Human adaptation to climate change in the context of forests: A systematic review

Fischer, A. P., Shah, M. A. R., Segnon, A. C., Matavel, C., Antwi-Agyei, P., Shang, Y., Muir, M., Kaufmann, R. and The Global Adaptation Mapping Team, (2023) Human adaptation to climate change in the context of forests: A systematic review. Climate Risk Management, 43, 100573. (doi: 10.1016/j.crm.2023.100573)

Abstract

We assessed how people adapt to climate change in the context of forests through a systematic review of the international empirical research literature. We found that drought, precipitation variability, extreme precipitation and flooding, and extreme heat were the climatic stressors to which responses were most frequently documented. Individuals and households received the most research attention, followed by national government, civil society, and local government. Europe and North America were the geographic foci of more research than other regions. Behavioral responses were more reported than technical and infrastructural responses and institutional responses. Within these types of responses, actors used a wide variety of practices such as replanting, altering species composition, and adopting or changing technology. Adaptation efforts in early planning and advanced implementation received some attention, but early implementation and expanding implementation were most reported. While connections between responses and risk reduction were discussed, there is limited evidence of risk reduction. Our review contributes to the scholarly and practical understanding of how people adapt to climate change in the context of forests. The review also identifies opportunities for future research on adaptation to other climatic stressors, such as wildfires and tree pests and pathogens, adaptation in other geographic areas, especially Oceania, and adaptation by actors beyond the individual and household level and through institutional adaptation efforts.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: Jiren Xu is a member of The Global Adaptation Mapping Team. ACS is funded by the Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) project, funded by the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Xu, Dr Jiren
• Authors: Fischer, A. P., Shah, M. A. R., Segnon, A. C., Matavel, C., Antwi-Agyei, P., Shang, Y., Muir, M., Kaufmann, R., and The Global Adaptation Mapping Team,
• Subjects: G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GE Environmental Sciences
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social & Environmental Sustainability
• Journal Name: Climate Risk Management
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 2212-0963
• ISSN (Online): 2212-0963
• Published Online: 17 November 2023
• Copyright Holders: Copyright: © 2023 The Author(s)
• First Published: First published in Climate Risk Management 43: 100573
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence