Extreme weather events like these comprise just one category of the climate-change-driven risks that companies and governments are beginning to plan for. Others include water scarcity, sea-level rise, fuel shortages and shifting migratory patterns. To help companies and governments gauge which of these risks are most relevant to them, and figure out what they can do about it, a new breed of experts — climate adaptation specialists — is beginning to emerge.
Over the past few years, climate adaptation has become a field, separate from climate mitigation, which focuses on reducing emissions and minimizing carbon footprints. Climate adaptation experts now head up new adaptation practices at consulting firms or lead sustainability teams for companies and government offices. Although climate mitigation is still far more common and better funded, climate adaptation is having a moment.
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Nike and Verizon are just two companies that have taken a bad experience with extreme weather and turned it into an opportunity to better understand and plan for climate-related risk. According to Ryan Schuchard, associate director of climate change for Business for Social Responsibility, an increasing number of companies around the world are now tackling climate adaptation in a meaningful way.
“HP, Levi’s, The Gap, Starbucks, Green Mountain Coffee — they’ve all got big efforts underway, and then Swiss RE and the insurance industry in general is really focused on this,” he says. “Oil and gas companies are paradoxically interested in looking at these issues as well, and utilities definitely are as well, especially with respect to water.”
Read more at Climate Adaptation Experts Help Prepare for Disaster
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