The politics of adapting to climate change
(2020-09-03) In the book "The politics of adapting to climate change" authors Leigh Glover and Mikael Granberg from CSR, the Centre for Societal Risk Research, explores political themes and policy perspectives related to, and influencing, climate change adaptation. The book is an informed primer on the politics of adaptation, a topic largely overlooked in the current scholarship and literature, and addresses questions such as why these politics are so important, what they mean, and what their implications are.
The politics of adapting to climate change shows the importance of a political understanding of climate adaptation and expose political and societal effects of climate adaptation efforts.
– The book provides an in-depth view of climate adaptation politics, a research area that to a large part has been overlooked in contemporary research literature, says Mikael Granberg director of CSR and professor in political science at Karlstad university. One goal of the book is to stand up for raised awareness, understanding and appreciation of the political character and the political implications of climate adaptation plans- and policy, from its formulation to its implementation.Complexity and societal aspects
The development of climate adaptation is described and its complexity is highlighted and the gradually shifting focus toward societal aspects is discussed. Themes such as societal transformation and resilience as well as other contested political phenomena are discussed. Political aspects that affect climate adaptation and its connection to disaster risk reduction and development discourses are highlighted.
– We highlight four perspectives that clearly include a political analysis of the management of environmental issues, says Leigh Glover, senior research fellow at CSR. Those are institutional change, political economy, environmental justice and political ecology.
A theoretical contribution
The books's purpose is to provide a theoretical contribution to the research field. The book contributes to the understanding of climate adaptation as a political undertaking through the identification and critical evaluation of policy for climate adaptation practices. Furthermore a method of analysis of climate adaptation through theoretical perspectives that focus on governance, politics, political values and ideology, is developed.
From the educative perspective, the book seeks to better understand and appreciate the state of knowledge and to place it within a broader scholastic context. It is hoped that such knowledge will provide insights that will better ensure effective adaptation policies and practices. As such, this should serve the interests of normative social and environmental goals in adaptation practices (and help reduce maladaptation due to political factors). In a wider context, it is hoped this will assist the project of progressive politics, covering both its egalitarian and representative goals.
Read more
- The original post: Klimatanpassningens politik, news post on kau.se [in Swedish]
- The politics of adapting to climate change, on the publishers page about the book
2020-09-03