Interview a Friend: How are extreme climate events perceived by the public?

19th November 2022

Xander Steijlen, 28 years old, from the Netherlands 


 What do you remember about past extreme weather events or changing weather patterns that have affected our community?  

Personally, not much as I've grown up in the NL which is not such an affected region by extreme events oppositely to how could be for example the tropics.
I remember my parents talking about the 1954 water disaster in the province of Zeeland, where the sea came in through the tides and destroyed public and private infrastructure. After this event, the country adapted its governmental policies to create regulations on sea level rise, investing a lot of tax moneys into improving dams, reinforcing dikes and dunes, 
flattening river bottoms. Overall, the country took a mindshift change towards a higher climate change sensitivity.
Nowadays, the effect of climate change on SLR has not affected the NL yet harshly, however, if it's not seen it does not mean the government is not putting a lot of effort in protecting the country against water level rise. An example of investment is the gates in the Zeeland to protect the coastline, with such technology, extreme weather events are not so visible to the population as they would be/have been before.

 Which societal groups are most affected by changing weather and why?  

In the NL for sure the lower income people are hit most financially in terms of house reconstruction and damage compensation, however, the government has as well a strong presence in helping the population through welfare.
For sure globally, I would assume the most affected regions are the island communities where SLR is rising quite fast and visibly. I could also guess that in such areas government support is very limited, which therefore lead these peoples to take as well the biggest hit on climate change produced by more developed countries. 
If you talk about social groups affected the most, in NL the farmers are at the top. Climate reports a few years ago showed that cattle farming must be reduced by 50% in NL, in order to enforce this the government is trying to incentify people to stop farming by taking away their farms and buying them out. Heavy protests are ongoing in the highways which are being blocked by tractors. 
As a result, the government is highly suffering by trying to re-negotiate policies regularly, considering as well that the majority party, the VVD, is a liberal one supported mostly by middle class people, including a big part of farmers.

 What social protections are available (or not) for these groups? Which local places, buildings or infrastructure are most at risk?  

Specifically in NL, there is for example some major gas drilling in the North of the country which causes Earthquakes, the government agreed to fully stop extracting the gas and compensate people for the housing damages. This would as well represent what would be the consequences for most people in NL as a compensation from climate change extreme events.

 What other challenges may we face from climate change? Who can help us get better prepared?  

I'm a strong believer in international cooperation and especially within the framework of the EU we must create a cohesive set of legally binding regulations, which the national governments can adopt singularly according to their needs of adaptation. As a forerunner, the EU can be an example for the global community, in order for the UN itself afterwards to push the same framework of implementation and cooperation to achieve certain targets.
As a last thought, given the recent events of protests on art, it comes naturally to me to think of the dogmatic climate activists. It is my opinion, that these groups are making it even more difficult to implement global climate policies. The result of these protests is a polarization of the public opinion in favour of climate skepticals by feeding to their climate negativity and skepticism towards climate change supporters; not considering the impact on the works of art. 


In conclusion, drawing from Xander's consideration, it is very clear that people, even if not directly impacted by climate change, are increasing their awareness on what is happening in the world as well as its consequences and possible future projections.
Moreover, the media are increasingly reporting about climate change events and discoveries with high confidence in the phenomenon, which also supported the change of public opinion.
The Netherlands, as discussed above, is definitely a forerunner in the fight against climate change, compared for example to other Southern EU States where politics is still too fragmented on adaptation measures at national level. Thinking as well of my personal experience being grown up in a farmers family, NL represents a world leader in sustainable farming being the second-largest exporter of agriculture in the world, after the United States. With their advanced technology and heavy investments, they were able to achieve great progress in terms of hydroponic system to use less water or geothermal energy to heat their greenhouses.



Commenti

Posta un commento

Post popolari in questo blog

Italy and its Protected Areas

Immagine
  Italy presents a highly diversified and complex network of protected areas which cover around 21.5% of terrestrial territory and 8.8% of marine territory (UNEP-WCMC and IUCN 2023). Nonetheless, these areas are continuously reported as lacking of appropriate financing which leads to poor management plans resulting with the inability to protect the areas from illegal activities, such as pastures, tourism or fishing (WWF Italia 2018).  During an investigation by WWF Italia in 2018 where protected areas personnel itself responded to a survey exploring the current status of Italian Protected Areas, respondents highlighted some key points of development regarding risks and opportunities (WWF Italia 2018).  First of all, the main threat for Italian Protected Areas, especially Marine territories, is identified with Climate Change as the leading problem, followed by littering, naval traffic, illegal fishing or poaching and invasion of alien species (WWF Italia 2018).  To re...
Continua a leggere

Umbrella Species as a Conservation Practice: Benefits and Limitations

Immagine
An umbrella species in the context of ecology and biodiversity is defined by the Oxford Reference as "a species of plant or animal that has a large home range and broad habitat requirements, both of which overlap with other species, so that if it is given a large enough area for its own protection the other species will also benefit" (Park 2012). They represent a shortcut for the maintenance of biodiversity considering the consistent limitations on finance, knowledge and time for action (Roberge 2004). However, the adoption of umbrella species as conservation practice is equivocal based on the empirical data of its effectiveness (Thornton 2016).  This tool is useful in determining the minimum size for conservation areas, selecting the sites to be included in reserve networks and setting minimum standards for composition and processes of ecosystems (Roberge 2004).  When charismatic umbrella species are selected, they can also become a representative surrogate for sympatric spe...
Continua a leggere

Just Transitions for Energy and Climate

Immagine
Even though the line of energy development is often considered a linear conventional transition towards an increasingly more technological future, this worldview omits the factors of uncertainty , human behaviour, cultural differences and diverse societal norms all together which sometimes lead to a more complex relationship between prosperity and sustainability (Jasanoff 2018). Moreover, the identification of self bias by academic communities with regard to dynamic or uncertain scientific aspects in nowadays model making, such as diverse background, values and beliefs, would allow a more perceptive and aware utilization and/or development of new and/or existing technologies (Jasanoff 2018). "That reflexivity could become the doorway to a Second Enlightenment, a stage of self-awareness in which we deploy both our knowledge and our doubts more wisely" (Jasanoff 2018). The disparity of local scales of governance along with the development efforts needed for downscaling national...
Continua a leggere