The Globally Integrated Environmental Assessment Modeling (GLEAM) initiative is an example of the UNU Institute for Sustainability and Peace integrated assessment methodology which explicitly incorporates linkages between environmental, economic and social domains.
A GLEAM research project — Impacts of Atmospheric Brown Cloud (ABC) on Agriculture and Power Sectors in Sri Lanka — developed an Action Impact Matrix (AIM) to determine how water-using sectors will affect national development goals or policies and affect climate change.
Atmospheric aerosols and rainfall modeling fed into climate change modeling while crop yield modeling helped predict its effect on agriculture production. Measuring impacts on rice production and yield patterns contributed to local level climate change assessments and the design of adaptation strategies.
Focus areas:
Adaptation
Regions covered:
Global
Participating entities:
WMO, UNESCO
Results:
UNU-IAS Policy Report: Biofuels and Ecosystem Services (forthcoming)
The IPCC has identified local knowledge as an important missing element in its previous assessments and a focus for its next assessment process. The UNU-IAS Traditional Knowledge Initiative looks at this important area.
GEIC is a joint initiative between the United Nations University and the Minstry of the Environment, Japan.
Links
On 7 December 2009, the international community will gather at a conference in Copenhagen to try to find a solution to the gravest danger our planet faces: climate change.
Global Dashboard, edited by David Steven and Alex Evans, offers insightful analysis of vital issues including climate change, the food crisis, and human security. Be sure to read their article Climate Change: The State of the Debate(PDF).
