List of terms Adaptive capacity is the ability of a system to adjust to climate change (including climate variability and extremes), to moderate potential damages, to take advantage of opportunities, or to cope with the consequences. Climate change: According to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the term ‘climate change’ refers to a change of climate that is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere more than natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods. Climate change adaptation refers to responses to the impacts of climate change. The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines adaptation as “adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climatic stimuli or their effects, which moderates harm or exploits beneficial opportunities.” Adaptation can also be thought of as the ongoing process of managing risks related to the changing climate. Climate change impacts: This term refers to the effects of climate change on natural and human systems across sectors and/or regions. Measures of impacts might include, for example, the total number of people affected or total economic costs. Climate change mitigation is any action taken to permanently eliminate or reduce the long-term risks and hazards of climate change to human life and property. The IPCC defines mitigation as “an anthropogenic intervention to reduce the sources or enhance the sinks of greenhouse gases.” Climate proofing is an action taken by an organisation (i.e. government agency) to verify that certain policy, programme or investment will not affect adversely parallel efforts taken to mitigate or adapt to the changing climate. Disaster risk reduction: The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) defines ‘disaster risk reduction (DRR) as a strategy for identifying various types of loss from disasters—e.g. loss of life, health status, livelihoods, assets and services within a given area. Through various prevention tools and methods, disaster risk reduction (DRR) aims to limit or reduce the damage caused by earthquakes, floods, droughts, cyclones and other natural events. Green infrastructure is the network of natural and semi-natural areas, features and green spaces in rural and urban, terrestrial, freshwater, coastal and marine areas, which together enhance ecosystem health and resilience, contribute to biodiversity conservation and benefit human populations through the maintenance and enhancement of ecosystem services. Greenhouse gases are gaseous constituents of the atmosphere, both natural and anthropogenic, which absorb and emit radiation at specific wavelengths within the spectrum of thermal infrared radiation emitted by the Earth's surface, the atmosphere itself, and by clouds. This property causes the greenhouse effect. Water vapour (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4) and ozone (O3) are the primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere. Low-carbon economy is characterised by low energy consumption, low pollution and low emissions. The fundamental aim is to achieve high-energy efficiency, to use clean/renewable energy and to pursue green economic development via technological innovation. Resilience is the ability of a social or ecological system to absorb disturbances while retaining the same basic structure and ways of functioning, the capacity for self-organisation, and the capacity to adapt to stress and change. Synergies are results of cooperation and coordination among various projects, which are greater than the sum of the individual results. Vulnerability refers to the extent to which a system is susceptible to, or unable to cope with, the adverse effects of climate change, including climate variability and extremes. It depends not only on a system’s sensitivity but also on its adaptive capacity.
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