3c. Climate change adaptation strategies (preparing for sea level rise, flooding and droughts)

Track Chairs:

Ulisses Azeiteiro, CESAM - Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal. Ulisses@ua.pt

Walter Leal Filho, Head of the Research and Transfer Centre „Applications of Life Sciences" Hamburg University of Applied Sciences /Faculty of Life Sciences, Hamburg, Germany. walter.leal@haw-hamburg.de

Amadeu Soares, CESAM - Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal. asoares@ua.pt

Goals and objectives of the track

"Climate change is among the major challenges of modern times. As the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) produced by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has shown, there are still many challenges ahead and many needs to be met, calling from action not only from government, but also from various stakeholders".

This track will deal with emerging issues related to climate variation, climate change and adaptation technologies, with a special focus on preparing for sea level rise, flooding and droughts. It aims to showcase a variety of adaptation strategies and projects currently being undertaken and implemented.

This track emerges in a context of engagement of the academy, government, communities and business in the problem and search for solutions.

Consistent with the need for more cross-sectoral interactions among the various stakeholders working in the field of climate change adaptation, the aims of the "Track 3c Climate change adaptation strategies (preparing for sea level rise, flooding and droughts)" are as follows:

to provide research institutions, researchers, universities, NGOs and enterprises all round the world with an opportunity to display and present their works in the field of climate change adaptation;
to foster the exchange of information, ideas and experiences acquired in the execution of climate change adaptation projects, especially successful initiatives and good practice;
to discuss methodological approaches and experiences deriving from case studies and projects, which aim to show how the principles of climate change adaptation may be implemented in practice;
to network the participants and provide a platform so they can explore possibilities for cooperation and recommend political and social-cultural strategies for mitigate, adapt and prevent the impacts of climate change to human and environmental health (namely focused on how sea level rise, flooding and droughts affects communities) providing in new methods and tools to reduce risks and to increase resilience to climate change.

Analyzing the main challenges and lessons learned, serving to disseminate knowledge beyond the region and enhance international research and policy cooperation is a further objective of this track.

Also a major objective of this track is to create and share knowledge about the socio-economic, political and cultural dimensions of climate change. Analysing the effects of climate change on the social and environmental determinants of the health and well-being of communities (i.e. poverty, safe drinking water, food supplies) and on extreme events such as floods and hurricanes.

Contributions from the followings areas are especially welcome:
research on adaptation strategies
projects showcasing adaptation strategies and initiatives
case studies at the regional, local and community level
environment, economic, social and health determinants of climate change adaptation

Further themes are also possible and interested persons should contact the track coordinators for further details.

Dr. Ulisses Miranda Azeiteiro is a Senior Professor (Associate Professor with Aggregation / Habilitation and Tenure) and Coordinator of the Climate Change and Biodiversity Assets Unit from the Biology Department and Integrated Member/Senior Researcher of the Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM) at University of Aveiro in Portugal. He held a Professor teaching position at the Public Distance Education University in Portugal until September 2016. At the University of Coimbra he was, from 2010 to 2016, the Coordinator of the Research Group Social-Economic Governance and Sustainability from the Centre for Functional Ecology, hosted by the Faculty of Sciences and Technology and, from 2008 to 2009, he was the Coordinator of the Research Line Long Term Ecological Response to Global Changes at IMAR-CMA - Marine and Environmental Research. Professor Ulisses M Azeiteiro has written, co-written, edited or co-edited more than 200 publications, including books, book chapters and papers in refereed journals.

Dr. Walter Leal Filho (BSc, PhD, DSc, DPhil, DEd, DL, DLitt) is a Senior Professor and Head of the Research and Transfer Centre "Applications of Life Sciences" at Hamburg University of Applied Sciences in Germany, and Chair of Environment and Technology at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK. He is the initiator of the Word Sustainable Development Symposia (WSSD-U) series, and chairs the Inter-University Sustainable Development Research Programme. Professor Leal Filho has written, co-written, edited or co-edited more than 300 publications, including books, book chapters and papers in refereed journals.

Dr. Amadeu Soares is a Full Professor and Head of the Department of Biology at University of Aveiro in Portugal, and Chair of The PhD Program in Biology and Ecology of Global Change (BEGC). Former president of SETAC-Europe, member of several international advisory committees, received some national and international prizes for his scientific career and supervised over 50 PhD students. Professor Amadeu Soares has written, co-written, edited or co-edited more than 400 publications, including books, book chapters and papers in refereed journals and has an H index of 42.

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