangladesh will be submerged, triggering the displacement of an estimated 20 million people. Saline intrusion is already threatening the soils, water supply and food security of many vulnerable populations in deltas.

Without urgent adaptation measures, the losses in some delta regions could stifle entire economies. Damage to infrastructure, crop production and fishing could reduce the GDP per capita by 19.5 percent in Bangladesh and by 9 percent in the Volta delta in Ghana. Food insecurity and the loss of livelihoods would be severe.

While many delta regions lack integrated climate adaptation plans, the nature of deltas provides opportunities for progress and innovative solutions.

In its flagship report Adapt Now, GCA proposes three ‘revolutions’ to accelerate adaptation that apply to deltas: understanding, planning and finance.

The complex issue of adaptation in deltas must be understood and viewed through a systems lens to address social, hydrological and economic interdependencies. Long-term, locally-led adaptation and investment plans must be developed and supported by political commitment. And finally, an increased level of financial resources must be mobilized, targeting the most vulnerable delta communities and taking advantage of the opportunity provided by Covid-19 economic recovery plans.

This integrated approach is being promoted by WWF’s Resilient Asian Deltas (RAD) Initiative, in collaboration with GCA, in Asia’s six biggest deltas. The initiative aims to improve the understanding of deltas and the processes that maintain them while catalyzing action at scale. Nature-based solutions case studies and real-world climate financing options are being developed, and a community of practice to bring together delta practitioners from across the region is being established.

“Adapting to climate change is a continuous process that takes time and resources and needs to be embedded in a long-term vision and strategy,” said Joep Verhagen, Program Lead of GCA’s Water and Urban Team. He noted that the implementation of several flood defense and climate adaptation plans in the Netherlands, such as the Delta Plan, is a continuous process spanning decades and is supported by long-term budget allocations.

Minimizing the threat of climate change and accelerating adaptation in delta regions is challenging but certainly possible. The Dutch approach of living with water, which evolved from fighting against the sea to living with it, and from controlling floods to making room for rivers, provides a valuable example.

In 2022, GCA will be scaling up its efforts to accelerate adaptation in deltas. In Bangladesh, GCA is preparing to work on urban and water resilience in the Bangladesh Delta.

GCA’s Water Adaptation Community recently launched a Community of Practice (CoP) on deltas. The World’s Deltas CoP is a platform for knowledge sharing and learning across different delta networks and initiatives worldwide, such as RAD and the Delta Alliance.

“With so many different delta initiatives, and the need to facilitate each of them, we need to be innovative and scale up our engagement with more partners. WAC will come in to, for example, be a platform to share experiences on how deltas around the world have dealt with or can deal with various issues, for example, subsidence,” said Ase Johannessen, GCA’s WAC Facilitator.

Pregnancy rate among women in Southern coastal belt lower: Ainun Nishat

The pregnancy rate among women in Koyra in Khulna and Shyamnagar in Satkhira is much lower, while the Southern coastal region of the country has been witnessing negative population growth due to the adverse impact of climate change, said Professor Ainun Nishat, water resource and climate change specialist.

“Salinity is increasing in coastal areas while hypertension is on the rise among both males and females. Climate change is successively building at the adverse impacts. Female reproductive rate is under threat,” he said at a discussion on “Integrated Community Development for Better Health Outcomes: Perspectives from Bangladesh” organized by URC, an international organization based in the US at the Sheraton Dhaka Banani on Tuesday.

He said that in Satkhira, Khulna, Bagerhat and Barguna, specially the southern thana’s population growth is negative, people are migrating. Bangladesh has suffered serious drought for the last two or three years, and crops are not harvesting in time.

“In Bangladesh, on the curative side, we have improved. We have lots of hospitals, lots of clinics, and some good doctors there. We need to pay attention to the curative side and public health activities as well,” said Ainun Nishat, also professor emeritus of Brac University.

The event highlighted promising interventions and good practices in health service delivery at the community level. Bangladesh has been a leader in public health research and implementation on a large scale for low-cost technologies provided at the community level

Conference moderator, Maureen Shauket, URC Chief Operating Officer, said: “New thinking and learning from the experiences of others is key to improving the quality of care and health outcomes in the communities where we work.”

CCDB Climate Centre hosted Hands-on Training on Climate Adaptation Technology

CCDB Climate Centre hosted its 1^st batch of Hands-on Training on Climate Adaptation Technology from 13^th to 14^th December 2022. The training introduced the participants to an overview of climate science and facilitated learning intensively 04 coastal-based climate adaptation technologies i.e. Vermicompost production, sapling production using coco-dust, vertical 3D garden, hanging garden and sack garden, followed by a guided tour to CCDB Climate Centre. The training applied the participatory learning-by-doing method to ensure the learning outcomes are entirely applicable in the field.

Mousumi Halder (Sr. Capacity Building Officer), Md. Kamal Hossain (Manager-Adaptation Technology) and Abul Kalam Azad (Upazila Coordinator-Bagerhat) facilitated this two days training.

Full Moon TIDE Broke THE Embankment of Kholpetua River and posed huge human suffering

IPCC Report: We can halve emissions by 2030, but the time for action is now

We already have the tools and know-how required to limit warming and halve emissions by 2030, finds new IPCC report.

GENEVA, Apr 4 – In 2010–2019 average annual global greenhouse gas emissions were at their
highest levels in human history, but the rate of growth has slowed. Without immediate and deep
emissions reductions across all sectors, limiting global warming to 1.5°C is beyond reach. However,
there is increasing evidence of climate action, said scientists in the latest Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC) report released today.

Since 2010, there have been sustained decreases of up to 85% in the costs of solar and wind
energy, and batteries. An increasing range of policies and laws have enhanced energy efficiency,
reduced rates of deforestation and accelerated the deployment of renewable energy.

“We are at a crossroads. The decisions we make now can secure a liveable future. We have the
tools and know–how required to limit warming,” said IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee. “I am encouraged by
climate action being taken in many countries. There are policies, regulations and market
instruments that are proving effective. If these are scaled up and applied more widely and
equitably, they can support deep emissions reductions and stimulate innovation.”

The Summary for Policymakers of the IPCC Working Group III report, Climate Change 2022:
Mitigation of climate change was approved on April 4, 2022, by 195 member governments of the
IPCC, through a virtual approval session that started on March 21. It is the third installment of the
IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report (AR6), which will be completed this year.

We have options in all sectors to at least halve emissions by 2030 Limiting global warming will require major transitions in the energy sector. This will involve a substantial reduction in fossil fuel use, widespread electrification, improved energy efficiency, and the use of alternative fuels (such as hydrogen).

“Having the right policies, infrastructure, and technology in place to enable changes to our lifestyles
and behavior can result in a 40–70% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. This offers
significant untapped potential,” said IPCC Working Group III Co–Chair Priyadarshi Shukla. “The
evidence also shows that these lifestyle changes can improve our health and wellbeing.”
Cities and other urban areas also offer significant opportunities for emissions reductions. These can
be achieved through lower energy consumption (such as by creating compact, walkable cities),
electrification of transport in combination with low–emission energy sources, and enhanced carbon
uptake and storage using nature. There are options for established, rapidly growing, and new cities.
“We see examples of zero energy or zero–carbon buildings in almost all climates,” said IPCC
Working Group III Co–Chair Jim Skea. “Action in this decade is critical to capture the mitigation
potential of buildings.

Reducing emissions in the industry will involve using materials more efficiently, reusing and recycling
products, and minimizing waste. For basic materials, including steel, building materials, and
chemicals, low– to zero–greenhouse gas production processes are at their pilot to near–commercial
stage.

This sector accounts for about a quarter of global emissions. Achieving net-zero will be challenging
and will require new production processes, low and zero-emissions electricity, hydrogen, and, where
necessary, carbon capture and storage.

Agriculture, forestry, and other land use can provide large–scale emissions reductions and also
remove and store carbon dioxide at scale. However, land cannot compensate for delayed emissions
reductions in other sectors. Response options can benefit biodiversity, help us adapt to climate
change, and secure livelihoods, food and water, and wood supplies.

The next few years are critical

In the scenarios we assessed, limiting warming to around 1.5°C (2.7°F) requires global greenhouse
gas emissions to peak before 2025 at the latest, and be reduced by 43% by 2030; at the same time,
methane would also need to be reduced by about a third. Even if we do this, it is almost inevitable
that we will temporarily exceed this temperature threshold but could return to below it by the end of
the century.

“It’s now or never if we want to limit global warming to 1.5°C (2.7°F),” said Skea. “Without
immediate and deep emissions reductions across all sectors, it will be impossible.”
The global temperature will stabilize when carbon dioxide emissions reach net zero. For 1.5°C
(2.7°F), this means achieving net-zero carbon dioxide emissions globally in the early 2050s; for 2°C
(3.6°F), it is in the early 2070s.

This assessment shows that limiting warming to around 2°C (3.6°F) still requires global greenhouse
gas emissions to peak before 2025 at the latest, and be reduced by a quarter by 2030.

Closing investment gaps

The report looks beyond technologies and demonstrates that while financial flows are a factor of
three to six times lower than levels needed by 2030 to limit warming to below 2°C (3.6°F), there is
sufficient global capital and liquidity to close investment gaps. However, it relies on clear signalling
from governments and the international community, including a stronger alignment of public sector
finance and policy.

“Without taking into account the economic benefits of reduced adaptation costs or avoided climate
impacts, global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) would be just a few percentage points lower in 2050
if we take the actions necessary to limit warming to 2°C (3.6°F) or below, compared to maintaining
current policies” said Shukla.

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals

Accelerated and equitable climate action in mitigating and adapting to climate change impacts is
critical to sustainable development. Some response options can absorb and store carbon and, at
the same time, help communities limit the impacts associated with climate change. For example, in
cities, networks of parks and open spaces, wetlands, and urban agriculture can reduce flood risk and
reduce heat–island effects.

Mitigation in the industry can reduce environmental impacts and increase employment and business
opportunities. Electrification with renewables and shifts in public transport can enhance health,
employment, and equity

“Climate change is the result of more than a century of unsustainable energy and land use, lifestyles
, and patterns of consumption and production,” said Skea. “This report shows how taking action now
can move us towards a fairer, more sustainable world.”

For more information, please contact:
IPCC Press Office, Email: ipcc–media@wmo.int
IPCC Working Group III:
Sigourney Luz: s.luz@ipcc–wg3.ac.uk

CCDB arranged a street play to prevent gender-based violence at Satkhira

To prevent gender-based violence and raise mass awareness to act together for SDG5-GenderEquality, CCDB Climate Change Program arranged a street play and pot song at Shyamnagar, Satkhira.

#16daysofactivism #SDG5

Combining crops and solar panels is allowing Kenya to ‘harvest the sun twice’

There is huge potential for solar energy in Africa, but installing the arrays can have an impact on local ecosystems.
Agrivoltaics is the simultaneous use of land for growing crops and generating electricity with photovoltaic panels.
The first agrivoltaic array has opened in Kenya after successful trials in Eastern Africa.
The panels are mounted high enough for crops to be grown underneath, sheltering them from the sun and allowing rainwater harvesting.

In a region where energy security poses real challenges, but sunlight is not in short supply, solar electricity seems an obvious solution for much of Africa. But the answer isn’t as simple as that.

Installing vast arrays of photovoltaic (PV) panels often means clearing swathes of land to bare soil. This has an impact on land sustainability, affecting soil stability, water retention, carbon sequestration and biodiversity. And there is often competition for land, which is also needed for food production.

But a new trial planting crops beneath the panels has shown some promising results in Eastern Africa.

Known as agrivoltaics, the system is about more than just overcoming land use conflict. It uses the shade provided by the PV set-up, as well as rain water harvesting, to provide a more nurturing environment for crops than if they were planted in open fields.

Combining solar energy and agriculture

The first agrivoltaic system in East Africa opened in early 2022 in Insinya, Kenya, through a combined effort from the Universities of Sheffield, York and Teesside in the UK, the Stockholm Environment Institute, World Agroforestry, the Centre for Research in Energy and Energy Conservation, and the African Centre for Technology Studies.

Instead of being mounted close to the ground like traditional solar arrays, these panels are constructed several metres high, with gaps in between them. This allows crops to be grown underneath, protected from heat stress and water loss.

The favourable growing conditions also mean that a greater range of higher value crops can be grown, improving farmer incomes in disadvantaged rural areas. And areas which were previously unviable as growing environments may now be used.

Because of this, the team says the system is akin to “harvesting the sun twice”.

In Africa’s energy mix (present and projected), solar will be the dominant energy source by 2100. Image: Brookings

Professor Sue Hartley, project lead and Vice-President for Research at the University of Sheffield, said: “This project is an excellent example of how ground-breaking interdisciplinary research can deliver really significant benefits to communities. It’s exciting to see this research being showcased in Kenya in this way, and I’m confident the event will stimulate even greater interest in the potential of this novel technology.”

Meeting Africa’s energy needs

Africa’s renewable energy potential is 1,000 greater than it’s projected electricity demand by 2040, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). By that date, the share of renewables in southern and eastern Africa could grow to 63%, up from a fifth in 2016.

Africa has more than enough renewable energy potential to meet its future demand. Image: IRENA

Currently, more than half of the continent’s energy supply comes from fossil fuels, which also make up 40% of its exports.

As seas rise, Bangladesh farmers revive floating farms

Mohammad Mostafa, a farmer in the low-lying deltas of southwestern Bangladesh, has revived his forefathers’ farming practice of growing crops on floating rafts as rising seas and storm flooding threaten more and more farmland.

With prolonged waterlogging posing an increasing threat to families growing their own food, more have turned to using the rafts as secure platforms to grow vegetables and fruit including cucumbers, radishes, bitter gourds, papayas and tomatoes. Most are sold as saplings.

The rafts, woven from the stems of invasive hyacinths, are providing a lifeline for families during the increasingly extreme monsoon seasons, when dry land can be especially scarce.

The 200-year-old technique was initially adopted by farmers in the region during the flooding season, which used to last about five months each year. But nowadays the area remains underwater for eight to 10 months and more land is being flooded, reports Reuters.

“These days, the land remains under water for a longer time. This ancient technique has helped us to earn a living,” said 42-year-old Mostafa, as he planted balls of seedlings on floating beds.

“My father and forefathers all used to do this. But the work is not that easy. So, at first I tried to earn as a fruit vendor but ended up in debt,” said Mostafa, the sole breadwinner in his six-member family. “I tried my luck at floating farming five years ago and that made a great difference to my life.”

The approach, now practised by some 6,000 subsistence farmers across the swampy southwest, may prove crucial as climate change sends sea levels higher and makes the monsoons more erratic.

Digbijoy Hazra, an agriculture official in the Nazirpur sub-district of Pirojpur, said that the number had risen from around 4,500 five years ago.

Floating farms now cover a total 157 hectares (388 acres) in Pirojpur district, with 120 hectares in Nazirpur that expanded from 80 hectares five years ago.

“It requires less space than conventional farming and does not need pesticides,” Hazra said. “When we’re fighting … the impact of global warming, floating farming could be the future.”

Low-lying Bangladesh is considered among the most climate-vulnerable countries, with the impact of rising waters compounded by storms, floods and erosion.

The climate impact is being compounded by natural factors, such as tectonic shifts that are causing the land beneath to sink, and upstream dams holding back silt that would replenish the eroding delta.

Between 2000 and 2019, Bangladesh was ranked seventh in a list of countries hit hardest by climate change, according to the Global Climate Risk Index 2021 produced by non-profit Germanwatch.

“Because it is the largest delta in the world … a huge portion of Bangladesh’s land area experiences frequent flooding, especially flash floods along with river erosion,” the Asian Development Bank said in a 2021 report.

Bangladesh is also frequently hit by cyclones that barrel up the Bay of Bengal, while global warming makes rainfall patterns increasingly erratic. More than a quarter of Bangladesh’s population of 165 million live in the coastal zone.

Rising sea levels and coastal erosion could cause Bangladesh to lose 17% of its land surface and 30% of its food production by 2050, according to a 2019 International Monetary Fund report.

Navigating a boat along one of the country’s countless waterways, Mostafa said he is now able to feed his family “without asking for help.”

The profit margins, however, have been shrinking as costs rise, he added. This year, he spent about 4,500 taka ($43) for a boatload of water hyacinths weighing about 1.2 tonnes to weave into new rafts for the year. Last year, the cost was just 1,000 taka.

The rafts, which take two months to make, are typically around 6 metres long and 1 metre wide, but can be several times that length, farmers said. They need to be replaced with new ones after three to four months.

Mohammad Ibrahim, another farmer in the area, said the floating beds allow him to grow more crops reliably.

“Water levels are rising. I still can remember I used to play football in the land that now goes underwater during the normal tide,” the 48-year-old said as he sold gourd saplings that he grew on the floating beds on a boat.

The effort is not without cost.

His wife Murshida Begum, 35, said she works more than eight hours a day making balls of seedlings that are planted on the rafts, but the hyacinths often cause itching and sores across her palms and fingers.

Kajol Begum, a 30-year-old mother of two daughters, said: “The work is so hard and painful. I can’t sleep at night due to waist pain. But what else will I do when water is everywhere most of the time?”

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