Climate change and regional impacts

Abstract

The expected global impacts of climate change can be attributed to a set of common stressors. The magnitude of specific impacts, however, depends on the extent to which regional resources - from ecosystems to human-made infrastructures - are at risk and the abilities of regions to mitigate that risk. This chapter begins with an overview of some of the impacts expected from climate change, stratified by the density of populations and economic activities. Then we review differences in risk and mitigation capacities across major regions. The inherent interconnection of environmental, economic, and social dimensions of climate impacts underscores the need to assess climate change impacts in ways that address these dimensions.