FOA 5th session: Assessing vulnerability to climate change

Vulnerability Assessment Framework, originated by IPCC and developed later by different researchers, focuses on the analysis of the impacts on natural resources and the consequences in social communities related. This analysis provides a score of vulnerability which is composed by three different degrees (exposure, sensibility and adaptive capacity), at two different dimensions (ecological and social).

During last session, FOA collaborated with the students of Environment and Earth Science class of IES Val Miñor to assess vulnerability on different small-scale fisheries systems around the world. Philippines, Northern Gulf of Mexico, Kenya, East-coast of Tasmania and Brazil were the chosen cases of study (all of them from scientific literature). With complete information of every case study, students make the hard task of understanding the social exposure, sensibility and adaptive capacity of each SSF system. Afterwards they presented their results of social-ecological vulnerability and provided a list of suggestions and recommendations for reduce vulnerability and enhance measures of adaptation to these real cases.

The several details of vulnerability were well understood as well as the difference between rules for ecological and social governances. Overall, the final picture built by the young researchers shows some of the current evidences of the climate change impacts on environmental and social dimension.

Impressive outcomes!

Next session, new challenge!