The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

Bangladesh is already affected by the global climate change impacts and fears to be hit even harder in coming years. This changing climate has shown its devastative power on November 15 as the super cyclone Sidr, left trail of destruction all over the south and southwestern coast of Bangladesh.

According to current scientific climate change understanding, survival for countries like Bangladesh and its people will be under serious threat from changing climate, over the coming decades. Extreme weather and events like cyclone, flood and storm surges will intensify and become more frequent and unpredictable. As its impact, temperature changes and rainfall pattern will be significant, with grave implications on our natural resource, putting agriculture and related livelihood at serious risk.

As Bangladesh is going through the cyclone aftermath, the concerned experts have forecast more drought and fresh foods, untimely hailstorm more frequently.

In addition, changes that take place gradually over years and sometimes decades, such as salinity intrusion, desertification and sea level rise will compound our risks and national development goals, particularly poverty reduction, experts added.

Considering all these aspects, adaptation strategies are seriously being discussed in Bangladesh and rest of the world.

Super cyclone Sidr appeared as an eye opener to many countries, particularly when Bali Conference gets off to a start.

Australia's newly elected leader Kevin Rudd made global warming a priority for his government. "Newly elected leader Kevin Rudd moved quickly to bring Australia into international talks on fighting global warming, and to head off potentially thorny relations with the United States and key Asian neighbors," reported Associated Press.

The day after sweeping to power in general elections, Rudd went straight into work mode, holding meetings with government officials about the mechanics of signing the Kyoto Protocol on cutting greenhouse gas emissions, as reported.

Britain's Prime Minister calls for new climate change targets as well. Prime Minister Brown of Britain said he is determined to raise Britain's already ambitious targets for cutting carbon emissions and to push the nation to the forefront of global efforts to tackle climate change, AP reported. Britain has already committed to cutting carbon emissions by 60% of 1990 levels by 2050, though lawmakers have warned that the country will likely miss a steppingstone target of a 20% reduction by 2010.

The Canadian government set aside 25 million acres of wilderness, about 11 times the size of Yellowstone National Park, for conservation. Its is explained as a move that environmentalists called one of North America's most important acts of nature preservation.

Beside that, over a 100 Million trees are to be planted in Rwanda, announced by the Ministry of Lands, Environment, Forestry, Water and Mines during the annual tree-planting campaign that started last month.

UNDP has indicated ten extensive points in order to enhance communicating climate risk and adaptation. The recommendations are-

1. Develop relationships and understand specific/local setting

2. Work with the stakeholders/community to identify problems, solutions and actions

3. Identify concerned (community) groups and stakeholders

4. Identify communication needs, objectives and activities

5. Identify appropriate communication tools

6. Prepare and pre-test communication content and materials

7. Facilitate and build partnerships

8. Produce an implementation plan

9. Monitor, evaluate and document

10. Plan the sharing and utilize materials

The Climate Change Cell, under the department of Environment, GOB has established a mechanism that facilitates management of long-term climate risks and uncertainties as an integral part of national development planning.

Specific aims of the cell are to build the capacity of the government to coordinate & mainstream, to strengthen existing knowledge & information accessibility and awareness-raising, advocacy & coordination.

The Cell is currently engaged with the following activities:

Awareness raising, informing, influencing, capacity building and partnership building with agencies across the sectors and facilitating horizontal and vertical coordination.

Focal points in 34 Government agencies and academic institutions established and provided capacity building training.

Mainstreaming Climate Risk Management and leading to Climate resilient development: country framework to mainstream climate risk management and adaptation developed.

Climate impact prediction, projections of hazard scenarios, Conceptualization and Vulnerability assessment, damage assessment, environment cost of the climate changes.

Adaptation research to find options: Climate change cell supports adaptation research to find options for climate risk management and adaptation through facilitating demand driven research identification and implementation. The broader user community shall have access to these results in planning their sectoral or any level planning.

Models of good practice in CRM and adaptation: Climate Change Cell also documents good practices in risk management and adapting to climate change to promote replication

as option to CRM and adaptation.

Beside that, the Climate Change Cell collects, generate , archive and manage data, information and knowledge and provide support and services in making knowledge based decision to all stakeholders.

A Climate Change Database and a Library has been established that archives not only data but also reports and study findings in the arena of the climate change.

The cell also promotes partnership with both government and non-government agencies to service long term and immediate needs.

In this respect, a total of 34 focal points have been established in different government agencies, academic institutes, research institutes and organizations. Government officers including the Focal Points have been provided orientation on climate change concerns and responses.