Climate change is now universally acknowledged as a reality by the scientific world. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have declared that human actions are the main causative factors for the modification of our climate system and will continue to do so. The effect of climate change on physical and biological systems have become more apparent. Scientific reports show that climate change will result in progressive changes such as sea level rise and climatic zone shifts as a result of rising temperatures and changing precipitation patterns. Furthermore, extreme weather events such as droughts, floods, and storms are anticipated to become more frequent and severe.
THE POOR: THE MOST VULNERABLE TO CLIMATE CHANGE
"Climate change is closely connected to poverty and hunger," this was declared by the United Nations in 2010. It is looming over the world, threatening devastating droughts, supercharged storms, and scorching heat waves. However, these repercussions are felt in different ways throughout the world. A report by the United Nations stated that natural resources such as forests, lakes, and seas provide livelihoods for 75% of the world's poor living in rural regions and climate change is wreaking havoc on those resources. This poses a threat to the world's most vulnerable people. People in poverty are the ones who suffer the most when global temperatures and sea levels rise, seas acidify, and precipitation patterns shift. The past decade has experienced severe poverty growth in many countries despite the international efforts to eradicate poverty. This has made poverty reduction the most pressing development problem of the twenty-first century. The current world poverty crisis is grossly associated with climate change which has proved a huge challenge to both scientific and governmental bodies. Over 2 billion people, or one-third of the world's population, are poor or near-poor, and their livelihoods are constantly threatened, notably by climate change. Climate change is expected to push more than 100 million people back into extreme poverty by 2030, while more than 200 million people will be displaced as natural catastrophes become more frequent and severe.
CLIMATE CHANGE CONTRIBUTION TO POVERTY
Destruction of Livelihoods and Families
A fast way to poverty is an attack on source of livelihood. Families' livelihoods are destroyed by withered crops and starved animals. The scale and character of these livelihood contributions are susceptible to climate change, and rural communities in developing nations rely on a combination of agriculture, forest extraction, and other revenue sources for their livelihoods. Families with limited means are fighting an uphill struggle against poverty every day. The consequences are especially severe for people who rely on farming for their livelihood and nourishment. Most times families fight for accessible arable land, which can lead to conflict among communities. Disjointed families can also result as relatives migrate in pursuit of jobs. Droughts can last for months or years, wreak havoc on food supply and deplete water resources.
Because climate change has an impact on everything from where people may live to access to health care, millions of people may be pushed farther into poverty as environmental circumstances worsen. This is particularly true for the impoverished in low-income nations. Climate change not only exacerbates disparities inside a country, but it also further stratifies international relations since some countries are more vulnerable than others.
Displacement of people
Environmental threats, such as sea level rise and natural catastrophes, might displace as many as 1 billion people. Displacement may force a person into poverty by robbing them of their home, job, and social connections. Many displaced persons are unable to bring their previous assets with them to their new environment. They also struggle to find job and restore their stability. By 2030, climate change might force an estimated 100 million people in developing nations into poverty.
Destruction of Homes and Infrastructures
People's homes are flattened or swept away by hurricanes, floods, and landslides. Hurricane Maria smashed into Puerto Rico in 2017, killing 3,000 people and making it the worst hurricane in US history. The island is still recuperating from the calamity more than four years later. This devastated the island's economy as homes had to be repaired and rebuilt, water supplies had to be restored while schools and hospitals were shut down.
Poor Resources for Adaptation
Climate change may have an impact on the number of individuals who fall into poverty. Many of the shocks that force people into poverty are linked to the environment and climate, either directly or indirectly. Poor individuals have less resources to fall back on and are less adaptable. However, because impoverished people's assets and income account for such a small proportion of national wealth, their losses, however significant, are mostly invisible in aggregate economic statistics.
Health Shocks
According to the WHO, health shocks are a key driver of poverty that might be exacerbated by climate change, with 100 million people falling into poverty each year. The consequence is that even minor shifts in illness distribution and burden will have an influence on the number of individuals who fall into poverty.
Reduced Asset Accumulation
Climate change may have an impact on the flow of individuals seeking to escape poverty. Asset accumulation is a major driver of poverty reduction and would be slowed as a result of lower income owing to lower agricultural yield and asset losses due to natural catastrophes, decreasing poverty alleviation. Natural disasters can have an impact on human capital, which is an important component of capital accumulation, particularly for young individuals who may be forced to drop out of school or suffer long-term health implications.
Negative Economic Investments
Environmental hazards might keep people poor by influencing their behavior. As a result of the increased frequency and intensity of droughts brought on by climate change, poverty reduction may be hampered by a disincentive to save and invest. People may decide to invest less if the increasing possibility of drought makes investments riskier, making it harder for them to overcome poverty.
Breakdown of Agricultural Systems
Land degradation, including soil erosion and desertification, is being caused by poor land management policies and unsustainable development, hastening the harmful consequences of climate change. Furthermore, rising temperatures, shifting rainfall patterns, and greater water scarcity are rendering enormous swaths of land unfit for food cultivation. Over 1.3 billion people, largely in poor countries, are stranded on degraded agricultural land, putting them at risk of slow-onset calamities including drought, desertification, food insecurity, and even starvation.
CLIMATE ACTIONS TO ALLEVIATE POVERTY
Addressing Climate Actions in the SDGs
According to UNDP, incorporating adaptation measures into sustainable development and poverty-reduction plans is the best strategy to address climate changes consequences on the poor. Building synergies between the respective SDG 1 target 1.3, which aims to "implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all", and target 1.5 which aims to "build the resilience of the poor and vulnerable and reduce their exposure and vulnerability to climate-related extreme events and other economic, social, and environmental shocks and disasters" is critical in this regard.
Integration of Climate Impacts into Macroeconomic Projections.
Poverty eradication relies on the rate and pattern of economic growth, and climatic conditions can have a significant impact on both. Integration will prevent climate change from diverting scarce resources away from long-term development goals and onto catastrophe relief and recovery initiatives. The fundamental strategy for identifying climate change risks and incorporating risk management into national budgets should be to give adequate flexibility in the face of unpredictability.
Involvement of Development and Environment Agencies
These agencies must make certain that their efforts contribute to the main streaming of climate challenges into overall sustainable development. This necessitates a sector-wide review of existing programs, as well as examination of existing disaster reduction and preparedness programs to make the most of their ability to assess and reduce current vulnerabilities, development of tools and methodologies for risk planning, management and staff training and the improvement of institutional processes to address the poor's vulnerability in development programs.
Reducing the Vulnerability of Those Most at Risk
Adapting to the effects of climate change and mainstreaming adaptation into poverty reduction would, in many situations, need significant external financial resources. These money would have to be raised through a variety of routes, including bilateral, multilateral, and non-governmental development aid.
Social Protection Systems
Social Protection Systems play an important role in poverty alleviation and can also assist the disadvantaged improve climate resilience. According to UNDP SPS strategies which include subsidies which can help impacted communities improve their food and water security and job-creating programs which are centered on climate-resilient infrastructure. Other adaptive social protection (ASP) approaches involve solutions like cash transfers before and after natural disasters to help communities anticipate, absorb, and adapt to climate risk.
Sources
Hallegatte, S., Fay, M., & Barbier, E. (2018). Poverty and climate change: Introduction to Environment and Development Economics, 23(3), 217-233. doi:10.1017/S1355770X18000141
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