Towards a Formal Framework of Vulnerability to Climate Change |
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Authors: | Cezar Ionescu Richard J T Klein Jochen Hinkel K S Kavi Kumar Rupert Klein |
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Institution: | 1. Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, P.O. Box 601203, 14412, Potsdam, Germany 2. Stockholm Environment Institute, Kr?ftriket 2B, 106 91, Stockholm, Sweden 3. Madras School of Economics, Gandhi Mandapam Road, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 600025, India 4. Freie Universit?t Berlin, Arnimallee 2-6, 14195, Berlin, Germany
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Abstract: | There is confusion regarding the notion of “vulnerability” in the climate change scientific community. Recent research has
identified a need for formalisation, which would support accurate communication and the elimination of misunderstandings that
result from the use of ambiguous terminology. Moreover, a formal framework of vulnerability is a prerequisite for computational
approaches to its assessment. This paper presents an attempt at developing such a formal framework. We see vulnerability as
a relative concept in the sense that accurate statements about vulnerability are possible only if one clearly specifies (1)
the entity that is vulnerable, (2) the stimulus to which it is vulnerable and (3) the preference criteria to evaluate the
outcome of the interaction between the entity and the stimulus. We relate the resulting framework to the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change conceptualisation of vulnerability and two recent vulnerability studies.
This paper is dedicated to the memory of Gerhard Petschel-Held, whose pioneering work on syndromes of global change has been
a source of inspiration for us and for others across various schools of thought on vulnerability. |
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Keywords: | Vulnerability Adaptive capacity Climate change Formalisation System theory |
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