Adaptation

1. International Symposium “Coastal ecosystems vulnerability to global change and extreme events”Biarritz, France, 21 October 2011Round TableProfessor Louis LegendreChair of the Scientific CommitteePierre & Marie Curie UniversityVillefranche Oceanography Laboratory, France

2. Adaptation

3. Adaptation: IPCC • • The state of the Earth’s changing climate is continuously assessed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC – GIEC in French) • • Latest IPCC report • published in 2007 • 4 volumes 3

4. Adaptation: IPCC 2007 • 2007 IPCC report: 4 volumes Synthesis Report Physical Science Basis Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability Mitigation of Climate Change • Natural scientists often focus on Physical Science Basis • Social scientists and decision makers are much more concerned by the next two volumes 4

5. Adaptation and mitigation • • Some effects of climate change have become unavoidable • - example: sea-level rise of up to 1 m by 2100 • - purpose of adaptation is to prepare human societies (local, national and regional) to manage the inevitable • • Not only is the climate is changing rapidly, but if nothing were done, climate would change more and more rapidly • - example: destabilisation of Antarctic ice caps, with sea-level rise of tens of metres • - purpose of climate change mitigation is to prevent the occurrence of the unmanageable • • Many societies have started to prepare their adaptation tovarious aspects the changing environment • adaptation must be grounded in scientific knowledge and expertise (social and natural sciences) • adaptation will proceed with or without scientists 5

6. Research versus expertise

7. Research versus expertise: historical • • In many aspects of social life, research and expertise developed independently until relatively recently • medicine • practical activity of healing since the origin of humankind • biology and chemistry have emerged has sciences only a few centuries ago • two types of activity merged at the end of the 19th century • engineering • building artificial structures and mechanical devices for millennia • physics has emerged as a science in the 18th century • two types of activity started to merge in the 19th century • •Merging of research and expertise is a major characteristic of modern societies 7

8. Research versus expertise: environmental management • • Managing the environment • traditional knowledge has often been successful at managing small-scale systems that experienced moderate human pressure and were changing relatively slowly • societies must now manage large-scale systems that are under tremendous human pressure and are changing rapidly • • Large-scale environmental management • not a practical activity until recently: no tradition of expertise • relies heavily on scientific knowledge and theories • however, no clear approach to translate scientific knowledge and theories into practical management rules and tools • problem must be recognised and become very rapidly a focus of active research 8

9. Sharing knowledge and know-how

10. Sharing knowledge and know-how • • Researchers, decision-makers from the government and business sectors, and Non-Governmental Organisations must share knowledge and know how • • This key activity is not usual for researchers • - who are often penalised in their careers if they devote some of their research time to sharing knowledge • who often do not know how to proceed even in interested • who generally cannot find human or financial resources to pursue knowledge sharing (except in European projects) • • Suggested actions (in France) • research organisations and universities: clearly identify the knowledge-sharing activity as a highly positive factor for promotions and other rewards • funding agencies: have dedicated programmes to support researchers who wish to do knowledge sharing 10