Past AIACC News Updates

News Update #3: December 2002 to July 2003

2003 Regional Workshops

Investigators from AIACC regional studies in Africa/Indian Ocean, Asia/Oceania and Latin America/Caribbean gathered at recent workshops in Hartebeespoortdam, South Africa, Bangkok, Thailand, and San Jose, Costa Rica, respectively, to present and discuss their first year’s research and to lay plans for the next two years of work. The workshops also provided opportunities to make a wider community of stakeholders aware of the work that has begun and to identify opportunities for collaboration, particularly in the context of contributing to national communications under the UNFCCC. In addition to the AIACC investigators, GEF and UNFCCC National Focal Points from some of the countries in which AIACC studies are active, representatives from governmental and non-governmental organizations, representatives of the UNFCCC Secretariat, and other researchers from each region took part in the workshops.

The presentations and discussions at the workshops displayed the substantial progress that has been made by the 24 AIACC regional studies. They have established baseline climatologies for their regions of study, compared baselines to control runs from general circulation models, and constructed some of the scenarios of future climate change that they will use in their research. Primary and secondary data have been collected on the impacts of and mechanisms for coping with climate variability and extremes; models of water, agricultural and vegetation systems have been calibrated and validated; methods for evaluating vulnerability and adaptive capacity have been elaborated; and strategies for projecting scenarios of socio-economic change have been explored. Most of the presentations made at the workshops, as well as other information about the workshops, are available if you click here.

AIACC Notes Project Newsletter Introduced

In January 2002, AIACC inaugurated a project newsletter: “AIACC Notes.” With the newsletter, the AIACC Secretariat began an effort to regularly share information about the project to the AIACC community and beyond. The intended audience of the newsletter includes the more than 300 researchers and students, mostly in developing countries, who participate in the 24 regional studies funded by AIACC in Africa, Asia, Central and South America, the Caribbean and Oceania, plus other researchers, persons and organizations with an interest in the implications of climate change for the developing world. The purpose of the newsletter is to provide regular updates on AIACC activities and occasional summaries of the research sponsored by AIACC. AIACC Notes will be issued three or four times each year, depending upon need. You can view and download the issues of AIACC Notes by clicking here.

In the current issue of AIACC Notes (click here to download 144 KB PDF), articles from 6 of the regional studies highlight some of the work that is completed and underway. A technique developed by researchers at the University of Cape Town that uses GCM-guided perturbations to construct fine resolution climate change scenarios offers a ready alternative to more complex and demanding downscaling techniques that is consistent with the large scale changes simulated by GCMs. They’ve produced CDs that can be used to implement their guided perturbation technique to produce high resolution scenarios of climate change in Africa. The CDs include weather station data from across Africa and GCM simulations of future climate change in Africa and are available from the AIACC Secretariat.

Other articles highlight stakeholder engagement in climate change assessment in the Philippines and Indonesia, past and present changes in climate, rangelands and livestock in Mongolia, adapting tourism in Southern Africa to climate change, linking AIACC research with the National Adaptation Program of Action (NAPA) in Sudan, and coastal impacts of climate change in the Rio de la Plata.

Linking with National Communications and NAPA

Over the past year AIACC has been working with the UNFCCC Secretariat and UNEP to help support National Communications and NAPA. For example, at the April 2003 UNFCCC workshop in Mauritius on the use of new guidelines for the preparation of national communications, AIACC participated in discussions with government delegates about scientific capacity building and technical support activities and needs. Recommendations from this meeting to the UNFCCC’s Subsidiary Body for Implementation include, among others, (i) strengthening existing national and regional institutions for the preparation of national communications, (ii) increasing resources and funding to report the detailed information and integrated analysis of vulnerability called for in the new guidelines, (iii) expanding programs such as AIACC to include additional regions and countries and encouraging such programs to develop new tools for vulnerability and adaptation assessments, and (iv) providing training in the methods and tools of vulnerability and adaptation assessment.

These are all areas in which AIACC is making contributions through its juried research grants to researchers and institutions in the developing world, its training and mentoring activities, its stakeholder engagement activities, and its activities to synthesize and disseminate information about methods and tools. The most important contributions are happening at the level of the individual studies. Each of the AIACC regional studies is actively working with the institutions and persons responsible for preparing national communications in their countries so that the research and enhanced capacity are available to support national communications.

An AIACC regional study that is undertaking an integrated assessment of climate change impacts and adaptations in the Miombo region of Africa (Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe) has made substantial contributions to the preparation of the NAPA guidelines. The project team is continuing to work with UNEP to develop additional materials to assist countries with their preparations of NAPA documents. The AIACC regional study in Sudan is closely coordinating its research with that country’s NAPA preparation, providing technical capacity and information about potential adaptation options. It is likely that other AIACC studies, particularly those in Africa, will be able to benefit NAPA’s in other countries.

AIACC at the Human Dimensions Open Meeting

Five papers and five posters from AIACC regional study investigators have been accepted for presentation at the 2003 Open Meeting of the Human Dimensions of Global Environmental Change Research Community. Acceptance for participation in this important international scientific meeting, to be held 16-18 October in Montreal, Canada, is one indication of the progress being made by the AIACC studies. Look for paper presentations by Anthony Chen, Hallie Eakin, Patrick Mushove, Juan Pulhin, and Monica Wehbe; also posters by Cecilia Conde, Gustavo Nagy and Alvaro Ponce, Florencia Pulhin, Sheila Roy, and Youngyuan Yin.

Participating in the IPCC 4th Assessment Report

One of the objectives of AIACC is to foster greater participation of scientists from the developing world in the assessment reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). AIACC has been represented by several of its Technical Committee members and Science Director at meetings convened in 2003 by the IPCC to begin planning for the 4th Assessment Report. A key objective in participating in the meetings is to help the IPCC realize broader participation by developing country scientists. Some success has already been achieved as several investigators from AIACC regional studies have been invited to participate in some of the expert meetings that are laying the groundwork for the IPCC’s report. In coming months the AIACC Secretariat will be working to bring more talented scientists to the attention of the IPCC Bureau. And of course we will also make sure that the scientific results coming out of AIACC research are made available to the IPCC and the scientific community generally.

CIESIN's AIACC Data, Methods and Synthesis Website Now On-Line

AIACC has been working with partners at the Center for Climate Systems Research (CCSR) and CIESIN of Columbia University to develop a web-based information network to share information from the AIACC regional assessments. The website is now on-line at http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/aiacc/. The site includes a database of objectives, methods, scenarios, climatic, environmental and socio-economic data, analytic results, and lessons from the AIACC studies, and will be updated regularly with new information. This network will facilitate sharing of information across the AIACC project teams, cross-project learning, and synthesis of project results. The network will also enable other researchers and stakeholders to evaluate and understand the analyses conducted under the AIACC project as well as obtain and use the data and results in their own research and analyses. The network will facilitate the communication and use of AIACC project data and results in other assessments, e.g. IPCC reports and National Communications under the UNFCCC.

2002/2003: AIACC Working with Partners at Columbia University to Develop AIACC Web-Based Information Network
AIACC is working with partners at the Center for Climate Systems Research (CCSR) and CIESIN of Columbia University to develop a web-based information network to share information from the AIACC regional assessments. The web-based network will include a database of objectives, methods, scenarios, climatic, environmental and socio-economic data, analytic results, and lessons from the AIACC studies. This network will facilitate sharing of information across the AIACC project teams, cross-project learning, and synthesis of project results. The network will also enable other researchers and stakeholders to evaluate and understand the analyses conducted under the AIACC project as well as obtain and use the data and results in their own research and analyses. The network will facilitate the communication and use of AIACC project data and results in other assessments, e.g. IPCC reports and National Communications under the UNFCCC. An announcement will be made when this resource is operational.

2002/2003: AIACC Prepares for 2003 Regional Workshops
As part of the AIACC project, members of regional study teams, mentors, and relevant scientists and decision-makers from each region will participate in two rounds of three regional workshops. In 2003, the regional workshops will take place in South Africa, Thailand, and Costa Rica for the groups in Africa, Asia/Pacific, and Latin America/Caribbean, respectively. Regional steering committees have been established for each workshop, and members are currently conducting electronic discussions regarding workshop dates and venues, workshop objectives and desired outcomes, workshop program, and participant lists. The general objectives of the regional workshops are to:

• Facilitate success of AIACC projects by working across project teams and with mentors and other experts to identify problems and their remedies and initiate corrective actions.
• Increase the scientific quality of AIACC research through presentation and discussion of methods and preliminary results.
• Encourage preparation of scientific papers for publication.
• Lay groundwork for summary/synthesis of AIACC research.
• Make scientists and stakeholders in the region, including GEF focal points and National Communications teams, aware of AIACC research and obtain feedback to increase the relevance of AIACC projects to regional concerns.

More details about the regional workshops will be posted as plans develop.

October/November 2002: Course CD’s Containing Material from the AIACC Workshops in Trieste and Norwich Available
AIACC has been working with its partners at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and Stockholm Environment Institute – Oxford to develop and disseminate CD’s containing presentations and other information from the AIACC project development workshops held in Norwich and Trieste in April and June of 2002. The CD from the Norwich workshop containing information about development and application of scenarios was available in May 2002 and sent to all workshop participants. The contents of the Norwich CD can be viewed by clicking here. The CD from the Trieste workshop containing information about climate change vulnerability and adaptation assessment methods was completed in October 2002 and sent to workshop participants in November 2002. The contents of the Trieste CD can be viewed by clicking here. Those interested in obtaining a copy of either CD should contact AIACC.

October 2002: AIACC at COP8
Adaptation was an emphasized theme at the recent Eighth Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in New Delhi, India in October. Neil Leary, Science Director of AIACC, made presentations about the project at two events that took place during COP8, Adaptation Day, organized by the International Institute for Environment and Development, and Adapting Agriculture to Climate Change - Challenges and Opportunities, organized by the Indian Ministry of Agriculture and UNEP. Neil also took part in a panel discussion during the TERI organized workshop on Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Change. To download the presentation given at the Adaptation Day event, click here.

AIACC was on display in New Delhi in the form of a three-panel poster in the main lobby of the COP8 Conference Center. AIACC staff distributed the recently finalized CDs from the Trieste workshop on vulnerability and adaptation assessment methods and new AIACC brochures.

October 2002: AIACC Issues Call to Current AIACC Principal Investigators for $10,000-15,000 Supplemental Grants for Stakeholder Engagement and Capacity Building
In October 2002, AIACC issued a call for proposals to AIACC-funded regional study teams for additional stakeholder engagement and capacity building activities. This supplemental grant program is being conducted under the USAID grant to START/AIACC and CCSR at Columbia University described below. AIACC Principal Investigators may submit proposals alone or together with investigators from other AIACC-funded regional studies, and must submit proposals no later than June 20, 2004. To view this call for proposals, click here. The types of activities that are eligible for funding under this program include, for example:

• Interactions of AIACC study participants with national communications activities;
• Development of or participation in training workshops;
• Site visits to work with and learn from experts from other institutions, countries or regions;
• Engagement with stakeholders to seek input to AIACC projects and to share information about AIACC activities and results.

August 2002: AIACC and START, Together with the Center for Climate Systems Research at Columbia University, Awarded Grant from USAID
START (one of the AIACC executing agencies) was awarded a grant from USAID for a joint-proposal with the Center for Climate Systems Research (CCSR) at Columbia University entitled: "The AIACC Project: Assistance for Capacity Building, Stakeholder Engagement, and Communication of Scientific Information in Developing Countries for Climate Change Assessment." Two tasks will be undertaken as part of this activity. First AIACC and START will implement a small grants program to assist the more than 200 developing country scientists that are participating in AIACC. Participants have been invited to submit proposals for $10,000-$15,000 to AIACC to assist them with activities that would build scientific capacity for application in regional assessments and/or enhance stakeholder engagement in their regional assessments. The AIACC Technical Committee will review the proposals and make award decisions. The award recipients would then implement their capacity building and stakeholder engagement activities in conjunction with their regional climate change assessments under AIACC. To view the Call for Proposals, click here. The second task undertaken as part of the USAID grant will be the development and maintenance of a web-based information network to share information about the AIACC regional assessments. This task will be undertaken in collaboration with CCSR and CIESIN of Columbia University. More information about this task can be found above.

July 2002: "Discuss AIACC" Listserve Set Up for the AIACC Community
Many members of the AIACC regional study teams indicated during workshops held in 2002 that a formal method for electronic communication among the AIACC community would be a useful tool. Thus in July 2002, AIACC set up a list serve to promote interaction and discussion among project teams, mentors, and others with interest in AIACC-like activities. Those interested in joining the listserve or viewing the contents of the listserve archives should contact AIACC for details.