Critical hydrologic impacts from climate change: addressing an urgent global need

Abstract

Rapid and wide-ranging eforts need to be launched to support and improve community resilience to now unavoidable climate changes at all regional scales. Eforts at mitigating greenhouse gases must accelerate in all sectors including agriculture, land use, and land use change and forestry, with restoration and conservation of ecosystems key to restoring the hydrologic cycle and water resources. But adaptation is no longer a secondary option. Governments at all levels need to anticipate converging threats and invest in economic, scientifc, and policy responses. In particular, much greater and more urgent attention needs to be applied to the severe and escalating hydrologic impacts being driven by cli mate change, especially for the most vulnerable communities. Needed actions include expanding access to local infor mation about climate impacts, new fnancial investments and tools for local adaptation, education around both risks and adaptation strategies, global support to de-risk initiatives that invest in resilience where it is most needed, and provision of the resources to implement on-the-ground actions consistent with justice. Current eforts are inadequate at all scales given the rapid rate of changes now occurring and the extensive and wide spread risks. In particular, beginning at COP-28, it is that national leaders pledge to protect, resource, and support actions to help the most vulnerable populations, notably in the drylands, to buil resilience to the mounting challenges of climate change