Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation

Colour photograph showing a coherent corridor of anthropogenic (man-made) haze, approximately 200 Km wide, over the East China Sea. This photograph was taken from the U.S. Space Shuttle, on 4th March 1996. Click to enlarge.

CIB W108: Climate Change & the Built Environment

A Working Commission of CIB (International Council for Research and Innovation in Building & Construction) … W108 is an international, multi-stakeholder, trans-disciplinary forum for discussion, and action, on research and innovation in Climate Change (including Variability & Extremes) and the Built Environment.

All aspects of Built Environment Performance, where these may be affected by Climate Change, fall within the scope of W108. It is necessary, therefore, to continue to expand and strengthen the Commission’s Membership in order to attract not only environmental researchers, but the many disciplines relating to building design, materials and structures, infrastructure, service utilities, as well as construction operations. There is also a need to develop a close relationship with other CIB Working Commissions and Task Groups devoted to those specialist areas.

W108′s Aims & Objectives

To establish a forum for exchanging meteorological data, climate change scenarios, research findings, and formulating joint research projects which examine the climate change impacts on construction and the built environment, and measures to anticipate and ameliorate such impacts.
To facilitate the transfer of data and research findings to practitioners, with the aim of influencing building design and adaptation, and the revision of relevant standards, codes and specifications so that these adequately take account of the potential impacts of climate change.
To be a vehicle for sourcing funds for collaborative research into the impacts of climate change on the built environment.

CIB W108′s Co-Ordinator

Mr. Jean-Luc Salagnac, Centre Scientifique & Technique du Bâtiment (CSTB), France.

W108 Membership

Members of this Working Commission have to be either a Representative of a CIB Member Organisation or an Individual CIB Member.

CIB Newsletter (December 2009): W108 WebPage

Click the Link Above to read and/or download PDF File (255kb)

CIB W108 International Project – 2010 Publication

‘Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation in the Built Environment’

Adaptation to Climate Change is Urgent …

… Reliable Implementation is the Challenge !

2010 World Building Congress in Manchester, England

Overhead Presentation on CIB W108 Project Issues & Concepts - PDF File, 721kb

Click the Links Above & Below to read and/or download the PDF Files

Technical Paper on ‘Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation’ – PDF File, 174kb

Important Definitions:

Climate Change Adaptation: Generally … encompasses urgent and immediate short, near and long-term actions at local, national, regional and international levels to reduce the vulnerability and strengthen the resilience of the Human Environment, including ecological and social systems, institutions and economic sectors … to present and future adverse effects of climate change and the impacts of response measure implementation … in order to minimize the local threats to life, human health, livelihoods, food security, assets, amenities, ecosystems and sustainable development.

Built Environment Adaptation to Climate Change: More specifically … means reliably implementing policies, practices, projects and institutional reforms in the Built Environment … with the aim of reducing the adverse impacts and/or realizing the benefits directly/indirectly associated with climate change, including variability and extremes … in a manner which is compatible with Sustainable Human and Social Development.

Aspects of Sustainable Human & Social Development

Environmental ;

Social ;

Economic ;

Institutional ;

Political ;

Legal.

[These different Aspects will also serve as a valuable checklist for CIB W108's work.]

Time Periods

Short Term ……………………. up to and including 2020

Near Term …………………….. from 2021 to 2035

Long Term …………………….. up to 2100 and beyond

Project Introduction

Asked directly, at a Dublin meeting, about how the relationship between Climate Change and Sustainable Development had been dealt with in the 2007 WMO/UNEP Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 4th Assessment Report – where it was mentioned almost as an afterthought – Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, IPCC Chair, replied that he was personally disappointed that something more substantial had not been done to explore this link. He seemed surprised to receive the question.

The 2009 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Summit, which was held in Copenhagen from 7th-19th December, was chaotic … and its outcome was divisive. Since then, it has been particularly noticeable that the IPCC, Dr. Pachauri’s position within that organization, and the Science of Climate Change itself … have all been targeted by an increasing number of vocal sceptics in Developed Countries, particularly the U.S.A. If anything is clear, it is that the Politics of Climate Change must now be carefully dissected and analyzed before an effective global response to Climate Change can be properly mobilized and reliably implemented.

Learning from these events, the urgent priority for those organizations/individuals involved in the design, construction, management or operation of the Built Environment … is to quickly elaborate a Climate Change Strategy which is ‘politically’ and ‘technically’ appropriate for the near and long-terms … while, at the same time, avoiding any short-term roadblocks to progress.

Initiated at a June 2008 Meeting of CIB Working Commission 108: ‘Climate Change and the Built Environment’ in Nantes, France … W108′s current International Project on Climate Change, including Variability and Extremes, will result in the publication of its own Report: ‘Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation in the Built Environment’, during 2010.

The W108 Report will comprise 2 Parts:

I - International Synthesis on Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation ;
II – National Perspectives on Sustainable Climate Change Adaptation.

Part 1: International Synthesis

a) Introduction

b) Built Environment & Climate Change: the urgency of adapting and the challenge of reliable implementation

c) Relationship between Sustainable Development & Built Environment Adaptation

d) Climate Change Issues: what might change ?

e) Existing Climate Change Mitigation Measures: aim and limits (examples presented at CIB W108 Meetings)

f) Relationship & Coherency of Adaptation & Mitigation Measures: synergies and contradictions

g) Bibliography

h) Glossary of Terms

Part 2: National Perspectives

Each National Chapter will aim to present the up-to-date situation with regard to:

meteorological data on national/regional/local climate change, climate variability and climate extremes – indicating short, medium & long-term future trends ;
local most frequent/serious climate-related hazards – already (or not yet ?) identified ;
proposed/implemented climate change mitigation measures: public/private initiatives on Kyoto greenhouse gas (CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, HFC’s, PFC’s, SF₆) emission reductions ;
proposed/implemented built environment adaptation measures: public/private initiatives ;
relationship & coherency of mitigation and adaptation measures ;
monitoring and targeting of built environment adaptation performance – performance indicators, benchmarking, technical control, etc ;
necessary improvements to spatial planning/design/construction approaches ;
the role of specific actors, e.g. insurance, research, design professions, industry ;
institutional arrangements at national/regional/local levels ;
national/local legislation ;
protection of vulnerable social groups.

The challenge facing CIB W108 is not to reproduce what everyone else is doing … but to bring fresh, interesting and innovative ideas to our work. Ideally, therefore, a National Chapter should be short and concise, referring to annexes/external information sources and using links to websites, etc.