This book is written by experts from Institute of Urban and Environmental Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and National Climate Center, this book provides an overview of China’s effort to implement the Paris Agreement. In addition to measures put in place to reduce runoff in cities, improve flood risk management, promote decarbonization, and combat desertification, the book also addresses issues such as scientific assessment in relation to climate change, the implications of US domestic climate politics for China-US relations, and China’s emerging leadership role in the post-Paris age. The volume is a must-read for anybody who wants to understand how China’s aggressive climate adaptation policies help shape the country’s growing weight in global climate governance.
As climate has warmed over recent years, a new pattern of more frequent and more intense weather events has unfolded across the globe. Climate models simulate such changes in extreme events, and some of the reasons for the changes are well understood. Warming increases the likelihood of extremely hot days and nights, favors increased atmospheric moisture that may result in more frequent heavy rainfall and snowfall, and leads to evaporation that can exacerbate droughts. Even with evidence of these broad trends, scientists cautioned in the past that individual weather events couldn't be attributed to climate change. Now, with advances in understanding the climate science behind extreme events and the science of extreme event attribution, such blanket statements may not be accurate. The relatively young science of extreme event attribution seeks to tease out the influence of human-cause climate change from other factors, such as natural sources of variability like El Niño, as contributors to individual extreme events. Event attribution can answer questions about how much climate change influenced the probability or intensity of a specific type of weather event. As event attribution capabilities improve, they could help inform choices about assessing and managing risk, and in guiding climate adaptation strategies. This report examines the current state of science of extreme weather attribution, and identifies ways to move the science forward to improve attribution capabilities.
Climate change poses many challenges that affect society and the natural world. With these challenges, however, come opportunities to respond. By taking steps to adapt to and mitigate climate change, the risks to society and the impacts of continued climate change can be lessened. The National Climate Assessment, coordinated by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, is a mandated report intended to inform response decisions. Required to be developed every four years, these reports provide the most comprehensive and up-to-date evaluation of climate change impacts available for the United States, making them a unique and important climate change document. The draft Fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA4) report reviewed here addresses a wide range of topics of high importance to the United States and society more broadly, extending from human health and community well-being, to the built environment, to businesses and economies, to ecosystems and natural resources. This report evaluates the draft NCA4 to determine if it meets the requirements of the federal mandate, whether it provides accurate information grounded in the scientific literature, and whether it effectively communicates climate science, impacts, and responses for general audiences including the public, decision makers, and other stakeholders.
Industry 4.0 Vision for the Supply of Energy and Materials Explore the impact of Industry 4.0 technologies on the supply chain with this authoritative text written by a leader in his field In Industry 4.0 Vision for the Supply of Energy and Materials, distinguished researcher and editor, Dr. Mahdi Sharifzadeh, delivers thematic, analytic, and applied discussions of the Industry 4.0 vision for supply chain design and operation. The book compiles all current aspects and emerging notions of Industry 4.0 into clusters of "enablers" and "analytics" of Supply Chain 4.0. Their multifaceted and highly interconnected nature is discussed at length, as are their diverse range of applications. You will discover uses of these new technologies ranging from the supply of conventional energy networks to renewables, pharmaceuticals, and additive manufacturing. You will also learn about their implications for economic prosperity and environmental sustainability. For each sector, this book scrutinizes current industrial practice and discusses developing concepts. Finally, the book concludes with potential future research directions of interest to industry practitioners and academics alike. Readers will also benefit from the inclusion of: A thorough introduction to connectivity through wireless communications and remote sensors An exploration of blockchains and smart contracts, as well as robotics and automation and cloud computing Practical discussions of supply chain analytics, including big data, machine-learning, and artificial intelligence, as well as supply chain modeling, optimization, and control A concise treatment of Industry 4.0 applications in supply chain design and operation, including the circular economy and the power industry An analysis of the oil, gas, and petrochemical industry, the pharmaceutical industry, and additive manufacturing Perfect for PhD-level and Postdoctoral researchers and industrial researchers, Industry 4.0 Vision for the Supply of Energy and Materials will also earn a place in the libraries of working professionals with an interest in the quantitative analysis of Supply Chain 4.0 concepts and techniques.
This book focuses on China’s efforts to address climate change on both the strategic and practical levels since the Katowice Climate Change Conference. Featured articles provide readers with both an overview and detailed discussions of topics such as assessment of low-carbon city development, building climate resilience, global climate governance, just transition, climate finance, and others. All the contributors are leading experts in the field from Research Institute for Eco-civilization (formerly Institute of Urban and Environmental Studies), Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and China Meteorological Administration.
This book systematically constructs theories of clean energy diplomacy in the context of the changing international strategic landscape of energy and climate. It aims to explain the scientific connotations and innovative significance of clean energy diplomacy. The book focuses on analyzing how the development of renewable energy, including wind, solar, and biomass, plays out in the evolution of the international power system. It also touches upon energy efficiency and complementary energy technologies. This book integrates the studies of traditional energy and environmental diplomacy and defines its connotations and extensions from the perspective of major country diplomatic strategy. Based on the latest developments of international clean energy diplomacy, the author also discusses China's strategic option of clean energy diplomacy in the broad context of the profound changes in global energy and climate governance. As a new diplomatic model to enhance national competitive advantages, clean energy diplomacy has attracted the attention of many countries. This book will therefore be of great interest to students and scholars of sustainable energy and environmental management, environmental politics and policy, and those interested in the low-carbon economy in general.
Ending poverty and stabilizing climate change will be two unprecedented global achievements and two major steps toward sustainable development. But the two objectives cannot be considered in isolation: they need to be jointly tackled through an integrated strategy. This report brings together those two objectives and explores how they can more easily be achieved if considered together. It examines the potential impact of climate change and climate policies on poverty reduction. It also provides guidance on how to create a “win-win†? situation so that climate change policies contribute to poverty reduction and poverty-reduction policies contribute to climate change mitigation and resilience building. The key finding of the report is that climate change represents a significant obstacle to the sustained eradication of poverty, but future impacts on poverty are determined by policy choices: rapid, inclusive, and climate-informed development can prevent most short-term impacts whereas immediate pro-poor, emissions-reduction policies can drastically limit long-term ones.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the leading international body for assessing the science related to climate change. It provides policymakers with regular assessments of the scientific basis of human-induced climate change, its impacts and future risks, and options for adaptation and mitigation. This IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate is the most comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of the observed and projected changes to the ocean and cryosphere and their associated impacts and risks, with a focus on resilience, risk management response options, and adaptation measures, considering both their potential and limitations. It brings together knowledge on physical and biogeochemical changes, the interplay with ecosystem changes, and the implications for human communities. It serves policymakers, decision makers, stakeholders, and all interested parties with unbiased, up-to-date, policy-relevant information. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.
