ENVI1169 Essay on Climate Change Adaptation Mitigating Biodiversity Loss

This essay sets to explore the issue of climate change and biodiversity loss through the lens of climate change adaptation. In doing so the current biodiversity loss situation is assessed to establish the need for climate change adaptations for a sustainable future for the entire ecosystem. Moreover, the role of urban climate change adaptation initiatives is discussed to sustain biodiversity loss. Finally, the need for transformative adaptation is emphasized so that the policymakers and decision-makers can move the ecosystems towards sustainability.

Climate change has far-reaching results and is set to directly affect the world communities across the board. Therefore, climate change adaptations are the need of the hour. The thing with climate change adaptations is that most of these adaptations have been developed as a reaction or reflex action to the deteriorating conditions posited by climate change in the past (Adger et al. 2005). But now the governmental and policy concerns for adaptation to climate change are moving towards getting the know-how of the climatic changes in the future through assessments so that relevant adaptations are developed in a timely fashion to reduce the loss to biodiversity (Adger et al. 2005). The climate change adaptations are increasingly becoming considerations for different groups within the society including individuals and the governments so as to improve the overall economic advantages to the people and to reduce the safety concerns posited by climate change (Adger et al. 2005). The climate change adaptation explanation by Adger et al. suggests that it primarily entails the modification and adjustment in environmental, social, or economic mechanisms which is done as a reaction or prediction of the changes that the climate posits so as to reduce the negative impacts of the climate change or to benefit from the opportunities posed by it (2005).

The effects of climate change are considered to be the biggest challenge in terms of sustainability because it directly impacts the basic necessities and amenities for life anywhere in the world. Furthermore, out of all the threats, the major threat that climate change poses is directly impacting biodiversity. The biodiversity comprises holistically taking into account all kinds of life that exist within the ecosystem of the earth (UNEP 2010). Biodiversity withholds a potential current value, future utility and inherent worth to the overall environment of the earth (UNEP 2010). The global biodiversity ranges from microorganisms to different species of animals, plants and insects. They are inhabitants of the earth and play a huge role in the evolution of human societies.  The biodiversity adds to the ecosystem services provided to humans living on the earth. There are four broader categories of ecosystem services (UNEP 2010). Firstly it includes provisioning which entails the provision of food and water (UNEP 2010). The second category is of regulating which entails controlling climate and pandemics (UNEP 2010). The third category is enlisted as providing support which entails benefiting the nutrient cycles (UNEP 2010). The final category comprises cultural ecosystem services which add to the recreational advantages (UNEP 2010).  Climate change is considered to be a key driver in triggering biodiversity loss and extinction (UNEP 2010). Global warming which is majorly caused by climate change is overhauling the formation and functioning of ecosystems (UNEP 2010). The overall sustainability of biodiversity is deeply threatened by climate change in the form of alterations in the rainfalls, temperature changes around the world, increasing chances of floods and changes in levels of seas (UNEP 2010). All these factors are and will continue to increasingly tamper with the natural habitats of many species. When the natural habitats are affected through the changes in climate the biodiversity loss and even extinction of certain species will become more and more probable. The assessments thus far are alarming in nature. The 2019 Global Assessment Report regarding biodiversity came with startling revelations which indicated that about one million flora and fauna species are at the brink of extinction (Thijssen n.d.). Climate change has had adversely altered more than 66% of the water bodies around the globe (Thijssen n.d.). The effects of climate change on biodiversity are so overarching that even the biodiversity in the remotest locations is being affected (Thijssen n.d.). It was established in the UN Convention on Biodiversity held in Kunming that the direct linkage between biodiversity extinction and climate change exists therefore, the effective management of both these interlinked phenomena are necessary for the sustainability of the ecosystem (van Havre & Ogwal 2020).

The climate change adaptions framework is considered to be most effective in this case of biodiversity extinction and loss because it provides an effective way forward for the policy initiatives to be carried out in a way that both the existent and the expected negative impacts could be mitigated or in case even be reversed so that the preservation of the biodiversity is maintained. It is important to note here that climate change adaptations are not carried out in alienation from the other contextual scenarios posited by the demographic, social and economic realities (Adger et al. 2005). Therefore, the economic realities and pertinent legislations and regulations on all three fronts including the local, national and global levels are to be kept in mind while devising the climate change adaptation strategies. It is further stressed that all the structures ranging from individual, political and intergovernmental levels play a vital role in establishing the climate change adaptations (Adger et al. 2005). This all happens in accordance with each level and these levels are arranged in hierarchies. The overall hierarchical structure is not restricted to just the countries in which these adaptations are to be carried out but the involvement of intergovernmental agencies like the UN tend to sit atop of this hierarchy and guide the adaptations at the governmental levels through the establishment of frameworks like UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (Adger et al. 2005). The impetus for adaptations is provided by these frameworks which further take the effect down to the regional and municipal level which ultimately touches the individuals within the respective countries. However, it is to be taken into account that the local regulations and legal frameworks apply to the respective adaptation developments (Adger et al. 2005).

Researchers argue that the cities are considered to be an important front for the implementation of the climate change adaptation responses and thus can play an increasing role in the overall biodiversity preservation (Frantzeskaki et al. 2019). This is primarily because of the fact that the decision-makers within the urban centers of the countries have access to a high degree of resources and capacities to implement the climate change adaptive measures (Frantzeskaki et al. 2019). Moreover, the available resources equip the urban decision-makers with access to smart designs based on high-tech innovations (Frantzeskaki et al. 2019).  In this context of climate change adaptations for the preservation of biodiversity, it is pertinent to mention that urban decision-makers can make use of nature-based solutions backed with technological innovation so as to provide long-lasting solutions to the problems. The one key example in this regard is the creation of wetlands which ultimately help in water purification and thus helps in the provision of basic amenity of water which is the basis of conservation of biodiversity (Frantzeskaki et al. 2019). This nature-based solution utilizes the modern peripheries of smart design to effectively address the issue of biodiversity conservation with the help of climate change adaption techniques. Another example in this regard is the development of urban forests (Frantzeskaki et al. 2019). These smartly designed urban forests whose growth can be facilitated through scientific measures help in controlling the climate change adverse effects (Frantzeskaki et al. 2019). These urban forests can help in providing the required habitat for biodiversity and provide a long-term solution to the shrinking biodiversity around the urban centers. Another highly beneficial impact of this climate change adaptation is that the adverse effects of the flooding are controlled effectively (Frantzeskaki et al. 2019). These two specific examples of climate change adaptations to increase the sustainability of the biodiversity point at the need for collaborative attitudes in terms of research and design so that sustainable cities are developed while taking into account the issue of biodiversity loss (Frantzeskaki et al. 2019).

Another pertinent aspect to the issue from a climate change adaptation lens is that the transformative adaptation needs to be incorporated within the larger scheme of things both at the institutional and societal level so as to reduce the impact of climate change and effectively address the issues of biodiversity loss (Bosomworth 2018). The limitations posited by the current structures of policies and the thinking patterns of both the political actors and the non-governmental actors could be catered positively through the adoption of transformative adaptive techniques (Bosomworth 2018). Transformative governance entails the idea of changing the regulatory and controlling framework of the governance mechanism (Bosomworth 2018). If the governments and the locals are to embark on a journey to control climate change and reduce biodiversity loss through adaptations then it is important the current attitudes and the governance structures are changed inherently so that the required focus is put on the right issues and the structures facilitate the effective solutions (Bosomworth 2018).  One example of the need for transformative adaptation is that the current bidding process employed by most governments around the world resort awarding the contract to the lowest bidder which shifts the structural focus on cost-effectiveness rather than climate change appropriateness (Adger et al. 2005). Therefore, the collective transformation is required of both the society and the governments to provide a mechanism that is sustainable.