Environment, Science and Development (ESD)
The goal of the ESD program is to enhance our understanding of societal capacity to adapt to climate in the context of integrated environment, science and development issues. The program is designed to stimulate and support solution-oriented, place-based research most relevant to the influence of climate on development objectives and disaster preparedness. ESD seeks to apply this knowledge to improve the institutional, scientific and technical capacity needed to successfully apply climate information to practical challenges associated with sustainable development.
The ESD program builds on a decade of previous studies in Africa, Latin
America and the Caribbean, Southeast Asia and
the Pacific Islands. These applications research projects
took a region-specific approach to integrated programs of research, institutional
development and capacity building, with support provided through a variety
of funding mechanisms and partnerships with regional, national and international
organizations.
Grants
Knowledge Systems for Sustainable Development
Climate Forecast Applications for Disaster
Mitigation in Vietnam -
Climate-related shocks, such as droughts, floods and typhoons, routinely
disrupt livelihood systems for large numbers of people in Vietnam, resulting
in frequent disasters.
Building Climate Information in Central America:
Agroclimatic Forecast Interpretations for the 2004 Season - Central America suffers from
extremes of climate variability, with a limited societal capacity to
mitigate these effects.
Abstract: The Knowledge
Systems for Sustainable Development (KSSD) Project, http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/kssd,
seeks to understand and promote the design of effective systems
to harness research-based
knowledge in support of decisions bearing on the joint goals of
human development and environmental stewardship – i.e., on goals
of sustainability. more...
Workshop on
El Nino Early Warning for Sustainable Development in the Pacific
Rim Countries and Islands (13-16 September 2004; Galapagos
Islands, Ecuador) - With support from NOAA and several other agencies,
the Centro Internacional para la Investigación del Fenómeno
de El Niño, CIIFEN (Guayaquil, Ecuador) and the National Center
for Atmospheric Research (Boulder, Colorado) are organizing a workshop
entitled “El Niño Early Warning for Sustainable Development
in Pacific Rim Countries and Islands” more...
Abstract: Seasonal Climate Prediction and
Management of the Panama Canal: Estimating the Benefits of Using
Climate Forecast
Information - We use hydrologic
modeling and a simplified decision support system to investigate
the benefits of using climate forecast information
for the management of the Panama Canal. more...
|