DNA reveals the past and future of coral reefs
New DNA techniques are being used to understand how coral reacted to the end of the last ice age in order to better predict how they will cope with current changes to the climate. James Cook Univer
From 2005 to 2022, the main node of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies was headquartered at James Cook University in Townsville, Queensland (Australia)
ABSTRACT
Climate change loss and damage is known as the “third pillar” of international climate governance in addition to mitigation and adaptation. Although there is no agreed upon definition, loss and damage is typically considered residual slow and sudden-onset climate change impacts beyond social and natural adaptation limits. Australia is both a major emitter of greenhouse gases and highly vulnerable to climate change, especially in relation to extreme events. The science of extreme event attribution, in which specific climate extremes are mathematically determined to be exacerbated by climate forcing or not, has matured over the last decade and was central to the IPCC’s AR6 WG1 report. Whilst climate change is considered an ojective truth, culture, values and lived experiences mediate people’s perceptions of weather and climate. For example, what may be considered a climate-extreme driven loss for one may be viewed as inconsequential by another. This seminar will discuss my recent ethnographic research on the perceptions and experiences of climate change loss and damage amongst a purposeful range of actors in northern Australia, focusing on Cairns, Darwin and Townsville. I will discuss, among other things, whether people are experiencing economic or non-economic losses and damages, the limitations and benefits of the concept, and situate the findings within broader international climate research, policy, and politics.
BIOGRAPHY
New DNA techniques are being used to understand how coral reacted to the end of the last ice age in order to better predict how they will cope with current changes to the climate. James Cook Univer
A new study on the effects of climate change in five tropical countries has found fisheries are in more trouble than agriculture, and poor people are in the most danger. Distinguished Profess
James Cook University researchers have found brightly coloured fish are becoming increasingly rare as coral declines, with the phenomenon likely to get worse in the future. Christopher Hemingson, a
Researchers working with stakeholders in the Great Barrier Reef region have come up with ideas on how groups responsible for looking after the reef can operate more effectively when the next bleaching
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