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Climate Change, Agriculture Adaptation, and Sustainability

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Climate Resilience and Environmental Sustainability Approaches

Abstract

Climate change is widely accepted as the single most pressing issue facing society on a global basis due to the increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. GHG emissions growth between 2000 and 2010 has been larger than in the previous three decades. Hence, each of the past 3 decades has been successively warmer than the preceding decades since 1850. Continued emissions of greenhouse gases will cause further warming and changes in the climate system. Agriculture is one of the important economic sectors of the global society and climate change/variability is having a profound influence on the agroecosystems, posing serious threats to food security, human health, and protection of the environment. Of the total annual crop losses in world agriculture, many are due to increasing frequency and magnitude of weather and climate extremes such as droughts, flash floods, untimely rains, frost, hail, and severe storms. Agricultural impacts from natural events and disasters most commonly include alteration of ecosystems, contamination of water bodies, loss of harvest or livestock, increased susceptibility to disease, and destruction of irrigation systems and other agricultural infrastructures. Between 2003 and 2013, natural hazards and disasters in the developing regions affected more than 1.9 billion people and resulted in nearly 500 million US dollars in estimated damage. Effective decision-making to limit climate change and ensure economic development of agriculture sector can be made by a wide range of analytical approaches for evaluating expected risks and benefits; recognizing the importance of governance, ethical dimensions, equity, value judgments, economic assessments, and diverse perceptions and responses to risk and uncertainty. Comprehensive agrometeorological adaptation policy guidelines, focusing on preparedness and adaptation measures to support sustainable agricultural development are needed to cope with the impacts of climate change. The major international agreements in 2015, such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Paris Agreement, to which almost all countries are now committed, emphasize that countries should implement policies aimed at climate change adaptation, and greater sustainability in the agricultural sector.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. 27 Chemin des Corbillettes, Cointrin, Geneva, Switzerland

    Mannava Sivakumar

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  1. Mannava Sivakumar
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Correspondence to Mannava Sivakumar .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University School of Environment Management, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi, India

    Anubha Kaushik

  2. Environment Committee, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Delhi, India

    C. P. Kaushik

  3. India Meteorological Department, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, Delhi, India

    S. D. Attri

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Sivakumar, M. (2021). Climate Change, Agriculture Adaptation, and Sustainability. In: Kaushik, A., Kaushik, C.P., Attri, S.D. (eds) Climate Resilience and Environmental Sustainability Approaches. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-0902-2_6

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