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The role of individual adaptive practice for sustainable adaptation

Wamsler, Christine LU and Brink, Ebba LU (2015) In International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment 6(1). p.6-29
Abstract
Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the strategies used by Swedish citizens to adapt to changing climate variability and extremes. There is an increasing consensus that individual adaptive capacities are critical to successfully adapt to climate change and achieve sustainable development. However, little is known about individual adaptive practices, particularly in developed countries.

Design/methodology/approach – The study covered a variety of geographical areas and included single-case studies of specific locations, cross-case studies and country-wide studies. Data were collected through literature review, interviews with at-risk people, observation and group discussions with municipal staff.

Findings – The paper... (More)
Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the strategies used by Swedish citizens to adapt to changing climate variability and extremes. There is an increasing consensus that individual adaptive capacities are critical to successfully adapt to climate change and achieve sustainable development. However, little is known about individual adaptive practices, particularly in developed countries.

Design/methodology/approach – The study covered a variety of geographical areas and included single-case studies of specific locations, cross-case studies and country-wide studies. Data were collected through literature review, interviews with at-risk people, observation and group discussions with municipal staff.

Findings – The paper provides an overview of Swedish citizens’ adaptive practices and highlights how institutional development efforts affect individuals and their activities, including the equitable distribution of adaptation needs and resources. The paper concludes that individual adaptive capacities do not necessarily translate into adaptation.

Practical implications – The results show that planned interventions are required. They emphasise the importance of more people-oriented adaptation planning that fosters the sustainable transformation of cities, together with the role that South-North knowledge transfer can play in this context.

Originality/value – The paper offers critical insights into the positive and negative effects of citizens’adaptation strategies (based on criteria such as effectiveness, sustainability and equity), and it discusses their relevance in the formulation of development policies and programmes. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Climate justice, Risk reduction, Risk governance, Sweden, Coping strategies, Climate change adaptation
in
International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment
volume
6
issue
1
pages
24 pages
publisher
Emerald Group Publishing Limited
external identifiers
  • scopus:84928785781
ISSN
1759-5908
DOI
10.1108/IJDRBE-09-2014-0070
project
Increasing Societies´ Adaptive Capacities to Climate Change: Distributed Urban Risk Governance for Achieving Sustainable Transformation and Resilience of Cities.
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
014db77b-dd0f-439b-a210-6608893dfb7d (old id 7512547)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 10:21:20
date last changed
2022-04-27 21:12:54
@article{014db77b-dd0f-439b-a210-6608893dfb7d,
  abstract     = {{Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the strategies used by Swedish citizens to adapt to changing climate variability and extremes. There is an increasing consensus that individual adaptive capacities are critical to successfully adapt to climate change and achieve sustainable development. However, little is known about individual adaptive practices, particularly in developed countries.<br/><br>
Design/methodology/approach – The study covered a variety of geographical areas and included single-case studies of specific locations, cross-case studies and country-wide studies. Data were collected through literature review, interviews with at-risk people, observation and group discussions with municipal staff.<br/><br>
Findings – The paper provides an overview of Swedish citizens’ adaptive practices and highlights how institutional development efforts affect individuals and their activities, including the equitable distribution of adaptation needs and resources. The paper concludes that individual adaptive capacities do not necessarily translate into adaptation.<br/><br>
Practical implications – The results show that planned interventions are required. They emphasise the importance of more people-oriented adaptation planning that fosters the sustainable transformation of cities, together with the role that South-North knowledge transfer can play in this context.<br/><br>
Originality/value – The paper offers critical insights into the positive and negative effects of citizens’adaptation strategies (based on criteria such as effectiveness, sustainability and equity), and it discusses their relevance in the formulation of development policies and programmes.}},
  author       = {{Wamsler, Christine and Brink, Ebba}},
  issn         = {{1759-5908}},
  keywords     = {{Climate justice; Risk reduction; Risk governance; Sweden; Coping strategies; Climate change adaptation}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{6--29}},
  publisher    = {{Emerald Group Publishing Limited}},
  series       = {{International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment}},
  title        = {{The role of individual adaptive practice for sustainable adaptation}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/IJDRBE-09-2014-0070}},
  doi          = {{10.1108/IJDRBE-09-2014-0070}},
  volume       = {{6}},
  year         = {{2015}},
}